SCRANTON

Police blocked off Luzerne Street at 10th Avenue for hours Thursday as officers investigated a man found unconscious there.

Police responded there about 8 p.m. and found the man with a significant head injury, city police Lt. Marty Crofton said on the scene. Emergency medical personnel took the man to Geisinger Community Medical Center for treatment.

Officers found debris that could indicate a vehicle hit the man, Crofton said. Police are investigating to determine exactly how he was injured.

Police are not identifying the man until they notify family, but the man is in his late 50s, Crofton said.

— CLAYTON OVER

Members of the minority faction of the Scranton School Board have sought the assistance of the state auditor general in conducting a review of the district’s information technology department.

In a letter sent to Auditor General Eugene DePasquale this week, Katie Gilmartin, Mark McAndrew and Tom Schuster say they seek assistance as citizens, not as school directors. The board voted 4-3 last month to table the audit request, despite minority members’ frustration that district staff has not completed an internal audit. The minority members said they still had to take action.

“As you are well aware, our district faces great challenges, from severe financial distress to a deficit of public trust,” they wrote. “We feel that your participation in this effort would send a clear message that we are fully committed to transparency and reform.”

In October 2017, DePasquale released a scathing audit of the district, criticizing its leadership and operations, including its deficit and costs associated with the no-bid busing contract. The audit also concluded the district had weak controls of its IT inventory, with poor records increasing the risk for “loss, theft and misuse.”

As part of its response, the district vowed to conduct its own audit. With last year’s retirement of Joseph Brazil, chief information officer, and other staffing shortages, the district has been unable to complete the internal audit, Superintendent Alexis Kirijan, Ed.D., said.

Last month, the board approved paying the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit $2,500 a month to assist with information technology services, including conducting the internal audit. PFM, the state-appointed financial monitor for the district, also supported receiving assistance from the NEIU.

Minority members say they have waited long enough for the audit and want DePasquale’s help. Gilmartin, McAndrew and Schuster voted against tabling the request last month, and board Vice President Robert Casey, who works as a state auditor, abstained.

Gilmartin said that she, McAndrew and Schuster must be vocal about their dissent.

While she understands staffing limitations, the board needs to welcome and invite oversight from the state.

McAndrew agreed.

“We’re under the scrutiny of the highest fiscal authority — the auditor general — and the highest law enforcement authority,” he said. “We promised these things. We have to do it … we tried as directors and we were stopped. They can’t stop us as citizens.”

Board President Barbara Dixon said a majority of the board wanted to give the administration the opportunity to finish the audit before seeking DePasquale’s assistance.

“They are all very short-staffed,” she said. “We are all trying to work together.”

Kirijan said she will follow board direction.

“I will move forward with the vote of the majority of the board, with PFM and the NEIU, to complete the audit as requested by the board,” she said Thursday.

The auditor general received the letter, is reviewing the request and will respond in the near future, a spokesman said.

Contact the writer: shofius@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9133; @hofiushallTT on Twitter

Scranton school directors violated the state’s open meetings law when they appointed a new member without the opportunity for public comment, a city man alleges in a complaint filed in the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas.

Joseph Pilchesky seeks to remove Gopal Patel from the board, after directors appointed the Subway restaurant and convenience store owner to the vacant seat last month. At the end of a long meeting, with few audience members left, directors voted 5-3 to appoint Patel without the position being advertised or put on the agenda.

Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act requires a board to allow for public comment before a vote, which directors did not do.

Solicitor John Audi said the board did not violate the Sunshine Act because the auditorium at South Scranton Intermediate School was nearly empty. Board President Barbara Dixon brought up the appointment under new business, after most of the public had left the meeting.

Besides a reporter from The Times-Tribune, Audi said the only other person he saw was Rosemary Boland, president of the Scranton Federation of Teachers. A few district administrators and another teacher were also present. Audi said if he thought members of the public were present, he would have instructed the board to open the meeting up for public comment before the vote.

Dixon said the board majority believes it did not violate the act.

Minority members, who spoke out against the way the majority handled the appointment, considered pursuing their own Sunshine Act complaint in court but did not want to burden taxpayers with legal fees, directors Tom Schuster and Mark McAndrew said.

“I’m glad (Pilchesky) is stepping forward,” McAndrew said. “I wish more people would step up.”

Pilchesky, well known for filing multiple lawsuits that challenge actions of Lackawanna County officials, was sentenced this week to two years of probation and ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution for practicing law without a license. In 2013, he accepted money from three people to assist them in civil cases.

— SARAH HOFIUS HALL

WILKES-BARRE — A city man struck and choked a woman during an altercation at an Orchard Street home on Thursday, according to police.

Officers responded to a reported domestic dispute involving Najai Diggs and a woman at about 11:40 a.m., police said in a news release. Diggs fled before officers arrived, but the woman told officers that Diggs became violent during an argument, hit her in the face and choked her. Officers observed visible bruises on the woman, consistent with her account.

Diggs, 33, was charged with simple assault, strangulation and harassment, according to police.

Most bars in Pennsylvania must clear the premises of patrons by 2:30 a.m., but some establishments like the embattled Brooklyn’s Sports Bar and Lounge in Hanover Twp. can stay open all night thanks to a special permit.

And that’s when trouble has been happening.

Two shootings erupted at the bar in recent months, one at 5:13 a.m. on Oct. 20 and the latest around 4:25 a.m. Sunday. Additionally, a bloodied, unconscious man was found lying in the parking lot at 3:45 a.m. Tuesday, police say.

The nightclub along the Sans Souci Parkway, and others like it, can stay open after alcohol sales stop for the night thanks to an Extended Hours Food Permit issued by the state Liquor Control Board for just a $50 annual fee, officials said.

“It allows them to stay open all night long to serve food,” said Joseph Baran, a supervisor with the Wilkes-Barre office of the state police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement.

But that doesn’t mean food is served.

While the law mandates establishments can stay open “for the purpose of serving food,” the only current requirement is permit holders must have food available to serve at least 30 people, something officers check for during inspections, Baran said.

“They are supposed to have food available,” Baran said.

While alcohol service is supposed to cease at 2 a.m., music and dancing can continue until 7 a.m., as long as the bar has an amusement permit, which Brooklyn’s does, he said.

Alcohol can start being served again at 7 a.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. on Sundays.

Asked if the permit is serving as a loophole, Baran said that would “be a question for the legislature who put it into law.”

The state legislature created the after-hours food permit in December 1990 while amending the state Liquor Code, according to information provided by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.

Among the changes was the requirement that bars, for the first time, force patrons to vacate by 2:30 a.m.

The extended hours permit was seen as a way to allow food-serving businesses with liquor licenses to continue to remain open after 2:30 a.m. and not be affected by the new law, according to transcripts of the debate among members of the state House at the time.

Initially, establishments could only obtain the permit if food represented 40 percent of the licensee’s business, according to LCB spokesman Shawn Kelly.

“Over the years, the percentage requirement dropped to 30 percent, then that requirement was dropped completely,” Kelly said.

State Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-121, Wilkes-Barre, wants to explore the possibility of amending the law governing the permit since it appears the after-hours privilege is being abused.

“We could do a policy hearing with the Liquor Board to examine the purpose of the law and possible abuse of the law,” Pashinski said.

A total of 116 business in Luzerne County have the permit, such as many gas stations and hotels that sell alcohol and also serve food, according to state officials.

There are 16 establishments with the permit in Wilkes-Barre, including Ali Baba Liquor Lounge on South Main Street.

The state Liquor Control Board has objected to the renewal of Ali Baba’s liquor license, claiming the operators abused their licensing privileges following 32 “incidents or disturbances” at the club the past two years, including three shootings. A hearing on the case was held in November.

Brooklyn’s Sports Bar and Lounge, located at the site of the former Inn Between Lounge at 1266 Sans Souci Parkway, is also in the crosshairs of state officials.

The Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement announced a pending investigation against its liquor license following a raid of the nightclub the early morning hours of Nov. 18.

Police said the bar was illegally selling alcohol at 3:15 a.m. and managers were permitting the “open use” of illegal drugs. Four employees were charged as a result. The investigation could result in fines, license suspension or the loss of the bar’s liquor license, officials said.

Efforts to reach representatives of Brooklyn’s this week have not been successful.

Hanover Twp. police Chief Al Walker said his department has to deal with the “consequences” of the permit allowing the nightclub to continue to operate overnight.

“From a police perspective, it increases the opportunity for bad things to happen,” Walker said.

Contact the writer:

bkalinowski@citizensvoice.com

570-821-2055, @cvbobkal

Scranton school directors violated the state’s open meetings law when they appointed a new member without the opportunity for public comment, a city man alleges in a complaint filed in the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas.

Joseph Pilchesky seeks to remove Gopal Patel from the board, after directors appointed the Subway restaurant and convenience store owner to the vacant seat last month. At the end of a long meeting, with few audience members left, directors voted 5-3 to appoint Patel without the position being advertised or put on the agenda.

Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act requires a board to allow for public comment before a vote, which directors did not do.

Solicitor John Audi said the board did not violate the Sunshine Act because the auditorium at South Scranton Intermediate School was nearly empty. Board President Barbara Dixon brought up the appointment under new business, after most of the public had left the meeting.

Besides a reporter from The Times-Tribune, Audi said the only other person he saw was Rosemary Boland, president of the Scranton Federation of Teachers. A few district administrators and another teacher were also present. Audi said if he thought members of the public were present, he would have instructed the board to open the meeting up for public comment before the vote.

Dixon said the board majority believes it did not violate the act.

Minority members, who spoke out against the way the majority handled the appointment, considered pursuing their own Sunshine Act complaint in court but did not want to burden taxpayers with legal fees, directors Tom Schuster and Mark McAndrew said.

“I’m glad (Pilchesky) is stepping forward,” McAndrew said. “I wish more people would step up.”

Pilchesky, well known for filing multiple lawsuits that challenge actions of Lackawanna County officials, was sentenced this week to two years of probation and ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution for practicing law without a license. In 2013, he accepted money from three people to assist them in civil cases.

FRANKLIN TWP. — State troopers are investigating the death of a 3-week-old baby boy reported Friday morning.

Troopers say they were dispatched to a home along Country Village Lane around 6 a.m. after the child’s 30-year-old mother reported finding him unresponsive.

Medics rushed the child to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where the baby was pronounced dead.

Police say they are investigating the death and were not releasing further information.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

WILKES-BARRE — Additional charges are coming against a suspended Ashley police officer accused of pressuring detained women into sex, prosecutors revealed Friday.

"There are future charges pending," Luzerne County First Assistant District Attorney Sam Sanguedolce said in court. He did not specify how many additional victims came forward.

The revelation came during a bail hearing taking place because of the $1 million bond suspended Ashley police officer Mark Icker, 29, of Dickson City, was being held on.

Icker is charged with pulling over the two women in separate encounters while on patrol in Ashley last month. Police said he then blackmailed them into performing oral sex on him in exchange for not being arrested.

Icker is facing felony charges of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and sexual assault, in addition to misdemeanor counts of official oppression, criminal coercion and indecent assault.

After being charged with misdemeanor offenses in the first case Dec. 20, Icker was released on $25,000 unsecured bail set by Magisterial District Judge Thomas F. Malloy Sr. The next day, detectives charged Icker in the second incident — this time bringing felony sexual assault charges — and Magisterial District Judge

Joseph D. Spagnuolo Jr. ordered him held at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility with bail set at $1 million.

Defense attorney Bernard Brown of Carbondale filed a petition seeking a bail reduction, calling the amount set at the Dec. 21 hearing "irrational" and out of line with bail amounts set in other cases.

Luzerne County Judge Michael T. Vough heard the matter Friday and agreed with Brown that the $1 million bail was excessive.

The judge said that the fact additional charges are pending did not have bearing on the bail set in the previous cases.

"Bail is not to be pre-trial punishment," Vough said.

Vough reduced Icker's bail to $100,000 and ordered him to have no employment as a police officer or security guard. Icker was also ordered to turn in any firearms or police gear in his possession.

"Any police apparatus that he still has must be turned in as part of his bail," Vough said.

Icker is suspended from police departments in Ashley, Sugar Notch and Jessup. At least one of the alleged victims has consulted the Dyller Law Firm in an effort to initiate civil action in the case.

State police investigating the killing of a 51-year-old Wayne County woman have a “person of interest” in mind and a weapon in evidence.

Now, they await the findings of a ballistics report, said Trooper Bob Urban, a spokesman for the Dunmore-based Troop R.

Investigators found Suzette B. Bullis deceased in her home at 10 Como Road in Preston Twp. on Dec. 19.

Wayne County Coroner Edward Howell initially noted her death as “sudden” and involving “non-natural circumstances.” An autopsy determined she died from a gunshot wound to the head.

Investigators recovered a handgun and hope that the ballistics tests conclude that the bullet recovered from Bullis was fired from that gun, Urban said.

Urban declined to go into more specifics about the “person of interest.” Asked if that person was a suspect, he replied “not quite as of yet.”

He also declined to elaborate on the type of handgun recovered, citing the ongoing investigation.

District Attorney Patrick Robinson declined to elaborate much further.

The state police major case team is investigating the homicide.

Anyone with information about the killing should contact the Honesdale barracks at 570-253-7126.

Contact the writer: jkohut@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9144; @jkohutTT on Twitter.

Jan. 4, 1944

Dunmore soldier finds photo of self in a Sicilian home

PFC Michael Saracino of Dunmore discovered a photo of himself in a home in San Cataldo, Sicily.

According to a letter Saracino sent to his mother, the photo was a wedding party in which he served as the best man to the groom, Joseph Gambo of Dunmore. The photo was sent to Gambo’s relatives who live in San Cataldo.

In another local connection, Saracino also slept at the home of Vincent George in San Cataldo. George’s two brothers, John and Thomas, lived in Dunmore.

Saracino was stationed in San Cataldo with the U.S. Army Air Force.

Funeral home attack probed

Scranton police were investigating an attack on a funeral home employee. According to police, Michael Guido, an employee of B. Willard Tague Funeral Home on South Main Avenue, told them he was struck on the forehead by an unidentified man in the cellar of the funeral home.

Guido was taken to West Side Hospital for treatment and was admitted for observation.

Shopping list

Fresh hams for 31 cents per pound; fresh ground hamburger for 25 cents per pound; a dozen eggs for 47 cents; a box of frozen spinach, 27 cents; a dozen Florida oranges, 29 cents; 15 pounds of potatoes, 49 cents; 2-pound jar of citrus marmalade, 20 cents; 1 pound of coffee, 23 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.

Regional unemployment dropped slightly in November. Jobs were up, and so was the workforce.

Those three indicators should bolster confidence that the local economy is still growing — or at least it’s not shrinking.

Unemployment for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre/Hazleton metro dropped one-tenth of a point to 5 percent in November, according to data released Thursday by the state Department of Labor and Industry.

One state analyst says a jobs boost in November is typical.

People pick up seasonal work. Students might find part-time jobs during winter break. Retailers staff up ahead of the shopping blitz.

But a couple points in this week’s report are worth watching, state statistician Scott Meckley said.

The metro area, which includes Lackawanna, Luzerne and Wyoming counties, added a net 900 jobs, seasonally adjusted, in November.

“That’s pretty significant,” he said. “Scranton’s (the whole metro area) job growth was actually the second largest of any area in the state this month. Only Harrisburg showed a larger increase from October to November.”

The manufacturing sector, which doesn’t typically make dramatic swings, added 400 jobs, according to data that’s not seasonally adjusted.

Additionally, logistics and transportation companies within the region added 1,200 jobs over the month, which suggests that firms delivering goods for e-commerce retailers beefed up their holiday ranks a little earlier than usual.

“Something’s happening in Scranton this November that is definitely better than what typically happens in November,” Meckley said.

Unemployment might be strikingly low, but that economic measure alone doesn’t take into account other indicators that are signalling volatility, for example the recent stock market plunge, a recent report on the exploding national debt and trade wars with other countries, said University of Scranton economist Satyajit Ghosh, Ph.D.

“They may have long-term effects on unemployment and the overall economy,” he said. “The regional economy will be adversely affected as well. But it is too early to predict the full effect.”

The national unemployment rate stayed flat at 3.7 percent.

Statewide, unemployment rose one-tenth of a point to 4.2 percent, but the statistician chalked it up to a methodology issue — a product of how analysts make seasonal adjustments.

Virtually all areas stayed flat or dropped for the month.

Economists typically look to year-over-year fluctuations for a better gauge on economic health.

Regional unemployment was down five-tenths of a point from last year. Statewide, it was down six-tenths of a point from November 2017.

Contact the writer:

joconnell@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9131;

@jon_oc on Twitter

A moon by any other name is still just a moon, unless it happens to coincide with a solar eclipse. Then it’s really something to howl about, as the event gives rise to the so-called “Super Blood Wolf Moon.”

Here a few things to know about what you’ll see in the sky in late January, weather permitting:

• According to NASA, a total lunar eclipse will fall on Jan. 21, darkening the moon behind the Earth’s shadow. Scientists say this will cause the moon to appear rusty and give it a blood-like red hue, because of sunlight refracted through the Earth’s atmosphere and around the planet.

• This eclipse will also coincide with a supermoon, which is named as such because the full moon appears slightly larger and brighter than normal. The optical illusion happens because the full moon occurs at the same time it reaches its closest point to Earth in its orbit.

• January’s full moon has long been known as the Wolf Moon, but some are calling this one the “Super Blood Wolf Moon.” The moon will be in full eclipse beginning at 9:35 p.m. Jan. 20 and end at 2:50 a.m. Jan. 21.

• The Old Farmer’s Almanac says in Native American and early Colonial times, this moon was called the Full Wolf Moon because it appeared when wolves howled in hunger outside the villages.

To some Native American tribes, this was also called the Snow Moon, but most applied that name to the next full moon, in February.

• Early on Jan. 22, Venus and Jupiter, the two brightest objects in the sky (after the sun and the moon) will appear side by side. You can spot them in the southeast from about 5 a.m. until sunrise.

If you miss the “Super Blood Wolf Moon,” don’t fret. February’s full moon will also be considered a supermoon. NASA says at 10:53 a.m. Feb. 19, Earth will be within 222,000 miles of the moon and also appear slightly larger and brighter.

Observatory to be open for eclipse

Keystone College’s Thomas G. Cupillari ’60 Astronomical Observatory will be open for a viewing of a total lunar eclipse on the night of Jan. 20 and the early morning of Jan. 21. The event is free and no reservations are required.

The observatory will open to the public at 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 20. A partial umbral eclipse starts at 10:33 p.m. and the total eclipse begins at 11:41 p.m. and ends at 12:43 a.m. on Jan. 21. The post-total partial eclipse ends at 1:50 a.m. The eclipse will be visible on at least a partial basis in more than half of the world but will be fully visible throughout Northeast Pennsylvania.

The Thomas G. Cupillari ’60 Astronomical Observatory is located on Route 107, approximately two miles west of Interstate 81, exit 202, and approximately two miles east of Fleetville. For more information, visit www.keystone.edu/observatory or call Jo-Ann Kamichitis at 570-945-8402.

— STAFF REPORT

SCRANTON — A Scranton man with a history of indecent exposure faces a long stay in state prison.

Orlando Santiago, 46, was sentenced Friday by Lackawanna County Judge Andy Jarbola to 39 months to 17 years in prison for exposing himself to four teenage girls in the city’s Hill Section over a two-day period in February.

Santiago also faces lifetime registration as a sex offender after Jarbola determined the former Mineral Avenue resident to be a sexually violent predator.

“I’m sorry for everything,” Santiago said, shrugging, when Jarbola asked if he wished to speak before sentencing him on two felony counts of corruption of minors and two misdemeanor counts of indecent exposure.

He pleaded guilty to the charges June 6.

City police charged Santiago with exposing himself to three girls — two 16 and one 17 — as they walked in the area of Costello Court on their way to school Feb. 9. The next day, he exposed himself to a 15-year-old girl as she walked near Hitchcock Court and Pine Street, police said.

In both cases, the girls told police, the man stood outside a car with his pants unzipped and his genitals exposed before getting into the vehicle and driving away.

At the time, Santiago was on probation from his conviction for indecent exposure and related charges for a December 2016 incident under similar circumstances and in the same neighborhood, and investigators quickly identified him as a suspect.

In 2012, Santiago pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct after city police accused him of asking three girls, 10 to 13, for sexual favors from inside a vehicle in the Hill Section.

In handing down the sentence, Jarbola said he found Santiago’s entire course of conduct concerning, including the fact he committed his most recent crimes while still on probation.

“You didn’t address your behavior,” he told the defendant.

At a hearing before the sentencing, Pennsylvania Sexual Offenders Assessment Board member Paula Brust testified Santiago meets the criteria to be classified as a sexually violent predator.

Brust told the judge Santiago, whom she believes suffers from “exhibitionist disorder,” displayed predatory behavior in driving around looking for victims and is likely to offend again.

“It’s not the first time he’s done it,” Brust said. “He has a pattern of this behavior.”

Under questioning by defense attorney Jeffrey Poplawsky, Brust acknowledged Santiago’s crimes involved no force or physical contact with his victims.

However, asked by First Assistant District Attorney Judy Price if those were necessary elements in determining someone to be a sexually violent predator, Brust replied, “Absolutely not.”

Santiago, who has been held in Lackawanna County Prison on $100,000 bail since arrest in February, will receive credit for time served, Jarbola said.

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

The former Globe store in downtown Scranton will host a Lackawanna County government meeting for the first time Monday, when commissioners reorganize for 2019.

Commissioners will elect a chairman and vice chairman of their board and set the year’s meeting schedule at the reorganization meeting, which begins at 10 a.m. in the commissioners’ new fifth-floor conference room. Guests should use the main entrance at 123 Wyoming Ave. to access the historic building.

Commissioner Patrick O’Malley has served as chairman of the board of commissioners for the past three years, during which Commissioner Laureen Cummings has served as vice chairwoman. Asked if they expect that to change in the fourth and final year of their current terms, both said that’s a decision for the board to make Monday. Commissioner Jerry Notarianni said he doesn’t expect any changes with regard to the board’s leadership roles.

The chairman of the board approves meeting agendas, has the final say on any changes, runs meetings, serves as the official spokesman for the board, represents the county at public events and signs written correspondence and legal documents. The job also carries a slightly higher salary. Commissioners make an annual base salary of $76,017, while the chairman of the board makes $78,836 per year.

As the county’s ongoing relocation to the Globe continues, O’Malley said one of the county’s early goals for 2019 is to have all employees and departments moved in by mid-to-late January.

“I think it’s just going to make the government so much more efficient and effective,” O’Malley said of the Globe, which should offer one-stop shopping for residents seeking most county services when the consolidation there is complete. “It was a beloved building in the past and it’s going to be a tool for the community for the future.”

Along with finalizing the Globe move, Notarianni’s 2019 goals include stimulating economic growth and “stabilizing” the local tax base. He also wants the county to contribute more to its employees’ pension fund.

For her part, Cummings wants to further crack down on “wasteful spending” in 2019 and look into selling any county-owned buildings that the county doesn’t need.

Following Monday’s reorganization, commissioners will meet at the Globe on Wednesday at 10 a.m.

Contact the writer:

jhorvath@timesshamrock.com;

570-348-9141;

@jhorvathTT on Twitter

SCRANTON

The Lackawanna County Marriage License Bureau will offer extended hours several Thursdays in 2019.

On April 11, May 9, June 13, July 11, Aug. 8 and Sept. 12, the bureau will open at 9 a.m. to close at 7 p.m. Those seeking a marriage license must bring valid photo ID or current passport and know their Social Security number. Individuals who were married previously must bring a divorce decree signed by a judge or a death certificate. A $70 fee is required and can be paid via cash, credit card or personal check.

Electronic marriage license applications can be found at lackawannacounty.org.

For information, call the bureau, located on the fifth floor of the former Globe store, 123 Wyoming Ave., at 570-963-6702.

— JEFF HORVATH

An Avoca man assaulted a woman during a domestic disturbance last month, then tried to bite officers as he resisted arrest, according to police.

Damian Kellogg, 30, was arraigned Thursday on charges of flight to avoid apprehension, indecent assault, simple assault, strangulation and resisting arrest in connection with the Dec. 19 incident.

Officers were dispatched to a 911 hang-up call at a Chestnut Street home. A woman flagged down police and said, “He’s in the house with the kids and he just beat me,” according to an affidavit filed by Avoca police.

An officer saw a man later identified as Kellogg leaving the residence. He refused orders to stop, but the officer caught up with him. Kellogg claimed he needed to go inside to get his identification. When he entered the home, the woman told police she feared Kellogg would harm children inside.

As officers searched the home to make sure the children were safe, Kellogg fled through a back door, according to police.

The woman told officers Kellogg had grabbed her by the neck and slammed her head against the ground repeatedly. Officers observed abrasions around her neck.

Police found Kellogg lying on the ground at the bottom of a hill by railroad tracks near the home. Kellogg refused repeated orders to show his hands, after which an officer deployed a stun gun and took him into custody.

Kellogg refused to cooperate with police, forcing officers to carry him up a hill to be evaluated by medical personnel. He tried to bite officers as they carried him, according to the affidavit.

After his arraignment, Kellogg was sent to Luzerne County Correctional Facility in lieu of $100,000 bail.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 15 before Magisterial District Judge Alexandra Kokura Kravitz.

Contact the writer:

emark@citizensvoice.com;

570-821-2117

MARRIAGE LICENSES

Vernon Harrod and Tiffany L. Ross, both of Scranton.

Jason Edward Sopinski, Winter Garden, Fla., and Carrie R. Seiwell, Luzerne County.

PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS

■ CR 2018 LLC, White Plains, N.Y., to Stonecraft LLC, Cresco; a property at 75 N. Lehigh River Drive, Clifton Twp., for $35,000.

■ Bradley Grubb, Omaha, Neb., to Brian J. Vacendak, Clarks Summit; a property at Lakeside Commons, Unit 10, South Abington Twp., for $154,000.

■ Robert S. and Paulette Nestrick, Scranton, to Martin Lynch and Melissa Ann Slaght, Spring Hill, Fla.; a property at 345 White Birch Drive, Scranton, for $268,000.

■ Strategic Realty Fund LLC, San Jose, Calif., to Eric J. and Barbara A. Dierks, Lackawanna County; a property at 101 Altier Drive, Archbald, for $109,000.

■ GJM Enterprises LLC, Carbondale, to LEC 1801 LLC, Scranton; a property at 827-829 N. Main Ave., Scranton, for $81,375.

■ Robert A. Loeffler and Laurie A. Naughton, individually, co-executors of the Albert J. Loeffler, also known as Albert Loeffler, deceased, co-trustees of the Doris A. Loeffler Testamentary Trust and as co-successor agents to Doris A. Loeffler, Lackawanna County, to Alfonso Hernandez Martinez, Scranton; a property at 1009 Prospect Ave., Scranton, for $44,000.

■ Robert Chan, Garden City, N.Y., to Patti Real Estate Holdings LLC, Scranton; a property at 1324 Linden St., Scranton, for $171,000.

■ Papp Real Estate Holdings LLC, Clarks Summit, to Srishubham LLC, South Abington Twp.; a property at 1401 Summit Pointe, Scranton, for $70,000.

■ Bayview Loan Servicing LLC, Coral Gables, Fla., to Michelle Garibotto, Anna Garibotto, Lackawanna County; three parcels in Dickson City for $39,000.

■ Paul E. Homnick Jr., administrator of the estate of Paul E. Homnick, also known as Paul E. Homnick Sr., Clarks Summit, to Gary L. and Julie F. Paddock, Nicholson; a property at 300 N. State St., Clarks Summit, for $100,000.

■ Michelle Georgetti, executrix of the estate of Susan M. Muro, Scranton, to Jessica Rosato and Michael Christopher Weeks, Dunmore, as joint tenants with rights of survivorship; a property at 1031 rear N. Irving Ave., Scranton, for $65,000.

ESTATE FILED

■ Louis J. Lanzo, 1011 Lafayette St., Scranton, letters testamentary to Mary Ann Kucz, 2313 Rockwell Ave., Scranton.

ARDS

The following were admitted to the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program for driving under the influence:

■ Lucas C. Jeanneret, 21, 7 Wonderland Drive, Hopewell Junction, N.Y., stopped Nov. 8, 2017, by state police.

■ Alica Marie Potter, 22, 618 Gibbons St., Scranton, stopped Jan. 29 by Scranton police.

■ Tricia Cherundolo, 43, 858 S. Main St., Second Floor, Old Forge, stopped March 12 by Old Forge police.

■ Jennifer B. Hidalgo, 31, 1097 Carmalt St., Dickson City, stopped Aug. 26, 2016, by Carbondale police.

■ Alex Kenneth Randall, 20, P.O. Box 581, New Milford, stopped March 10 by state police.

The following defendants were admitted to the ARD program for other crimes:

■ Leslie Jane Holt, 39, 2754 Evergreen Drive, Clarks Summit, arrested Sept. 25, 2017, by Archbald police for recklessly endangering another person.

■ Waseem Manuel, 19, 283 S. 11th St., Newark, N.J., arrested April 27 by Dickson City police for access device fraud — using an access drive to obtain or in an attempt to obtain property or services, identity theft, theft by deception — false impression and receiving stolen property.

■ Corinne Diane McKillop, 24, 810 N. Sekol Ave., Scranton, arrested March 10 by state police for DUI, marijuana — small amount for personal use and intentionally possessing a controlled substance by a person not registered.

■ Matthew Ryan Tisdale, 19, 513 Kohler Ave., Old Forge, arrested Jan. 6 by Old Forge police for theft by unlawful taking — movable property.

■ Yuanita Bong, 43, 8 S. Webster Ave., Scranton, arrested Dec. 26, 2017, by Scott Twp. police for theft by unlawful taking — movable property and receiving stolen property.

■ Bradley Martin Huegel, 24, 604 Shady Lane Road, South Abington Twp., arrested March 5 by Taylor police for DUI, use/possession of drug paraphernalia and marijuana — small amount for personal use.

■ Danielle Irvin, 46, 309 Mountain View Way, Scranton, arrested Dec. 3, 2017, by Scranton police for DUI, intentionally possessing a controlled substance by a person not registered and use/possession of drug paraphernalia.

■ Kristopher R. Davies, 30, 2425 Milwaukee Road, Clarks Summit, arrested Jan. 27 by Dickson City police for DUI, use/possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of marijuana.

■ Mercadelyn Harding, 20, 503 W. Taylor St., Taylor, arrested Feb. 3 by Scranton police for DUI and purchasing alcoholic beverages by a minor.

■ Dennis John Mueckl, 28, 134 Philadelphia St., Buffalo, N.Y., arrested March 21 by state police for DUI, marijuana — small amount for personal use and use/possession of drug paraphernalia.

ONLINE:

thetimes-tribune.com/courts

FRANKLIN TWP.

State troopers are investigating the death of a 3-week-old boy reported Friday morning.

Troopers said they were dispatched to a home along Country Village Lane around 6 a.m. after the child’s 30-year-old mother reported finding him unresponsive.

Medics rushed the child to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where the baby was pronounced dead.

Police said they are investigating the death and were not releasing further information.

Luzerne County Coroner Bill Lisman said an autopsy on the child was to be performed at 9 a.m. Monday.

— JAMES HALPIN

They risk their lives walking one of the most dangerous beats in law enforcement, yet workers at federal prisons like U.S. Penitentiary at Canaan in Wayne County are being forced to work without pay during the government shutdown.

“We’re essential. Obviously, a prison can’t shut down,” said Jeremy Dominick, vice president of the union that represents the prison’s workers. “Pretty much, we’re working for free. Anyone who works in a prison knows you’re walking into something you’re not sure you’re going to walk out from. Your life’s on the line. Some incentive to go to work is getting paid and we’re not even getting paid.”

Prison workers last got paid Dec. 29. The first payless payday is slated for Jan. 12 if the shutdown continues, Dominick said.

“It’s going to start to hit home next week. People are going to have to pay mortgages, car payments. Some people have to pay child support,” Dominick said. “A lot of our members are starting to get real worried and will be feeling the heat if they don’t get that paycheck on Saturday.”

USP Canaan in Canaan Twp. is often regarded as one of the most dangerous in the federal Bureau of Prisons system. Correctional officer Eric Williams, 34, of Nanticoke, was killed by an inmate on duty at the prison in February 2013.

The shutdown affects about 25 percent of government agencies, including the departments of Homeland Security, Justice, Transportation, Interior, Agriculture, and State. Congressional officials have said 380,000 federal workers are being furloughed and 420,000 will work without pay.

The shutdown is a result of a stalemate between Republican President Donald Trump and Congress over his demand for funding to build a wall on the border with Mexico.

Dominick, 38, a Democrat from Luzerne County, blames both sides of the aisle.

“Do I agree with the wall? Yes. Do I agree with shutting down the government to get the wall? No. There’s other ways than doing this,” Dominick said. “We need these people in Washington on both sides of the aisle and the president to come up with a solution.”

Fellow prison worker Joseph Pellicano, 41, a correctional officer from Lackawanna County who serves as a union representative, said he’s technically on a furlough this week. He said he scheduled time off a year ago, but paid time off is forbidden during a shutdown. So he doubts he’ll be repaid for what was supposed to be earned time off.

He returns to work Monday.

“There’s got to be a better solution than to have this hanging over the entire federal workforce,” Pellicano said, speaking on behalf of the union. “Federal employees are working-class people. We’re not rich.”

Working without pay is a morale killer and “very stressful,” Pellicano said

“It weighs on you going to work in a prison environment,” Pellicano said. “The government shuts down, the pay stops, but the inmates don’t stop.”

Contact the writer:

bkalinowski@citizensvoice.com

570-821-2055, @cvbobkal

PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS

■ Peoples Neighborhood Bank, Peoples Security Bank and Trust to ATR LaPlume LLC, property in Factoryville, for $25,000.

■ Hazel G. King to Christopher Dodge and Elvira Brown, property in Tunkhannock Twp. for $120,000.

■ Doris W. Sherwood, deceased, Walter A. Sherwood, deceased, Arthur W. Sherwood, executor, and Donald L. Sherwood, executor, to Horlacher & Sherwood Inc., property in Nicholson, for $40,000.

■ Susan J. Carretta, executor, Ruth B. Jones, deceased, Ruth Jones, deceased, to Nathaniel Isaac and Laura Rose Isaac, property in Tunkhannock, for $150,500.

■ Alicia Reid to Jenna Robinson, property in Overfield Twp., for $40,000.

■ Kevin J. Baumes and Terry L. Baumes to Eric Tschantz, property in Tunkhannock Twp., for $205,000.

■ Stephen A. Borel to Meshoppen Borough, property in Meshoppen for $83,000.

■ Wells Fargo Bank NA to Brianna Lynn Bodine, property in Tunkhannock Twp., for $69,900.

ESTATE FILED

Lois Martin, late of Noxen Twp., letters testamentary to Donna Louise Boyes, c/o attorney Sean M. McNealis, Hunlock Creek.

WYOMING COUNTY COURT NOTES appear weekly in the Times-Tribune.