Want a parent that truly wants to be a part of her son's life? Meet Sandy Fonzo. Her son was an all-star wrestler who was headed to good things. He was also a kid who was making choices for his life. Some of his choices were not the best choices.
Without any prior arrests or problems with the law, he was picked up for having drug paraphemalia. When he appeared in front of a judge, he was sentenced to 30 days in lock-up and then a long time in an inner city boot camp juvenile lock-up. He was with convicted killers and drug sellers. After 6 months, he told people he couldn't take it and committed suicide. Now, a mother who is without her son, mourns the loss.
The judge was convicted of extortion. He sentenced kids to these facilities in exchange for money.
A judge, who was given a special trust in his position to those in the community. When a police officer acts in haste without honor, it is unacceptable. A judge who knowingly commits errors, needs to be held accountable for his actions even more. Here is the video and the story.
From the Wall Street Journal ...
Last Friday, a jury found a former Pennsylvania judge accused of sending large numbers of children to detention centers in exchange for kickbacks from the builder of the detention guilty on 12 counts of money laundering and conspiracy. The jury also acquitted the defendant, Mark Ciavarella, on 27 counts, including extortion.
But the jury verdict hardly ended the drama.
Ciavarella was allowed to remain free pending sentencing after the conviction Friday. And after the verdict, he made rather strident statements to the media outside the courthouse.
“Never took a dime to send a kid anywhere. … Never happened. Never, ever happened. This case was about extortions and kickbacks, not about ‘kids for cash,’” said Ciavarella, who plans to appeal.
In response to the judge’s being able to walk pending sentencing, Sandy Fonzo, whose son was jailed by Ciavarella — and committed suicide last year at age 23 — screamed obscenities at the judge and even poked him as he and his attorneys held a news conference on the courthouse steps.
“My kid’s not here anymore!” yelled Fonzo. “He’s dead! Because of him! He ruined my f——- life! I’d like him to go to hell and rot there forever!”
Ciavarella glanced at Fonzo, then turned his back.
Fonzo’s son, Edward Kenzakowski, was a 17-year-old all-star wrestler with no prior record when he landed in Ciavarella’s courtroom for possession of drug paraphernalia. She said her son never recovered from the months he served at the detention centers and a wilderness camp.
Tears streaming down her face, Fonzo said she couldn’t believe Ciavarella was allowed to walk out of the courthouse.
“There’s no justice, there’s not. He’s never going to get what he deserves,” she said. “I just wanted to see him handcuffed and taken out. But when I saw him just being released with that stupid smirk on his face …”
The jury found Ciavarella guilty of taking a $997,600 kickback from Robert Mericle, the builder of the juvenile facilities. But jurors acquitted him of extorting Robert Powell, the facilities’ developer and co-owner.
The defense declared victory. “We’re amazed. The jury rejected 95 percent of the government’s case,” said attorney Al Flora.
“I find it interesting,” U.S. Attorney Peter Smith said in response, “that a man just convicted of racketeering is claiming any sort of a victory out there today. I wonder what he would consider a defeat.”
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