Judge Mark Ciavarella
A million dollars in consulting fees, a swordfishing trip, college
basketball tickets and a $3,500 suit are among $1.26 million in
expenses being questioned in a state audit of a Butler County juvenile
detention center owned by Pittsburgh businessman Greg Zappala.
The state Department of Public Welfare says those expenses and
others were not allowable costs at the facility, which receives much of
its funding from state and county governments. The results were in the
draft of an audit report of the Western Pennsylvania Child Care
facility issued by the Welfare Department and obtained by the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Auditors say the facility also sent erroneous bills, violated
contracts by billing for days on which juveniles were discharged,
failed to keep proper records and charged Luzerne County $73,920 for
beds in the facility in Allegheny Township, Butler County -- 260 miles
away -- that were never used.
The facility and a similar one in northwest Pennsylvania also owned
by Mr. Zappala are at the center of a criminal case against two former
Luzerne County judges who are scheduled to plead guilty today in a
fraud case. Former judges Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. and Michael T. Conahan
are accused of accepting $2.6 million in payments to facilitate the
development of the Butler County facility and Pennsylvania Child Care
in Pittston Township, Luzerne. Federal prosecutors allege they steered
children to the center against probation officers' recommendations and
without legal representation.
No charges have been filed against Mr. Zappala or his former
business partner, attorney Robert J. Powell. Mr. Zappala is the brother
of Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. and son of
former state Supreme Court Justice Stephen A. Zappala Sr.
If Western Pennsylvania Child Care had not misspent funds as the
audit alleges, the facility could have reduced its charges to counties.
The facility bills $314 a day for secure treatment and $255 per day for
shelter services, but could have reduced those charges to $249.84 and
$194.81, respectively, if it hadn't spent the questioned costs,
auditors concluded.
Butler County Commissioner James Kennedy has long questioned those charges.
He abstained from a 2005 vote to contract with Western Pennsylvania Child Care because he thought the charges were too high.
"The costs were exorbitant," Mr. Kennedy said in an interview Tuesday. "I couldn't condone going through with this deal."
Similar facilities at the time were charging $180 per day for secure
treatment and $140 per day for shelter care, according to minutes of
the 2005 meeting.
Butler County Controller Jack McMillin is concerned that the county may have been overcharged for years.
He said he was very concerned after reviewing the draft audit, which
yesterday was sent to facility operators, county officials and others.
The county has paid the facility more than $901,000 since it opened
at the end of 2005. Western Pennsylvania Child Care operates a secure
unit for juvenile criminals and a shelter for those waiting to be
adjudicated or who need emergency housing because their parents are not
able to care for them.
Calls to Western Pennsylvania Child Care were referred to company
executive Michael Cummings, who did not return a phone call yesterday.
Among the questionable costs identified in the audit are $1 million
in undocumented consulting fees paid to firms with financial ties to
Mr. Zappala and Mr. Powell; $5,800 for limousine service to three
college basketball games and for a shopping trip to King of Prussia
Mall outside Philadelphia; $4,500 for a charted fishing trip Mr.
Zappala took in Florida; and $3,500 for a custom-made men's suit. The
audit also questioned $51,482 in interest the center paid on a line of
credit that provided interest-free loans to its principals.
Meanwhile, according to the audit, the facility claimed it couldn't
pay its bills because of cash-flow problems and was getting utility
shut-off notices.
Western Pennsylvania Child Care has 60 days to respond to the
findings in the draft audit. Their response will be incorporated into a
final Welfare Department audit report.
Also yesterday, the state Supreme Court appointed Berks County
Senior Judge Arthur E. Grim as a special master to review juvenile
cases adjudicated in Luzerne County.
The court specifically directed him to review cases in which Judge
Ciavarella committed juveniles to the detention facilities owned by Mr.
Zappala and cases in which there are allegations that Judge Ciavarella
denied defendants the right to counsel.
Judge Grim can decide to expunge records, grant new hearings or void
rulings, according the Supreme Court order issued yesterday.
"The goal of this court is to determine whether the alleged travesty
of juvenile justice in Luzerne County occurred and, if it did, to
identify the affected juveniles and rectify the situation as fairly and
swiftly as possible," the order says.
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