#Mark ciavarella

[arctic-hands]

In what came to be known as the kids-for-cash scandal, Mark Ciavarella and another judge, Michael Conahan, shut down a county-run juvenile detention center and accepted $2.8 million in illegal payments from the builder and co-owner of two for-profit lockups. Ciavarella, who presided over juvenile court, pushed a zero-tolerance policy that guaranteed large numbers of kids would be sent to PA Child Care and its sister facility, Western PA Child Care.

Ciavarella ordered children as young as 8 to detention, many of them first-time offenders convicted of petty theft and other minor crimes. The judge often ordered youths he had found delinquent to be immediately shackled, handcuffed and taken away without giving them a chance to say goodbye to their families.

"Ciavarella and Conahan abandoned their oath and breached the public trust," Conner wrote Tuesday in his explanation of the damages award. "Their cruel and despicable actions victimized a vulnerable population of young people, many of whom were suffering from emotional issues and mental health concerns."

Ciavarella "ruled with breathtaking arrogance and an unfathomable disregard of due process," Conner wrote.

Ciavarella was known for a "zero-tolerance" approach to juveniles, and his sentencing decisions were often capricious. One 16-year-old in his courtroom for driving the wrong way down a one-way street was sentenced to 11 months in prison, because that was the number of buttons the offender had on her shirt, according to Conner's decision.  Another juvenile who went in for a release hearing was instead sentenced to an additional  eight months because the teen picked the wrong sports team. 

Several of the youths who were sentenced by Ciavarella or Conahan have since died of drug overdoses or suicide, Conner wrote.

After the scheme was uncovered, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court threw out 4,000 juvenile convictions entered between 2003 and 2008...

[randomwikiarticles]

The kids for cash scandal centered on judicial kickbacks to two judges at the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, US.[1] In 2008, judges Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella were convicted of accepting money in return for imposing harsh adjudications on juveniles to increase occupancy at a private prison operated by PA Child Care.[2]

Ciavarella disposed thousands of children to extended stays in youth centers for offenses as trivial as mocking an assistant principal on Myspace or trespassing in a vacant building.[3] After a judge rejected an initial plea agreement in 2009,[4][5] a federal grand jury returned a 48-count indictment.[6] In 2010, Conahan pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy and was sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison.[7] Ciavarella opted to go to trial the following year. He was convicted on 12 of 39 counts and sentenced to 28 years in federal prison.[8]

In the wake of the scandal, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania overturned hundreds of adjudications of delinquency in Luzerne County.[9] The Juvenile Law Center filed a class action lawsuit against the judges and numerous other parties,[10] and the Pennsylvania state legislature created a commission to investigate juvenile justice problems in the county.[11]

[arthropooda]

Two Pennsylvania judges who orchestrated a scheme to send children to for-profit jails in exchange for kickbacks were ordered to pay more than $200m to hundreds who fell victim to their crimes.

US district judge Christopher Conner awarded $106m in compensatory damages and $100m in punitive damages to nearly 300 people in a long-running civil suit against the judges, writing the plaintiffs are “the tragic human casualties of a scandal of epic proportions”.

'Kids for cash' judge gets 28 years in Pennsylvania bribery case

In what came to be known as the kids-for-cash scandal, Mark Ciavarella and another judge, Michael Conahan, shut down a county-run juvenile detention center and accepted $2.8m in illegal payments from the builder and co-owner of two for-profit lockups.

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[osarothomprince]

Missing Australian Teacher Mark Ciavarella Feared Poisoned And Fed To Hungry Crocodiles — Your Assignment Editor [YAE]

FOR MORE NEWS HEADLINES AND VIDEOS CLICK HERE [CLICK HERE FOR THE FULLSTORY] FOR MORE NEWS HEADLINES AND VIDEOS CLICK HERE Missing Australian Teacher Mark Ciavarella Feared Poisoned And Fed To Hungry Crocodiles — Your Assignment Editor [YAE]

[theechudar]

Missing Australian teacher poisoned, fed to crocodiles in Congo by ex-lover

The Australian music teacher who went missing from Congo’s Brazzaville on October 26, last year, was drugged and thrown into a crocodile-infested water body by his ex-lover. Australian teacher Mark Ciavarella, 57, had moved to the African country six years ago. (Photo: Facebook) By India Today Web Desk: An Australian music teacher, Mark Ciavarella, who went missing from Congo’s Brazzaville on…

[briefnewschannel]

Ex-Judges in ‘Kids for Cash' Scandal to Pay $206M in Damages

Ex-Judges in ‘Kids for Cash’ Scandal to Pay $206M in Damages

By TCR Staff | August 18, 2022 Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan, two former Pennsylvania judges accused in 2009 of sending hundreds of teenagers to privately run youth detention centers in exchange for millions in kickbacks, and sentenced to decades in prison as a result, have been ordered to pay more than $206 million in damages, reports the Wall Street Journal. U.S. District Judge…

[noisyfiremusic]

Former judges who sent kids to jail for money must pay more than $200 million : NPR

https://www.npr.org/2022/08/18/1118108084/michael-conahan-mark-ciavarella-kids-for-cash The thief cometh

[theyoungturks]

Two former Pennsylvania judges, who put together a scheme to send children to for-profit jails, will have to pay $200 million to the victims. Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur discuss on The Young Turks. Watch LIVE weekdays 6-8 pm ET. http://youtube.com/theyoungturks/live Read more HERE: https://apnews.com/article/crime-trending-news-government-and-politics-6f30f575dc739415af1e5b47b1be50f0 "Two former Pennsylvania judges who orchestrated a scheme to send children to for-profit jails in exchange for kickbacks were ordered to pay more than $200 million to hundreds of people they victimized in one of the worst judicial scandals in U.S. history. U.S. District Judge Christopher Conner awarded $106 million in compensatory damages and $100 million in punitive damages to nearly 300 people in a long-running civil suit against the judges, writing the plaintiffs are “the tragic human casualties of a scandal of epic proportions.” In what came to be known as the kids-for-cash scandal, Mark Ciavarella and another judge, Michael Conahan, shut down a county-run juvenile detention center and accepted $2.8 million in illegal payments from the builder and co-owner of two for-profit lockups. Ciavarella, who presided over juvenile court, pushed a zero-tolerance policy that guaranteed large numbers of kids would be sent to PA Child Care and its sister facility, Western PA Child Care." *** The largest online progressive news show in the world. Hosted by Cenk Uygur and Ana Kasparian. LIVE weekdays 6-8 pm ET. Help support our mission and get perks. Membership protects TYT's independence from corporate ownership and allows us to provide free live shows that speak truth to power for people around the world. See Perks: ▶ https://www.youtube.com/TheYoungTurks/join SUBSCRIBE on YOUTUBE: ☞ http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=theyoungturks FACEBOOK: ☞ http://www.facebook.com/TheYoungTurks TWITTER: ☞ http://www.twitter.com/TheYoungTurks INSTAGRAM: ☞ http://www.instagram.com/TheYoungTurks TWITCH: ☞ http://www.twitch.com/tyt 👕 Merch: http://shoptyt.com ❤ Donate: http://www.tyt.com/go 🔗 Website: https://www.tyt.com 📱App: http://www.tyt.com/app 📬 Newsletters: https://www.tyt.com/newsletters/ If you want to watch more videos from TYT, consider subscribing to other channels in our network: The Damage Report ▶ https://www.youtube.com/thedamagereport TYT Sports ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytsports The Conversation ▶ https://www.youtube.com/tytconversation Rebel HQ ▶ https://www.youtube.com/rebelhq TYT Investigates ▶ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwNJt9PYyN1uyw2XhNIQMMA #TYT #TheYoungTurks #BreakingNews 220818__TA05 by The Young Turks

[arctic-hands]

In what came to be known as the kids-for-cash scandal, Mark Ciavarella and another judge, Michael Conahan, shut down a county-run juvenile detention center and accepted $2.8 million in illegal payments from the builder and co-owner of two for-profit lockups. Ciavarella, who presided over juvenile court, pushed a zero-tolerance policy that guaranteed large numbers of kids would be sent to PA Child Care and its sister facility, Western PA Child Care.

Ciavarella ordered children as young as 8 to detention, many of them first-time offenders convicted of petty theft and other minor crimes. The judge often ordered youths he had found delinquent to be immediately shackled, handcuffed and taken away without giving them a chance to say goodbye to their families.

"Ciavarella and Conahan abandoned their oath and breached the public trust," Conner wrote Tuesday in his explanation of the damages award. "Their cruel and despicable actions victimized a vulnerable population of young people, many of whom were suffering from emotional issues and mental health concerns."

Ciavarella "ruled with breathtaking arrogance and an unfathomable disregard of due process," Conner wrote.

Ciavarella was known for a "zero-tolerance" approach to juveniles, and his sentencing decisions were often capricious. One 16-year-old in his courtroom for driving the wrong way down a one-way street was sentenced to 11 months in prison, because that was the number of buttons the offender had on her shirt, according to Conner's decision.  Another juvenile who went in for a release hearing was instead sentenced to an additional  eight months because the teen picked the wrong sports team. 

Several of the youths who were sentenced by Ciavarella or Conahan have since died of drug overdoses or suicide, Conner wrote.

After the scheme was uncovered, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court threw out 4,000 juvenile convictions entered between 2003 and 2008...

[hackernewsrobot]

Former judges who sent kids to jail for kickbacks must pay more than 200M

https://www.npr.org/2022/08/18/1118108084/michael-conahan-mark-ciavarella-kids-for-cash Comments

[usnewsrank]

US judges took millions in bribes to send kids to prison

US judges took millions in bribes to send kids to prison

Two former Pennsylvania state judges accepted $2.8million in illegal payments to put children in for-profit jails (Pictures: AP/US Department of Justice) Two former state judges who took bribes to send hundreds of children to prison have been ordered to pay more than $200million for the scheme. In the so-called kids-for-cash scandal, Pennsylvania state judges Mark Ciavarella, 72, and Michael…

[lapdropworldwide]

Kids-for-cash judges hit with $206 million penalty

Kids-for-cash judges hit with $206 million penalty

Two ex-jurists in Pennsylvania who took bribes to send children to for-profit prisons have been ordered to pay their victims Two former US judges have been ordered to pay $206 million in civil court damages for taking kickbacks from a builder of for-profit jails to send hundreds of children to his lockups. The Pennsylvania ex-jurists, Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan, must pay more than $106…