Scott Binsack is out of jail and back on Facebook.
Released Monday after a six-month stretch at the State Correctional Institution-Rockview, the failed Clarks Summit homebuilder and convicted con man was quick to reconnect with Facebook friends.
"Guess who?????," he wrote. "LOL Hope this finds everyone doing well!! Just wanted to say hi and thank you to everyone for there support and prayers over the past 6 months!!"
In another post, Mr. Binsack extolled the physical benefits of incarceration:
"It was a nice vacation LOL Put on 25 lbs of muscle feel great look great!!!"
Mr. Binsack was held at Rockview in Centre County on three probation violations. After his release, he was ordered to report to a community corrections residency to undergo mental health treatment, said Sherry Tate, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole. She said the location of the center and the amount of time he spends there are confidential under federal law.
The centers are designed to help parolees adjust to life outside prison and to offer addiction and mental health treatment. Released prisoners usually spend no more than 90 days reporting to a center, Ms. Tate said.
Mr. Binsack is best known for Mansions & Estates LLC, the Clarks Summit business that folded amid customer complaints of incomplete work and unpaid bills.
He became a household name in the Shamokin area in August, when he presented a $13 million investment plan to Shamokin City Council. When his criminal history dating to 1999 from New York state and Lackawanna and Monroe counties became known, his involvement in the financial undertaking, which centered on renovation and construction of local homes and businesses, drew the attention of Pennsylvania securities officials. Mr. Binsack has faced numerous charges over the years, including bad checks, harassment, insurance fraud and theft.
He went on the offensive and took the fight to the Internet. On Facebook and YouTube, Mr. Binsack and business associate Steven Crone created "Something's Smokin' in Shamokin," - promising to expose corruption in Shamokin.
In late October, Mr. Binsack failed to show for a scheduled meeting with a probation and parole hearing officer and fled the state. He continued to post taunting messages to law enforcement on the Internet while on the lam for a month before he was found Nov. 20 by U.S. Marshals in a motel room in Bath, N.Y., a location he called "Narnia" in his online posts.
On the day he was captured in New York, Mr. Binsack's attorney filed a civil lawsuit on his behalf against six Shamokin officials, including two councilmen and the police chief, and two probation and parole employees, claiming his constitutional rights had been violated, that his ability to develop real estate opportunities was "seriously damaged," that his "good name, reputation, honor and integrity" were injured, and that he has suffered emotional distress.
The defendants have all asked the court to dismiss the suit, and Mr. Binsack's lawyer was given the court's permission to withdraw from the case.
Mr. Binsack asked a federal judge in April for a temporary stay in the lawsuit because he said he was unable to access his evidence while in jail.