State police arrested a Scranton police detective on a protection from abuse violation the day after a judge barred him from contacting a Moosic woman.

Detective Sgt. Tim Harding, 60, is charged with indirect criminal contempt after he was accused of contacting a woman who sought the order against him. Chief Carl Graziano confirmed the arrest by state police late Tuesday, adding that he believed Harding is accused of calling the woman Monday night.

Harding is on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of a due process hearing and an internal investigation, Graziano said.

Harding has been on administrative duty since late September, after an investigation began into reports about a road rage incident involving a vehicle with Harding’s license plate. A man driving that vehicle reportedly flashed a weapon on Sept. 23 on the McDade Expressway.

The incident led Kimberly Crispino to seek a PFA order against him, stating in a letter attached to the application that the road rage incident made her concerned about Harding’s state of mind and her safety.

Allegations contained in the PFA include multiple phone calls, text messages, a threat of suicide and a threat to have Crispino arrested for theft over some paint he left at her house.

Judith Lewis, the attorney representing Crispino, declined to comment today.

Harding was barred from contacting Crispino for six months after a hearing Monday in front of Lackawanna County Senior Judge Chester T. Harhut. At that hearing, Harding’s attorney, Matthew Comerford, said troopers wouldn’t file charges against Harding related to a road rage incident.

Comerford did not return a call seeking comment tonight. State police officials have not responded to inquiries about the status of the investigation or details about tonight’s arrest.

During the PFA hearing, Harding pledged to stay away from Crispino and recognized his job is at stake. The temporary PFA order has already cost Harding his position as a deputized federal investigator, he said, a position he’s held for 11 of the nearly 20 years he’s spent with Scranton police.

“This is my career and I’m concerned about losing it,” Harding told the judge Monday.

Tonight, Magisterial District Judge Terrence Gallagher arraigned Harding on the criminal charge. Harding remains in Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $50,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Oct. 24.

Contact the writers: cover@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5363; @ClaytonOver on Twitter; enissley@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9138

Oct. 17, 1918

Influenza deaths on the rise

Scranton health authorities believed they were gaining the upper hand on the influenza epidemic. During the past day, doctors reported only 22 new cases of the disease. The total number of cases in the city stood at 2,515.

Despite the decline in new cases, the health department and the hospitals reported that the deaths from the disease were increasing. It was reported there were 11 deaths for a total of 147 since the epidemic reached Scranton.

Tent hospital going up in Carbondale

With a spike in influenza cases, Carbondale city officials put up tents on the grounds of the Carbondale Emergency Hospital for the care and treatment of those infected with influenza. If the epidemic worsened, another tent hospital would be erected at the Simpson High School. Officials were opposed to using the Carbondale Armory as an emergency hospital.

Julia Gerrity, a Carbondale nurse, responded to the calls for the tent hospitals by saying that there were too many alarmists in Carbondale and common sense was needed in handling the epidemic.

Gerrity offered to take charge of the influenza epidemic in Simpson. She said, “It is nursing care of the patients that will help them to recovery.”

Sale at Scranton Dry Goods

All mourning apparel priced between $18.95 to $34.50, navy- or black- trimmed hats were $1.98, fur scarfs were $1, flannel blankets were $3.88, coffee was 19 cents per pound, a six-pound bag of barley flour was 35 cents.

BRIAN FULTON, library manager, oversees The Times-Tribune’s expansive digital and paper archives and is an authority on local history. Contact Brian at bfulton@timesshamrock.com or 570-348-9140.

CORRECTION

Name misspelled

An article on A1 in Tuesday’s edition misspelled the name of a Scranton property owner who thanked county commissioners for not raising taxes in 2019. His name is Greg Popil.

Students of the month

A Wilkes-Barre police officer and union leader who was fired last year is back on the job.

Officer Dan Duffy, vice president of the city police union, was reinstated Tuesday, officials confirmed.

“I could tell you he is back to work and we’re happy with that,” Sgt. Phil Myers, president of the Wilkes-Barre Police Benevolent Association, said.

Duffy, a former Scranton police chief who also served as director of the police academy at Lackawanna College, was fired last October for supposedly violating a city harassment policy in an email to city officials about a union matter.

The email, sent to Mayor Tony George and City Administrator Ted Wampole, was critical of then-Police Chief Marcella Lendacky and then-Commander Ron Foy. Since then, Lendacky retired and Foy was demoted in the wake of a report critical of their leadership.

In the email, Duffy maintained he was strictly speaking as union vice president and not in his role as an officer of the department.

In August, an arbitrator ruled in favor of Duffy and Myers, rescinding unpaid suspensions they received in connection with posts made on the union’s Facebook page that were critical of police department leadership.

At the time, the city announced it had reached an agreement with the union over a grievance filed about Duffy’s firing.

“I can confirm Officer Duffy is back. He reported this morning. The grievance was settled,” Wampole said Tuesday.

Efforts to reach Duffy on Tuesday were not successful.

Duffy served as Scranton police chief until July 2012, when he resigned to take the job as director of the Act 120 police academy program at Lackawanna College. He was hired by Wilkes-Barre police in February 2014 and continued to work for the academy.

Contact the writer:

bkalinowski@citizensvoice.com

570-821-2055

@cvbobkal on Twitter

Pennsylvania hospitals last year treated nearly 37,000 patients for opioid abuse — the highest in 10 years — and most were admitted for other health problems, such as infections and mental health disorders, according to a new state report.

The overlap of physical and mental health issues makes treating addiction a challenge that requires a coordinated plan across various medical specialties, according to Dr. Kenneth Katz, a toxicologist at Lehigh Valley Health Network.

“The commonality that ties them all together are chronic pain and underlying mental health issue,” Katz said.

Lackawanna County, at 258 per 100,000 residents, fell below the state average opioid-related hospitalization rate of 346 per 100,000 residents, according to the report from Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.

Luzerne County was even lower at 196 per 100,000 residents. Carbon County had the state’s highest rate, at 716 hospitalizations per 100,000 residents.

Other regional counties’ opioid-related hospitalization rates are Pike County, 166 per 100,000 residents; Susquehanna County, 124 per 100,000 residents; Wayne County, 128 per 100,000 residents; and Wyoming County, 161 per 100,000 residents.

About one in 10 admitted to a hospital for opioid abuse suffered an overdose, and fewer than one in 10 were admitted primarily for opioid abuse. The rest were admitted for other health reasons. While opioid-related hospitalizations have steadily climbed in the last decade, the medical community improved identification of opioid-related hospital stays in 2015.

The majority of overdose patients, a daily emergency at hospitals, were not admitted, Katz said.

The most common reasons for admissions were: mental health problems, 20 percent; other substance use disorders, 8 percent; and sepsis and skin infections due to injection drug use, 15 percent. Sepsis is the body’s reaction to an infection that can lead to tissue damage, organ failure and death, according to the Sepsis Alliance.

Some people with depression or anxiety may treat their conditions with opioids, which increases the number of psychiatric admissions with opioid use dependence, said Dr. Thomas Nappe, the director of medical toxicology at St. Luke’s University Health Network.

“We have to remember to treat all conditions simultaneously and effectively,” he said, adding that people who inject heroin are more likely to develop infections, such as endocarditis, an infection of the lining of the heart chambers and valves.

Injection drug use is common way to transmit blood-borne infections, especially HIV, hepatits B and C and bacteria that cause endocarditis, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Injections can spread disease and infect the body through dirty needle use or just through continuously puncturing the skin, which risks bringing bacteria into the body, Katz said.

From 2004 to 2014, admissions for opioid injections across the country increased by 622 percent among people ages 18 to 29, and hepatitis C increased by 400 percent, according the CDC.

For those who use prescription opioids, chronic pain is often the underlying problem. And long opioid use can make patients more sensitive to pain, Katz and Nappe said.

“That’s the whole rub of opioids,” said Katz. “Unfortunately, it’s the cat catching its tail.”

The goal is to dig into the core problems, which can be traced to a trauma, accident, prescription or surgery, Katz said.

And the solution may be physical therapy, counseling and carefully crafted medical treatments.

“We can cut it up into pieces, and systematically address it,” he said.

As research increasingly shows the long-term side affects of surgery and pain medication, such as chronic pain and addiction, doctors will take more care to use other means of treatment if possible.

“This isn’t to say there’s no role for medication or surgery, we just have to be judicious in every sense of the word,” he said.

According to the PHC4 report, the number of opioid-related hospital admissions more than doubled from 14,711 in 2008 to 29,958 in 2015, figures that are likely underestimated based on new hospital coding requirements that became effective late in 2015.

There were 36,522 opioid-related hospitalizations in 2016 and 36,712 in 2017. The analysis includes Pennsylvania residents age 15 and older.

“These findings show a bigger picture of what we are facing with the opioid crisis and suggest how important it is to get immediate help to those addicted to opioids and to also identify lasting solutions to battle this problem,” said Joe Martin, executive director of the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council, in a news release.

DENISE ALLABAUGH, staff writer, contributed to this report.

JESSUP — The borough’s comprehensive plan committee met for the first time Tuesday night.

The meeting served as an open-ended discussion for members of the committee to pass along comments and concerns to representatives of the firm that will handle the plan. Earlier this year, borough council voted to hire Bethlehem-based Urban Research & Development Corp. to create a comprehensive plan for the borough, accompanied by a complete rewrite of the zoning ordinance that will reflect the findings and goals established by the comprehensive plan. The entire process will cost the borough $48,000 and will take a year to 18 months to complete, URDC Vice President Charles Schmehl said at the meeting.

Twelve people are on the committee and is made up of council members, borough planning commission members and the public. Council selected the members after soliciting letters of interest at meetings, council President Gerald Crinella said.

Jessup Councilman Gregg Betti was named committee chairman and realtor Ann Cappellini was named vice chairwoman at the meeting Tuesday. Other members of the board include planning commission members Paula Nenish, Sarah Helcoski, James Moran and Sam Sebastianelli; council members Roberta Galati and Crinella; and citizens Sherri Noyes, Steve Pitoniak, Jeff Smith and Rella Scassellati.

Members brought up several areas of concern, including traffic, stormwater issues, parks and recreation, promoting business development and downtown revitalization.

The comprehensive plan is a set of policies on how the borough will be planned and preserved over the next 15 years, while the zoning ordinance regulates land uses in the town, Schmehl said.

“We’re not trying to stop development. We’re trying to manage and direct development, what’s the best place for different things,” Schmehl said.

Borough officials previously said having an up-to-date comprehensive plan will improve the borough’s ability to secure grants by showing that Jessup has a well-documented vision for the future and leave less room for interpretation should an organization want to request a zoning change.

The process also provides an opportunity for borough residents to provide input, Crinella said. The committee will hold their next open meeting on Nov. 8, then one on Dec. 13, and starting in January, on the third Tuesday of each month. Meetings will be held at 7 p.m. at the Jessup municipal building, 395 Lane St.

Members of the public are invited to come to the meetings in the future, Crinella said.

“It gives the citizens of the town the chance to participate and voice their opinions on what they think the town should look like,” he said.

Contact the writer:

cover@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5363;

@ClaytonOver on Twitter

Archbald

Craft show: “Up the Eynon” craft vendor show, Sunday, Nov. 4, 11 a.m.-4 p.m., Valley View High School, 1 Columbus Drive, Archbald, over 40 vendors, free admission. Contact: Judy, 570-876-2423, or Jean, 570-876-3060.

Dickson City

Family event: Free informational event in Dickson City with Milton Hershey School admissions counselors, Wednesday, Oct. 31, 6 p.m., Uno Pizzeria and Grill, 3905 Commerce Blvd., Dickson City, learning about Milton Hershey School, a cost-free, private, coeducational school. Information: 1-800-322-3248 or register online at mhskids.org.

Moscow

Christmas bazaar: Church of St. Catherine of Siena Altar & Rosary, 220 Church St., Moscow, hosting annual Christmas bazaar, Nov. 3, 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m., Nov. 4, 8 a.m.-1 p.m., Kelly Hall, downstairs of the church, free admission and parking.

Pittston

Night-at-the-races: Pittston Kiwanis Club hosting night at the races in conjunction with Brian J. Musto Charitable Foundation, Saturday, Oct. 27, 7 p.m., cafeteria of St. John the Evangelist High School, Church Street, Pittston, doors at 6:30 p.m., $5/entrance donation, $10/horses, $50/race sponsorship, food and beverages available, 21-plus. Contact: Kiwanis President Sal Bernardi, 570-820-8459, pittstonkiwanis1@gmail.com.

Regional

Operation Kidsafe: Operation Kidsafe System at three events: Ken Pollock Alfa Romeo, 290 Mundy St., Wilkes-Barre, Saturday, Oct. 20, 10 a.m.-noon, children’s story hour, pumpkin decorating, seasonal treats; PSU vs. Iowa tailgate, Saturday, Oct. 27, noon-3 p.m., Ken Pollock Ford Lincoln, 1120 W. Front St., Berwick; Trunk or treat, Ken Pollock Volvo Cars, 339 Highway 315, Pittston, Wednesday, Oct. 31, noon-8 p.m.

Scranton

Turkey dinner: North Scranton Rotary third annual turkey dinner, Sunday, Oct. 28, the Apartments at North, 1539 N. Main Ave., Scranton, 1-4 p.m., takeouts available, $10/adults, $6/children under 12, basket raffles and door prizes. Contact: Pat Mazzei, 570-342-0111.

Anniversary luncheon: Northeastern Pennsylvania Chapter of the United Nations Association of the United States of America 50th anniversary luncheon featuring high school student workshops, music by violinist Mary Woodyatt, his Honor David J. Wenzel speaking on the chapter’s history followed by guest speaker, Chris Whatley, executive director of the United Nations Association of the United States, Wednesday, Oct. 24, St. Mary’s Center, 320 Mifflin Ave., Scranton, at noon.

Film screening: Free screening of “Heart of Nuba,” Oct. 24, 7 p.m., Scranton Cultural Center, 420 N. Washington Ave., Scranton, open to the public, free, reception at 6 p.m. Reservations required: 570-552-7496.

Membership meeting: Lackawanna Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited, October general membership meeting, today, 7 p.m., Tripp Park Community Center, 2000 Dorothy St., Scranton.

Susquehanna County

Historical society: Clifford Twp. Historical Society end of season open house, Sunday, Oct. 21, 1-4 p.m. Information: cliffordtownshiphistoricalsociety.org or Sandra Wilmot, 570-679-2723 or swilmot@echoes.net.

Wayne County

Trail-of-treats: Trail of treats, Saturday, Oct. 27, 5-6:30 p.m., treats, music, face painting, free, 7 Milanville Road, Beach Lake. Information: 570-729-7011 or www.beachlakeumc.com.

CLIPBOARD ITEMSmay be sent to yesdesk@timesshamrock.com or Clipboard, c/o YES!Desk, 149 Penn Ave., Scranton, PA 18503. YES!Desk, 570-348-9121.

The slow learners on the Scranton School Board sent a clear message Monday night: “One Harvard know-it-all is enough. Whiz kids need not apply.”

The recent death of Director Carol Oleski created an opening the board must fill over the next few weeks. After brief discussion about what qualifications applicants should demonstrate, the least qualified current director spoke up.

“There’s nothing that states you have to be an Einstein to be on the school board,” Bob Lesh said. “I drove a bus.”

Yes, he did. Bob also dropped out of high school and “served” two terms as president while the district was driven to the brink of extinction. Described as “BL” in a recent grand jury report, Lesh has denied receiving free vehicle inspections from Dan Sansky, the former district “fleet manager” now charged with seven felonies, accused of fleecing taxpayers out of hundreds of thousands of dollars through overbilling and phony repair bills.

What kind of applicant might apply for a seat on a school board at war with itself and its superintendent in a district facing insurmountable debt and a state corruption investigation?

Probably not an Einstein.

Harvard MBA Paige Gebhardt Cognetti joined the board in December after an 8-0 vote. Lesh voted for Cognetti, but on a scoring rubric filled out prior to the vote, Lesh gave Cognetti a rating of 16 out of a possible 50, which amounts to an F-minus.

The Harvard know-it-all and the high-school dropout haven’t exactly gotten along since. At an April meeting, Cognetti argued that the district should release public records about Sansky to The Times-Tribune. Lesh disagreed. After a heated exchange, he told Cognetti to “blow it out her ass.”

The newspaper received the records by more conventional means.

Lesh resisted another Cognetti push for transparency Monday, when she tried to get the board and Superintendent Alexis Kirijan, Ed.D., to address a letter in which Kirijan accused the board of sexual and ethnic harassment.

The letter from Kirijan’s lawyer inspired the board to secretly hire a lawyer to investigate the matter, a violation of the Sunshine Law.

Solicitor John Minora insisted the hire wasn’t illegal, “and even if it was, it could be cured by a subsequent vote.”

This kind of advice is why Minora will soon be the board’s ex-solicitor.

Kirijan said she was “disappointed” that the letter leaked and demanded to know who was responsible. No one took credit, but Lesh took umbrage at the leak.

“This board has gone in the wrong direction in airing personnel issues” in the newspaper, he said. “That trust has been violated.”

Being lectured about trust and transparency by “BL” is like learning Spanish from a chihuahua.

You don’t have to be an Einstein to be on the school board, but you should at least know that the theory of relativity has nothing to do with nepotism.

CHRIS KELLY, the Times-Tribune columnist, failed Spanish. Contact the writer: kellysworld@timesshamrock.com, @cjkink on Twitter. Read his award-winning blog at timestribuneblogs.com/kelly.

How to apply

Applicants for the open Scranton School Board seat should email a résumé and a completed application to Virginia.orr@ssdedu.org or send by mail to Board Secretary, 425 N. Washington Ave., Scranton, PA 18503. Applications and résumés will be accepted until noon on Friday, Oct. 26.

Applications are available at the Administration Building or email the board secretary.

MARRIAGE LICENSES

Matthew Aloysious Black and Alecia J. Rutkowski, both of St. Petersburg, Fla.

Maxie Joel Wozniak and Jacquelyn Marie Lewis, both of Old Forge.

Anthony Angelo Nicosia Jr. and Wagner Lutterbach Bastos, both of Scranton.

Bobby Dao, Scranton, and Le Pham, Garland, Texas.

Darryl Cortazar and Lorissa M. Shaver, both of Throop.

Brendan Daniel Boldizs, Dandenong Victoria, Australia, and Victoria Anita Phillips, Carbondale.

PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS

Theresa Jo Bruno, individually and as executrix of the estate of Corrado Griletto, Clarks Summit, to Thomas Promovitz and Kristine Conners, Lackawanna County, as joint tenants with rights of survivorship; two parcels in Throop for $58,900.

Christopher and Jillian Roshak, and Kevin and Michele Roshak, Olyphant, to Todd Patterson, Dickson City; a property at 24 Ollendike St., Throop, for $179,000.

Eugene E. and Eleanor Gordon, David J. and Eleanor Gordon, and Patricia A. Gordon, to Joseph K. Riehl Jr., South Abington Twp.; a property at 105 Old Orchard Road, Waverly Twp., for $155,000.

Gail C. Keating and A. Gerald Raymond, Scranton, to Thomas Sabaitis, Elkins Park Twp.; a property at 1609 Wyoming Ave., Scranton, for $190,000.

Perih Group LLC, Covington Twp., to Venu Gopal Kankani and Sneha Lakhotia, Scranton; a property at 200 Possum Way, Clarks Green, for $490,946.68.

Richard R. Wasik, Niantic, Conn., and Matthew E. Wasik, Duryea, to 3337 Pittston LLC, Moosic; a property at 3341 Pittston Ave., Moosic, for $50,000.

Raechel Smith, now by marriage Raechel Gumbs, and Cristian Gumbs, Clarks Summit, to Brandy Mary Luce, New Milford; a property at 545 Winola Road, Clarks Summit, for $100,000.

Zita M. Timlin, Scranton, to Roseline Pierre Ridore, Scranton; a property at 2919 Birney Ave., Scranton, for $116,900.

Barbara McCloe Hawk, Scranton, to Husam Juboori Azaaz and Faten Hassan Chemeissani, Scranton; a property at 216 Colfax Ave., Scranton, for $150,000.

Debra Evans, Scranton, to Harka M. and Niru K. Mongar, Moosic; a property at 1201 Moltke Ave., Scranton, for $90,000.

DIVORCES SOUGHT

Alexsandra Hill, Scranton, v. John R. Hill, Waymart; married Aug. 17, 2013, in Luzerne; pro se.

Silvana Huertas, Scranton, and Antonio Ramirez, Scranton; married Dec. 14, 2011, in Scranton; pro se.

LAWSUIT

Mary Jo Salva, 343 Main St., Childs, v. Eugene Perna, 413 First St., Taylor, seeking in excess of $50,000, exclusive of interest and costs, for injuries suffered July 15, 2017 in an automobile accident on state Route 407, Benton Twp.; Scott A. Herlands, attorney.

ESTATES FILED

Mary T. Schultz, 1046 Carmalt St., Dickson City, letters of administration to Pauline Dionis, 61 Haverhill Road, Trumbull, Conn., Edward Schultz, 528 North St., Throop, and Mary Ann Wojcak, 21 Greenfield Hill Road, Monroe, Conn.

Donald F. Tusar, 141 S. Main St., Vandling, letters testamentary to Romayne M. Tusar, same address.

S. Ryan Kojsza, also known as Stephen Ryan Kojsza, 848 Clay Ave., Scranton, letters testamentary to Lori A. Zepponi, 1801 Cleveland Ave., Scranton, and Tara E. Kojsza, 844 Clay Ave., Scranton.

Gerald W. Collins, 419 Martini Road, Jefferson Twp., letters testamentary to Margaret C. Collins, same address.

Betty Thomas, 105 Fern Way, South Abington Twp., letters testamentary to Karen L. Thomas, same address.

Robert Swavola, also known as Robert J. Swavola, 501 Dean St., Scranton, letters testamentary to Joann Swavola, same address.

ONLINE: thetimes-tribune.com/courts

SCRANTON
Police say man pointed pistol

A city man faces charges after pointing a starter pistol at another motorist during a Monday road rage incident.

Police stopped a gold Toyota Corolla driven by Elmer C. Wall III, 68, 409 Pittston Ave., shortly after noon Monday in the 500 block of Prospect Avenue. The other driver, Albert Abda, said he turned right on red in front of Wall’s car at Mulberry Street and Harrison Avenue. Abda told police that Wall pointed a pistol at him, then drove up alongside his vehicle and pointed the pistol at him again, police said.

Police located the starter pistol on the floor of Wall’s car.

Wall is charged with making terroristic threats, recklessly endangering another person and disorderly conduct and remains in Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $1,000 bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9:45 a.m. Monday.

— JEFF HORVATH

An Old Forge man faces a felony strangulation charge and other counts after assaulting his girlfriend at his borough home Friday, police said.

Brent Michael Harvey, 35, 136 Sussex St, choked Ashley Evans-Panek, address unknown, to the point she nearly lost consciousness following an argument. He also punched her in the face with a closed fist, threw her down a flight of stairs and kicked her in the ribs, police wrote in a criminal complaint.

Evans-Panek reported the domestic violence Monday. When she met officers at the Old Forge Police Department, police observed bruising on her neck, both forearms and lower rib area. Her right eye was black and blue. Evans-Panek’s injuries “match up” with the incident of abuse she described to authorities, police said.

Moreover, Evans-Panek’s manager, Britney Hall, told police she witnessed Evans-Panek come to work with bruises on her arms, black eyes and fingerprints on her neck.

Police took Harvey into custody at his home Monday and placed him in leg restraints after he began kicking and resisting arrest. He was arraigned Tuesday.

Harvey is charged with a felony count of strangulation, as well as simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, harassment and resisting arrest.

He remains in Lackawanna County Prison in lieu of $25,000 bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday.

Contact the writer:

jhorvath@timesshamrock;

570-348-9141;

@jhorvathTT on Twitter

SCOTT TWP. — A Lakeland High School senior charged with rape is barred from returning to the school until the case is resolved, Lackawanna County District Attorney Mark Powell said.

Nicholas Rosencrance, 19, 17 Holgate Lane, Scott Twp., faces charges of rape, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and related counts after multiple teenage girls reported he sexually assaulted them.

Two teen girls told police they were assaulted by Rosencrance at an August party in Greenfield Twp. One of those girls said he raped her at the party. A third teen told police Rosencrance sexually assaulted her in Ocean City, Maryland — a case that was referred to police there.

Rosencrance is barred from Lakeland as a condition of his bail, Powell said.

— JEFF HORVATH

SCRANTON — More than five years after his arrest by state investigators, a Scranton man was convicted Tuesday in Lackawanna County Court of practicing law illegally.

A jury of seven women and five men deliberated just over two hours before finding Joseph Pilchesky, 69, guilty of three misdemeanor counts of unauthorized practice of law.

Judge James A. Gibbons, who presided over the two-day trial, deferred sentencing for Pilchesky pending a presentencing investigation. The defendant, who remains free on bail, faces a maximum penalty of one year imprisonment and a $2,500 fine on each of the three counts.

Pilchesky, who is best known for a controversial website focused on local politics, was charged by the state attorney general in February 2013 with practicing law even though he is not an attorney. Investigators specifically charged him with assisting and preparing court documents on behalf of three clients from whom he accepted payments totaling $3,500.

Senior Deputy Attorney General Barney Anderson, who prosecuted the case, said he was pleased with the verdict.

The combination of testimony from Pilchesky’s three victims and the documentary evidence presented at trial, including the defendant’s email exchanges with his clients and the legal papers he produced, were sufficient for the jurors to find he had committed the offenses, Anderson said.

Pilchesky, who represented himself at the trial, said afterward the verdict was not a surprise, but there are multiple grounds for appeal.

“It just didn’t go my way today,” he said. “We’ll get another swing of the bat down in Harrisburg.”

The trial was repeatedly delayed because of appeals involving pretrial matters, most of them initiated by Pilchesky, and decisions by two judges to recuse themselves.

After Anderson finished presenting the commonwealth’s case Tuesday morning, Pilchesky rested his case without testifying or calling other witnesses.

In his closing argument, he maintained the prosecution failed to meet its burden of proof and told jurors he was “nothing more than a man of God” who acted as an advocate for individuals who had nowhere else to turn.

He argued there was no evidence he initiated contact with any of the people he assisted, no evidence he planned or schemed to defraud them and no evidence that any of them were harmed.

Pilchesky said there was also no evidence presented at trial that prosecutors had charged anybody else with the crimes he was accused of committing.

“Apparently their interest was more in getting me than protecting the public,” he said.

He drew an objection from Anderson, which was sustained by Gibbons, when he asked jurors not to “let them imprison me.” The judge instructed jurors to disregard the remark.

Anderson described Pilchesky in his closing as a “predator” who took advantage of people in “bad spots.”

The prosecutor told jurors if they reviewed the defendant’s email exchanges with the three clients, they would find that a pattern emerged: Pilchesky brags about what a great legal advocate he is; he asks for payment upfront in cash and he requests that the arrangement be kept confidential.

Anderson read extensively from one email in which Pilchesky described himself as a “legal warrior” who goes for the jugular.

“Then he goes on to talk about the real part here where the man of God needs to be paid,” Anderson told the jury.

Contact the writer: dsingleton@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9132

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian officials said an explosive device killed at least 13 people and injured at least 50 others Wednesday at a vocational college in Crimea and called it a possible terrorist attack.
Yet Russian news media reported that at least some of the victims died in an attack by an unidentified gunman or gunmen. Russian officials wouldn't confirm those reports.
Russia's National Anti-Terrorism Committee said the blast at the college in the city of Kerch in eastern Crimea was caused by an unidentified explosive device. Emergency officials initially had said the blast was caused by a gas explosion.
Sergei Melikov, a deputy chief of the Russian National Guard, said the explosive device was homemade. Russia's Investigative Committee, the nation's top investigative agency, said the device that went off at the college's canteen was rigged with shrapnel.
The committee's spokeswoman, Svetlana Petrenko, said 13 people were killed and about 50 were injured. Most of the victims were students.
Explosives experts were inspecting the college building for other possible bombs, according to Anti-Terrorism Committee spokesman Andrei Przhezdomsky.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters that officials are looking into a possible terrorist attack. He did not elaborate. Peskov said Putin has instructed investigators and intelligence agencies to conduct a thorough probe and offered condolences to the families of the victims.
Olga Grebennikova, director of the vocational college in Kerch, told KerchNet TV that men armed with automatic rifles burst into the college and "killed everyone they saw." She said students and staff were among victims.
The Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper quoted student Semyon Gavrilov, who said he fell asleep during a lecture and woke up to the sound of shooting. He said he looked out and saw a young man with a rifle shooting at people.
"I locked the door, hoping he wouldn't hear me," the paper quoted Gavrilov as saying.
He said police arrived about 10 minutes later to evacuate people from the college and he saw dead bodies on the floor and charred walls.
The head of Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, and Russia's Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova headed to the area to coordinate assistance to the injured. Military units were deployed around the college.
Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, a move that triggered Western sanctions. Russia has also supported separatists fighting the Ukrainian government in eastern Ukraine, a conflict that has left at least 10,000 people dead since 2014.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — No winning lottery ticket was sold for the latest Mega Millions drawing, meaning the jackpot climbs to $868 million.
Mega Millions officials say no tickets matched all six numbers to claim the estimated $667 million grand prize in Tuesday night's drawing. The numbers were 3, 45, 49, 61, 69 and Mega Ball 9.
The next drawing will be Friday. The estimated jackpot for that drawing would be the second-largest lottery prize in U.S. history.
The record lottery jackpot was a $1.6 billion Powerball prize won in January 2016.
The jackpot has been growing since July, when a group of California office workers won $543 million.
It costs $2 to play the game, but the odds of winning the jackpot aren't good. The chance of matching all six numbers and taking home the grand prize is one in 302.5 million.
Mega Millions is played in 44 states as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Vice President Mike Pence will visit Luzerne County next week to stump for Republican congressional candidate John Chrin, three sources familiar with planning the visit said today.

Speaking only if they could remain anonymous, the sources said the vice president will speak on Chrin’s behalf at the Wyoming Valley Airport in Forty Fort on Wednesday afternoon.

Chrin, 55, of Barrett Twp., Monroe County, faces Rep. Matt Cartwright, 57, a Moosic Democrat, for the 8th Congressional District seat in the Nov. 6 election.

Republicans consider the race one of the few Democratic-held seats they may be able to pick up in Pennsylvania. Chrin and Cartwright have engaged in a costly battle via televised campaign commercials since July.

Check back for updates.

Contact the writer: bkrawczeniuk@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9147; @BorysBlogTT on Twitter.

SCRANTON — Monsignor David Tressler will step down on Nov. 2 as superintendent of schools for the Diocese of Scranton, the Most Rev. Bishop Joseph Bambera announced.

After four years in this post, Tressler decided to step down. He will remain as pastor at Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, Jermyn.

The diocese will conduct a national search for a new superintendent.

Check back for updates.

SCRANTON — A trail project in Scranton and a park/trail project in Carbondale received $393,000 in state grants, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources announced Wednesday.

The grants, recipients and projects include:

n $294,000 to the Lackawanna Heritage Valley Authority to develop a 1.07 mile section of the Lackawanna River Heritage Trail in Scranton, on former land owned by the Marvine Colliery to close a critical gap in the trail.

n $99,000 to the Upper Valley YMCA for developing the new Greater Carbondale YMCA Community Park with a trail in Carbondale. Work on a 3.5-acre undeveloped green space behind Nikki’s at the Ben-Mar Restaurant will includes creating a safe access to the new Greater Carbondale YMCA Community Park, a bridge over Racket Brook, picnic tables, a walking trail loop and new lawn areas. The site is located near senior and low-income housing, bus routes and the YMCA.

The two projects will help the two cities link natural resources to community revitalization and increase recreation opportunities in the county, DCNR said in a statement.

The LHV will hold a public meeting and information session next week on the Marvine trail section project to connect Parker Street in Scranton to the borough of Throop, according to an announcement of the public forum on the LHV website. This public forum will be held 5 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 24 at the Theatre at North in the Community Room, 1539 N. Main Ave. in Scranton.

The nonprofit Lackawanna Heritage Valley organization is developing the Marvine section of trail for recreation and transportation, and to interpret the historic and cultural life of the region.

The Marvine Trail section will go through the historic Marvine Colliery site and along the Lackawanna River, where many pieces of railroad and coal mining history remain visible near active rail lines.

When completed, the overall Lackawanna River Heritage Trail will connect to the Delaware and Hudson Rail Trail, to form a 70-mile trail from the New York border to Pittston, and will connect to the 165-mile Delaware and Lehigh Trail.

Contact the writer: jlockwood@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5185; @jlockwoodTT on Twitter