Have you heard the story of Mark and Mike? They are the two most crooked, most arrogant, most vile sons-of-bitches ever to wear a black robe and preside over a court of law. Mark Ciavarella Jr. and Michael Conahan were two Luzerne County judges who have been charged with taking $2.6 million in kickbacks to house juvenile offenders in private detention centers. Both have signed plea agreements and are awaiting their sentencing, which could be up to 7 years in federal prison.
What is so disgusting about this story is the fact that we entrusted them to uphold the Constitution of the United States and issue judgments that are fair and without prejudice. They took an oath, but greed overpowered that oath and they went down a crooked path that turned them into the lowest of the low. They are sincerely the scum of the earth. Mark and Mike remanded juvenile offenders to a private detention center even though the offense didn’t warrant the sentence. Why? For their own personal gain.
The money trail is astonishing. The side-bar stories that accompany the main story is just as entertaining! Tales of condos in Florida frequented by a known drug dealer. Business interests in a car dealership between one of the judges and that same drug dealer. And the best, a yacht docked at the Jupiter Yacht Club bearing the ironic name “Reel Justice”.
Ciavarella who has proven to have testicles the size watermelons is the most arrogant of the two. He deliberately officially resigned his position as judge after the deadline to make his seat open for the next election so that voters don’t have the right to choose his successor, the governor does. Then, in perhaps the ballsiest move, submits a request to continue to receive his $6,000+ monthly pension!
I remember having dinner one night and sitting next to the Conahan family just a few weeks before Mike got caught. There was the picture of a family man. Mike’s Irish eyes smiling as he ate a big bowl of pasta while his wife and his daughters encircled him. Did the Mrs. know her husband’s dirty little secret? Did his daughters know their old man was a criminal? They all certainly benefited from his corrupt actions by vacationing at the Florida condo and shopping for only the finest clothes. Did they know that when they took “Reel Justice” out for a spin in the intercoastal their enjoyment is a benefit of criminal activity? Or did they think Dad was an honest judge dispensing honest-to-goodness justice.
I have zero respect for these two low-life’s. I still have hope that before they end up in a cell they fall on their own sword and end their lives so we don’t have to use taxpayer money to feed and water them for the rest of their lives. Suicide should be an option here. A public hanging would be better, but I’d rather see them suffer at their own hand. Those two ways out won’t come to fruition, but I am holding out for some “Reel Justice” once they’re in prison and the lights go out.
Citizens Voice Courthouse Corruption Probe Archive