Woman Found Dead In W-b Motel Room

Alice M. (boone) Kiesinger

By JENNIFER LEARN-ANDES jandes@leader.net
 Wednesday, January 08, 2003 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1A 





Luzerne County has begun sending local juveniles to detention centers
across Eastern Pennsylvania - and out-of-town transportation could end up
costing county taxpayers more than the new housing. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The change in housing will have little impact on Luzerne County's budget
because the state and federal governments pick up a combined 90 percent of the
lodging tab. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; But, the state and federal governments won't pay anything toward the
transportation costs, said county Juvenile Probation Department Director Sandy
Brullo. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Court officials say the Juvenile Probation Department will rack up mileage
and staff overtime transporting juveniles to detention centers in or near
Easton, Shamokin and Reading. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And, they likely will have to travel farther regularly because centers in
those areas won't always have available room for Luzerne County juveniles. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 County Probation Services Department Director Paul McGarry said each trip
will tie up at least one probation officer - and, sometimes, teams of two or
three depending on the situation. That means overtime will be inevitable. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Probation officers also are being called in at night and on weekends to set
up lodging and provide the initial transportation of juveniles to detention
centers, Brullo said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Until last week, police could send juveniles directly to the Wilkes-Barre
center for lodging, and probation officers often could wait until business
hours to interview and process them. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Now, the Probation Department faces multiple trips to out-of-the-area
juvenile centers for each juvenile. The county has to pay staff and mileage to
transport county juveniles back and forth for hearings and other necessary
meetings. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 McGarry said he won't attempt to estimate the cost of the travel because he
doesn't know how many youths will be lodged, where they will be lodged, and
how often they will have to be transported. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 He said the Probation Department should be able to absorb increased travel
costs for a short period but might require increased county subsidy if
commissioners don't provide a local alternative. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``It depends upon what period of time we're talking about,'' McGarry said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 An average 22 to 26 county juveniles are in detention awaiting permanent
placement each day, Brullo said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Brullo said out-of-area detention centers charge an average $230 per day.
The rates, which are set by the state, factor in all the costs of lodging,
including staff, utility, maintenance and the building, she said. The approved
rate for the county's Wilkes-Barre center was $160 per day. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Though the lodging cost is higher at out-of-town facilities, Brullo said
that won't necessarily mean the county will have to pay a lot more because the
state and federal governments cover most of the increased burden. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Brullo said the federal and state government evenly split the lodging costs
for about 80 percent of these youths, primarily based on income. The county
and state evenly split the lodging cost for the remaining 20 percent, she
said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At most, the county would be forced to pay about 10 percent of the $70
difference between the old facility and the average cost of the out-of-town
facilities. That works out to $7 per juvenile per day or about $66,000 for 26
juveniles for a year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 New facility still years away &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 County Commissioners Tom Makowski and Stephen A. Urban plan to build a
center - possibly near the county-owned Valley Crest Nursing Home - but
construction will take two or more years. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Court and probation officials want the county to use a privately owned
detention center near completion in Pittston Township, at least for the short
term. Makowski and Urban have ruled out that option. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Makowski has said the facility's owner - Pennsylvania Child Care, a private
company - wants to charge too much. He has not said how much those charges
would be or what county engineers have determined the building is worth. In
addition, Pennsylvania Child Care has not yet received a state license to
operate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban said he believes the arrangement would violate state contracting and
ethics laws, largely because one of the Pennsylvania Child Care investors -
West Hazleton attorney Bob Powell - failed to disclose his involvement in the
project when he was a county solicitor. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The next-closest center is the Lackawanna County Juvenile Center in
Scranton, but center director Brian Kelly said Tuesday that his facility only
houses males and could accommodate only about two Luzerne County juveniles at
any given time. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 If the travel does end up costing local taxpayers more, who will be to
blame? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The courts refused to use the Luzerne County facility after Jan. 1, even
though it was licensed and deemed usable by the state Department of Public
Welfare. Court officials complained the old center wasn't
handicapped-accessible and was plagued with leaks and cockroaches. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 However, McGarry was quick to point out Tuesday that the Board of
Commissioners has sole authority over selection of the detention center used
for short-term placement and could have staffed the place and kept it open,
forcing the courts to use it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But, Urban said it wouldn't have made sense to keep the facility open
because Court of Common Pleas President Judge Mike Conahan said he wouldn't
use it starting Jan. 1. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban wholeheartedly agrees with the courts that Makowski and his fellow
majority Commissioner Tom Pizano too long delayed a decision on correcting
detention center problems. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 However, Urban believes the courts ignored the state's decision to renew
the center's license and issued the ultimatum of closing the old facility to
try to force commissioners into using the Pennsylvania Child Care facility. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Urban said Pennsylvania Child Care's original lease-purchase proposal was
submitted through the courts, and Powell is a social friend of several judges. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I think all of this was to get us to buy off on the Pittston Township
facility being built,'' Urban said. ``If county commissioners really control
that facility, why didn't Pennsylvania Child Care come directly to us? I think
there was some involvement with the courts on selecting that facility.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Pizano and Makowski could not be reached Tuesday for comment. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 County engineer Jim Brozena said the Wilkes-Barre detention center has been
locked up and prepared as if the occupants were ``going on vacation'' because
the building's future remains unknown. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``We turned the building down to the minimal temperatures. We have to keep
the heat on because water lines will burst,'' Brozena said. The building is
heated by the county's own steam and boiler plant. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Electricity must remain on to run motors and fans that distribute some of
the heat and work the fire alarm. The corridor lighting will remain on, but
most of the rooms will be darkened, he said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I'm sure we can find some adaptive reuse for the facility,'' Brozena
said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jennifer Learn-Andes, a Times Leader staff writer, can be reached at
831-7333. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Costs To Move Juvenile Offenders May Burden County 
With The Local Holding Facility Shut Down, It Is Necessary To Shuttle Young
Offenders Between Wilkes-barre And The Out-of-town Centers Where They Are
Staying.

Costs To Move Juvenile Offenders May Burden County With The Local Holding Facility Shut Down, It Is Necessary To Shuttle Young Offenders Between Wilkes-barre And The Out-of-town Centers Where They Are Staying.