The state Department of Environmental Protection has 180 days to review the Greater Pottsville Area Sewer Authority’s plan to deal with stormwater seeping into its system, the authority’s engineer Tom Schreffler, a consulting engineer with Light-Heigel & Associates Inc., Schuylkill Haven, said Wednesday.

The hope is that the state will approve of the authority’s Corrective Action Plan and lessen the sewer hookup moratorium put in place in the GPASA service area in 1990, Ian H. Lipton, GPASA chairman, said at the authority’s August meeting Wednesday night at city hall.

Lipton said he hopes DEP reviews the plan sooner rather than later.

“They’ve had it a month. We want to be the squeaky wheel on that,” Lipton said.

“Yes. And they have 180 days,” Schreffler said.

“I don’t care if they have 180 days. I’m not interested in how much time they have. I want to get this thing done and approved. So what I’m asking you to do as the engineer is you have to call them once a week to find out where they are in the process. We need to get this done. We need to see what our next step is and if they have any problems with that Corrective Action Plan,” Lipton said.

“If those are my marching orders, that’s what I’ll do,” Schreffler said.

After its last meeting, held July 29, Schreffler mailed a copy of the plan to Scott Novatnak, project manager for DEP’s clean water program.

“Please find enclosed two loose bound copies of the Greater Pottsville Area Sewer Authority’s Corrective Action Plan (CAP) regarding the Sanitary/Combined Storm Sewer Systems to the West End and Mount Carbon Pump Stations, and the Sewer Line Replacement in Mahantongo Street, from 2nd to 20th Streets. The CAP has been prepared in accordance with our February 25, 2015, and March 19, 2015, meetings with you,” Schreffler said in the package’s cover letter.

“Included in the CAP is a copy of the public notice (starting June 4 and ending July 5), and the resolutions from the three public entities that will be affected with the implementation of the CAP,” Schreffler said in the letter.

Those three entities are North Manheim Township, the Borough of Mount Carbon and the city of Pottsville.

Once DEP approves the plan, DEP will lift the moratorium on all parts of GPASA’s service area that are not under dispute, Lipton said.

In dispute are sections of North Manheim Township, the Borough of Mount Carbon and the city of Pottsville. The rest of GPASA’s service area includes the boroughs of Port Carbon, Palo Alto and Mechanicsville, and portions of Norwegian and East Norwegian townships.

In other matters at Wednesday’s meeting, Lipton and Schreffler offered an update on the work D.G. Yuengling & Son is doing to install an industrial wastewater pretreatment plant for its brewery at Fifth and Mahantongo streets.

The treatment plant has been built across the street from the brewery on the north side of Yuengling’s former ice cream factory. In the past week, construction workers have been installing a sewer line from the new treatment plant to GPASA’s system.

“It won’t be a gravity line,” Lipton said.

“It’ll be a pressurized sewer line to take the flow from their treatment plant and put it into our system,” Schreffler said.

“And we’re going to help them get that squared away. The cavalry will be there this week,” Lipton said.

A lawyer with more than two decades of experience in prosecuting criminals is returning, at least temporarily, to the Schuylkill County District Attorney’s Office.

James G. Caravan, Schuylkill Haven, will serve as an assistant district attorney during the maternity leave of Jennifer N. Lehman, District Attorney Christine A. Holman said Wednesday.

“I picked him because he had served in the office,” Holman said. “He’s a wonderful litigator.”

Caravan will join the staff on Sept. 25 and serve until Feb. 3, Holman said. He will serve on a per diem basis, she said.

Holman said Caravan will handle cases, as Lehman currently does, from the office of Magisterial District Judge Stephen J. Bayer, Tamaqua. Bayer’s district includes Coaldale, McAdoo and Tamaqua boroughs and Kline and Rush townships.

First appointed in September 1981 by then-District Attorney Richard B. Russell, Caravan served as an assistant district attorney under him, Claude A.L. Shields and Frank R. Cori until 2006. Currently, he is in private practice with the firm of Lewis, Williams & Caravan, Schuylkill Haven.

Schuylkill County prosecutors have obtained possession of a Minersville house that police had alleged was used for drug dealing in 2012.

In an order filed on Monday, Judge John E. Domalakes directed that the two-story row house at 467 North St. be turned over to prosecutors.

District Attorney Christine A. Holman said Wednesday that the house would be removed from the Oct. 2 judicial sale list. She said she did not know what would be done with the house and lot.

Cheryl Ann Borowski, 53, of Saint Clair, who owned the property, signed a statement on July 8 in which she agreed to forfeit the property under the terms of the state Controlled Substances Forfeiture Act.

In her statement, Borowski wrote that she signed it voluntarily and knowingly, and was agreeing to forfeit the property without a hearing.

She was one of six people arrested on July 25, 2012, in Minersville on drug-related charges.

Borowski pleaded guilty on May 22, 2013, to four counts of delivery of a controlled substance and one of bad checks. At that time, Domalakes sentenced her to serve 11 1/2 to 23 months in prison, pay costs, $100 to the Substance Abuse Education Fund and $585 restitution, and submit a DNA sample to law enforcement authorities.

Minersville police had charged Borowski with selling Suboxone on July 9, 2012, and cocaine on July 30, 2012, and with passing a bad check on July 4, 2012. All three incidents occurred in the borough, police said.

The property is on a list of blighted ones that the borough had intended to take care of at a future date.

State police at Jonestown charged a woman from Pine Grove with aggravated assault and domestic violence following an incident in Lebanon County, according to police.

At 12:40 p.m. Aug. 21, at 225 Monroe Valley Drive, Swatara Township, Tara L. Stoudt, 31, of Pine Grove, was arguing with a 37-year-old man from Jonestown, Lebanon County, and she struck him in the chest and back. Then she attempted to hit him with her Ford Edge sport utility vehicle, police said.

Police transported Stoudt to the Lebanon County Central Booking Center. Police charged her with aggravated assault, simple assault, harassment, recklessly endangering another person and endangering the welfare of children. She was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Thomas M. Capello, Lebanon, who set bail at $10,000. Unable to post bail, she was incarcerated at the Lebanon County Correctional Facility, police said.

A Shenandoah man imported one of the drugs known as bath salts from China, a Schuylkill County jury decided Wednesday.

John Najunas Sr., 47, did not react as the jury of nine women and three men pronounced him guilty of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Jurors deliberated less than 30 minutes before reaching their verdict.

Judge Jacqueline L. Russell, who presided over Najunas’ one-day trial, ordered preparation of a presentence investigation and said she would schedule sentencing in the near future. She kept Najunas’ bail at $5,000 straight cash; the defendant returned to prison, where he is being held in lieu of bail, pending further court action.

Shenandoah police alleged Najunas possessed a package mailed from China that contained 57.93 grams of bath salts about 8:30 a.m. March 13, 2014, at the Shenandoah post office.

Prosecutors said Najunas went to the post office to get the package, which postal officials had tried unsuccessfully to deliver to his residence the day before.

“It is a very high amount,” Deputy Sheriff Leo Securda, a former detective with the Schuylkill County Drug Task Force, testified about the bath salts sent to Najunas. “They’re not only purchased for personal use.”

Nicole Glaskevich, a state police forensic scientist, testified the substance was PVP, which is not specifically mentioned in the statute but is a derivative of an illegal substance.

“It is a controlled substance” and it is unlawful to possess it in Pennsylvania, Glaskevich said.

Shawn P. Tray, a Shenandoah police officer and West Mahanoy Township police chief, testified he saw Najunas writing a statement about the incident.

Najunas admitted in his statement that he sent his son to pick up the bath salts, according to Postal Inspector Daniel Hastings.

“Is that his handwriting?” Assistant District Attorney Robert I. Lipkin asked Hastings.

“Yes,” Hastings replied.

Hastings also testified he obtained a federal search warrant to open the package, which was addressed to Najunas.

“The purpose of opening the parcel was, ultimately, to keep narcotics out of the mail stream,” he said.

Hastings also said he recognized the contents as bath salts.

Assistant Public Defender Kent D. Watkins, Najunas’ lawyer, said in his closing argument that prosecution testimony differed from the Affidavit of Probable Cause, and that should create reasonable doubt in the jurors’ minds.

“Did this really happen? Where does the truth lie?” Watkins asked. “Obviously, the defendant has no control over what people are going to come in and say.”

However, jurors accepted Lipkin’s argument that the inconsistent testimony, which he acknowledged existed, concerned minor points.

“Most of the matters ... weren’t the significant issues,” he said.

What mattered were the bath salts and Najunas’ admissions, according to Lipkin.

“This ... was illegal when Mr. Najunas got it,” he said of the bath salts. “Let’s use common sense here. What other explanation is there? He had (the package) in his hands.”

Defendant

· Name: John Najunas Sr.

· Age: 47

· Residence: Shenandoah

· Verdict: Guilty of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia

Before a crowd of more than 50 people Wednesday, the Pottsville Housing Authority renamed its roundhouse in honor of a longtime community supporter.

“It’s being renamed the Billie Payne Community Center in honor of Billie’s years of service to the Pottsville Housing Authority and the city of Pottsville,” Craig S.L. Shields, executive director of the housing authority, said at the rededication ceremony Wednesday afternoon at the circular, one-story facility at 400 N. Seventh St.

Housing Authority officials also unveiled a new awning above the front steps featuring the center’s new name.

“She’s the longest-tenured employee of the housing authority since it was established in 1960. She’s been there 37-plus years,” Vincent Wychunas, chairman of the authority’s board of directors, said.

“And I don’t think she has any plans to retire,” Shields said.

Wilhelminia J. “Billie” Payne, 93, the authority’s deputy executive director, was at work at the housing authority’s offices at 410 Laurel Blvd. just a few hours before the dedication ceremony Wednesday. “When I started working here, I was a tenant supervisor,” she said.

In July, the authority’s board decided to rededicate the roundhouse to honor Billie.

“In choosing this building, Craig said it was a no-brainer. It’s the roundhouse. In Billie’s 37-plus years as an employee of the Pottsville housing authority, she cut no corners,” Wychunas said at the dedication.

“She’s been like a second mother to many people at the authority. And we’re very proud to name this building after you,” Shields said to Billie. “You’re a wonderful lady,” Shields said.

Those who spoke at the event included city Mayor James T. Muldowney, Marie A. Wilson, a member of the authority’s board of directors, and Wilson’s mother, Margaret.

“As a tenant representative for the housing authority, thank you for all you’ve done for the children of public housing. We greatly appreciate everything you did for us,” Marie Wilson said, referring to her own experience growing up in Pottsville.

“I’d like to thank you for everything you’ve done through all the years, through all the developments,” Wilson’s mother said.

“This is truly a great honor to have this building dedicated to me. But what I think is the honor is to have had the privilege of working for this organization for 37 years. I thank you, Craig, and the board of directors. I will cherish this honor forever, and I feel privileged to say I work with a great group of people,” Billie said.

The facility

In the late 1960s, the Pottsville Housing Authority worked with the City of Pottsville on a more than $2 million project to build affordable housing at Seventh Street and Laurel Boulevard.

The facilities include the John O’Hara Development on the north end, Laurel Terrace Apartments on the south end, and the Pottsville Housing Authority Roundhouse between the two housing units, according to the authority’s website at pottsvillehousing.net.

At the time, it was known as “Project 37-4” in Pottsville’s March of Progress, according to a poster dedicated to the construction project on file in Shields’s office.

“It was completed November 11, 1970. The total cost was $2,689,963,” Shields said Thursday.

In November 1970, Sol Lipton, chairman of the housing authority, informed the city council that the 168 housing units built were ready for occupancy, according to the Nov. 11, 1970, edition of The Pottsville REPUBLICAN.

“These units constructed on about five and a half acres of the western section of the Minersville Street Urban Renewal Project include apartment buildings and semi-detached public housing units. These were constructed on a ‘turn-key’ basis in which a private contractor builds them and then sells them to the housing authority,” according to the article.

For many years the roundhouse has been the home of the Pottsville Area Food Pantry, which is maintained by Schuylkill Community Action, and it’s been referred to as “John O’Hara Roundhouse” at www.schuylkillcommunityaction.com.

Billie Payne

Born in Pottsville, Aug. 20, 1922, Billie is the daughter of the late Jestyn and Margaret Bound. She was the youngest of the couple’s three daughters.

She said she got her nickname, “Billie,” because “my father wanted a boy. I was the youngest, and if my parents hadn’t managed to have one by then, well ...”

Billie married Russell Payne in 1947, but the couple has since separated.

She started becoming involved organizing community events while her children attended Pottsville Area School District. When her daughter, Dierdre, was a cheerleader, Billie started a cheerleader booster organization, according to the newspaper archives.

While she was working at the former Grace Shop at Centre and Norwegian streets, Payne got involved with Pottsville Winter Carnival.

In 1967, future Pottsville Mayor John D.W. Reiley was among the volunteers who pursued a dream to bring a carnival atmosphere to the city during the winter. And Reiley was the first president of the Greater Pottsville Winter Carnival.

Billie has held that post since 1982, and she’s held the post the longest.

Over the years, she’s been involved with numerous organizations and has received many honors. For example, in 1987, Mayor Anthony J. Pacenta gave her the key to the city.

In the late 1980s, she survived a battle with breast cancer. And in October 1991, at the sixth annual Cancer Fighters Dinner at the former Pottsville Club, she was honored by the American Cancer Society as the 1991 “Sol Cotler Memorial Courage Award.”

“You can be a cancer fighter too. Be aware of the warning signs issued by the American Cancer Society. Have the tests. Have the examination, and please, get there early,” Payne told the crowd that evening, according to the newspaper’s archives.

At that event, Dinner Chairman Joseph H. Jones Sr. said the secret to developing Pottsville’s downtown would be “to clone Billie Payne three times.”

Jones was at the rededication ceremony Wednesday and said he still stands by that statement.

“She kept things going that were good for downtown like the Winter Carnival. She deserves every honor she’s been given,” Jones said.

State Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane didn’t want Frank Fina to talk.

The former prosecutor didn’t want her to release “porngate” emails tied to him.

The behind-the-scenes battle between the pair was laid bare in hundreds of pages of documents unsealed Wednesday by the state Supreme Court. The documents included the much-anticipated release of troves of salacious emails sent and received by Fina and others.

In court filings, Kane alleged Fina and Marc Costanzo, two former prosecutors in the attorney general’s office, were “peddlers of porn” who instigated the grand jury investigation of her in a desperate attempt to hide their involvement in the scandal and save their careers.

Fina’s emails included sexually explicit and racially offensive attachments, including one altered nude photo that purported to show President Barack Obama and former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton.

The judge who presided over the probe of Kane portrayed an entirely different story, however, one in which Kane attempted to silence witnesses against her with veiled threats and intimidation.

Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Ferman charged Kane on Aug. 6 with perjury, official oppression and several other offenses for allegedly leaking information from the 2009 grand jury probe of J. Whyatt Mondesire, Philadelphia to a newspaper. Prosecutors contend she did so to embarrass Fina, who worked on the Mondesire case.

Kane’s claims are laid out in a motion she filed in November that sought to quash the grand jury investigation. Her attorneys argued Fina and Costanzo “corruptly manufactured” the investigation after they learned the “depraved” emails they had shared were recovered during her review of the investigation into the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse case.

“Faced with personal and professional ruin, they acted in desperation to avoid the public disgrace that they richly deserved,” the motion said. “The power of the grand jury, instead of acting as a ‘shield to the innocent,’ was in this case misused to protect two peddlers of depravity from public exposure.”

Other court filings portrayed Fina and Costanzo as the victims of a concerted effort to intimidate them into silence.

In the weeks before he testified before the grand jury on Aug. 26, 2014, Fina said he was warned by at least two reporters that Kane had personal emails that could be very embarrassing to him, he told Montgomery County Judge William Carpenter, who presided over the grand jury investigation of Kane.

A more direct threat came about a weeks before his testimony, when one of Kane’s staffers approached an attorney who knew Fina and said something to the effect of “tell your boy to back down,” then made reference to emails that would be very embarrassing to him, he said.

The men also recounted that on the day they testified before the grand jury, they were met by four agents with the office of attorney general who gave them “dirty looks.” The agents, one of whom got face-to-face with Fina, then rode up in an elevator with them.

The allegations led Judge Carpenter to issue a protective order barring the attorney general’s office from retaliating against any witnesses before the grand jury.

It is that order Kane maintains prevented her from releasing the porngate emails, which she contends are important to her defense.

The newly released documents revealed she also blamed the order from preventing her from investigating whether Fina and Costanzo could be charged with crimes relating to their sharing of the inappropriate emails.

The emails provide evidence of Kane’s claims of improper motivation behind the charges. It is not clear yet what role they will play in the defense of the charges against her, which hinge on whether she released the grand jury information, then lied about it to a panel investigating that leak.

Amil Minora, one of Kane’s attorneys, declined comment Wednesday.

Eleven concerned residents of Schuylkill County let their voices be heard Wednesday in Pottsville as they showed their support for the Iran agreement announced in July.

Congress has yet to vote on the agreement but will do so by next month. President Barack Obama said he will veto legislation against the deal that seeks to prohibit Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

Holding signs, the people shouted “No War with Iran” and “Defend Diplomacy” in front of U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright’s office on Progress Avenue.

The group said they were not against the congressman, but wanted to urge him to support the deal. Five of them later gave petitions, one signed online by 500 residents of the 17th congressional district — of which 100 were from Schuylkill County — and another petition with signatures of 10 county residents at the rally to Sabrina A. McLaughlin, veterans affairs caseworker, for Cartwright’s office. McLaughlin said she will make sure Cartwright gets each petition.

“This is our best option for peace at this point,” John Eccker, 50, of Ashland, a former naval officer, said as he stood outside with other like-minded people. He spoke of U.S.-Iran relations leading to the current situation.

Alan Parker, 78, of West Penn Township, said he volunteered to host the event. At least 100 Schuylkill County residents signed the online petition, he said.

The front page of the petition read, “War hawks are trying to take us to war by sabotaging the Iran nuclear deal. I urge you to support the deal and stop them from starting another war of choice in the Middle East.” The petition is addressed to The United States House of Representatives, Senate and President Obama.

“We are pleased to present you with this petition affirming this statement. President Obama has invested in a diplomatic solution to Iran’s nuclear program — committing to peace, not war, as a preferred course of action. We call on Congress to stand with him in this effort.”

“We have no argument with Congressman Cartwright. He has been wonderful for our district,” Parker said before the rally, which started a little after noon and continued for about 30 minutes.

Several of those in attendance spoke at the rally.

“I believe we should have a strong and technologically advanced military, but great power should be used with even greater discretion. Bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities at this point, going to war with Iran can only lead to increased violence in the area. The Iranian people will see an aggressor bombing their cities when there is a diplomatic alternative on the table. Iran’s leadership, which already boasts a long list of reasons to distrust the West, will have their crowning confirmation. Peace with Iran in the future will be nearly impossible. The correct next step is to give diplomacy a chance, especially since it appears to be working,” Eccker said.

John Soister, 65, of Orwigsburg, also said diplomacy is the answer. He is a Vietnam veteran.

Speaking, he said in regards to foreign policy, “It seems that we are all too quick to say that the first and final solution are bombs and boots.”

He is “sick” of this way of thinking.

“Why can’t we try diplomacy? Why can’t we try talking things out? We share a basic humanity with these people,” he said.

Parker said he was happy with the attendance considering it was in the middle of the day.

Cartwright was not at the Pottsville office but issued this statement about the issue: “During the ongoing August congressional district work period, I have spent time listening to constituents and other stakeholders on the differing sides of this issue, and I will continue to do so over the next few weeks as I weigh the matter. I have also attended classified briefings and will have the opportunity to review the classified written portions of the agreement in early September before reaching a conclusion on the accord.”

The Iran agreement issue has proponents and opponents to the deal telling people what they think.

Obama said July 14 the deal demonstrates “that American diplomacy can bring about real and meaningful change, change that makes our country, and the world, safer and more secure.”

He said inspectors will be permitted to inspect locations. Steps must be adhered to before the country receives sanction relief.

“Iran must abide by the deal before additional sanctions are lifted, including five years for restrictions related to arms, and eight years for restrictions related to ballistic missiles,” he said.

He said, “no deal means a greater chance to more war in the Middle East.”

Child safety seat

checks to be held

ELIZABETHVILLE — Child safety seat checks will be held at Wal-Mart in Elizabethville next month.

The safety seat checks will be done at 200 Kocher Lane in the borough Sept. 1 and Sept. 19 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Qualified individuals can assist in installing the safety seats and answer questions. No appointment is needed. Call state police at Lykens at 717-362-8700.

Bike stolen from

carport in Lykens

LYKENS — A lime green Mongoose Thruster 700C aluminum bicycle was stolen from a carport in Lykens.

A 42-year-old female from Lykens was the victim of a theft that took place on North Street between 8:30 p.m. Aug. 17 and 6 a.m. Aug. 18, state police at Lykens said. Those with information should contact state police at Lykens Trooper Goodman at 717-362-8700 and refer to incident H04-2414319.

Police investigate

use of credit card

LYKENS — Someone attempted to use the credit card of a Lykens woman recently.

State police at Lykens said between noon Aug. 19 and 8 a.m. Aug. 20, someone used a credit card of a 32-year-old Lykens woman amounting to $226.57. Those with information should call state police at Lykens at 717-362-8700.

MINERSVILLE — Job descriptions for instructional aide positions were updated by the Minersville Area school board at their regular monthly meeting Wednesday.

Instructional aides assist the teacher with a wide variety of duties to reinforce the lesson with individual students or small groups, according to the updated description. Their ultimate goal is to help students achieve skill levels as a whole class.

An aide is only permitted to reinforce instruction provided by the teacher and must adhere to lesson plans provided. They also assist in the supervision of students during non-instructional times such as lunchtime, recess and toilet routines and large group activities such as drill work, reading aloud, story telling and math.

Included in an instructional aide’s performance responsibilities are the following:

• Participate in in-service training programs as assigned.

• Earn and maintain their qualified status, including a high school diploma or equivalent and advanced training or Board of Education-approved alternatives, and accumulate 20 hours of approved professional development hours per school year.

• Assist the teacher in devising special strategies for reinforcing material based on an understanding of individual students needs, abilities and interests.

• Keep bulletin boards and other classroom learning displays up to date. Distribute and collect workbooks, papers and other instruction materials.

The following instructional aides were hired at a starting salary of $11.75 per hour beginning Aug. 31:

• Kaitlyn Fleischut for 25 hours per week

• Alexis Griffiths for 20 hours per week

• Linda Kimmel for 20 hours per week

• Jennifer Andruchek for 20 hours per week

Under a 90-working-day probational period, the term of employment for an instructional aide is 180 school days at five hours per day. Salaries are established by the Board of Education.

New employees who are not Highly Qualified must earn the POE Paraeducator Credential of Competency certificate within three months from the date of hire. All aides will be evaluated at least annually.

Job descriptions are public records and can be viewed from the school district. Updates to the facilities manager job description are also available. There was no one new hired for the facilities manager position during the meeting.

Susan Murphy was terminated as a part-time instructional aide effective July 21 for not completing required coursework. Meanwhile, Susan Cervino resigned as a part-time instructional aide, effective Aug. 19.

The school board also accepted the resignation of Andrew Gavalis, 21st Century Community Learning Center Schuylkill Achieve after-school program coordinator, effective Aug. 1. Jamie Rizzardi was appointed new program coordinator on the recommendation of elementary principal James Yacobacci at $24 per hour, effective Aug. 1.

Ashley Davies was also appointed as a professional long-term substitute for Marissa Kalyan LaScala for child rearing beginning on or about Oct. 12 through Jan. 4, 2016.

The following salary step placements have been approved by the school board:

• Danielle Raczka, transportation/child accounting secretary, at a salary of $28,846 effective Aug. 17

• Caroline Schuster at a salary of $36,950 for the 2015-16 school year

In other business, the Nutrition Group donated $585 for a student scholarship in the 2015-16 school year.

Minersville was randomly selected as the recipient at a June 2015 Charity Golf Outing.

Rubbermaid Commercial Products, Pottsville, donated supplies to the district, including six white binders, 18 trash bins and nine filing cabinets.

SHENANDOAH — The Shenandoah Valley school board approved a tentative agreement with the teachers union at Wednesday’s board meeting.

The vote on the tentative agreement with the Shenandoah Valley Education Association was 8-0. There was no discussion among the board members before the vote. The school district and union came to terms at a negotiating session Aug. 18.

The SVEA rank and file has been working under the former contract that expired at the end of the 2011-12 school year. The teachers held a walkout May 12 that lasted two days. At the time, SVEA President Richard W. P. Werner said the union wanted to bring the frustration of the teachers to the administration and school board about working without a new contract for three school years.

After the meeting, district solicitor Michael A. O’Pake said terms could not be discussed at this time.

“We voted tentatively to approve the agreement that we reached with the bargaining unit of the teacher’s association,” O’Pake said. “We expect the association to vote on it in a relatively short time as well. Once both entities have voted upon it, it will be reduced to writing, and then it becomes a contract when it’s signed by both parties.”

The union rank can either approve or reject the tentative agreement with the terms reached in negotiations.

O’Pake was asked about how many years the agreement spans, but O’Pake said since the term was also part of the negotiations, it cannot be discussed at this time.

n Ashland: Knights of Columbus Sarto Council 1322 will sponsor the annual Blue Mass at 11 a.m. Sept. 6 at St. Charles Borromeo Roman Catholic Church to honor all fire, police and EMS men and women. Members of the Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus Assembly 0923 will provide the honor guard. After Mass, there will be a dedication service at the parish cemeteries at the top of Ashland for the Father Michael Sheridan Memorial, the Fatima Grotto and the Monument for the Unborn.

n Ashland: The Ashland Area Rotary Club is sponsoring an Omega Health Screen by Quest Diagnostics from 7 to 9:30 a.m. Sept. 26 on the lower level at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. Those planning to participate should register by calling 800-776-6342. The cost of the basic blood tests is $55, which includes 31 various tests. Additional tests for PSA or TSH and other conditions will be available for additional fees. Participants must not have anything to eat or drink for 10 hours before testing. Participants should use the entrance from the parking lot at the rear of the church.

n Deer Lake: The Deer Lake & West Brunswick Fire Company, 1 Ash Road, will stage bingo games from 6 to 8:45 p.m. Tuesday at the fire hall. Doors will open at 5 p.m. and all are welcome. For more information, call 570-366-0152.

n Mahanoy City: The West End Fire & Rescue Company will stage a craft show and paint ’n sip from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sept. 12 at the firehouse, 700 W. Mahanoy Ave. The craft show will feature a variety of vendors. There will be a basket auction and food including unbaked cheese pizza at $12 for a whole and $6 for a half. The paint ’n sip will be from noon to 3 p.m. and the cost is $45 (BYOB). For tickets or more information, call 570-778-6118.

n Mount Carmel: Pennsylvania Retirees Subchapter 8601 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 13 will meet at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Zion Primitive Methodist Church, 33 N. Market St.

n Orwigsburg: The Orwigsburg Area Free Public Library, 214 E. Independence St., will feature a “Blow-out” book sale from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 12 at the library. The cost is $5 per bag. Proceeds will benefit children’s reading programs. For more information, call 570-366-1638.

n Shenandoah: An American Red Cross blood drive is set for 1 to 6 p.m. Sept. 9 in Divine Mercy Roman Catholic Parish’s St. Stephen Hall, Main and Oak streets. Walk-ins are welcome. To schedule an appointment, call 800-733-2767.

n Tamaqua: The Tamaqua Volunteers, a community initiative group, on Saturday will again sponsor an item dropoff and giveaway. Members are looking for donations of clothing, toys, tools, electronics, holiday decorations, pots, pans, dishes, cookware, furniture, appliances and similar fare. However, they cannot accept computer monitors, heavy televisions and obvious garbage. All donated items must be clean and odor-free. Donations can be dropped off between 8 and 9 a.m. at the M&M Self Storage facility next to Schickram’s Car Wash on Rose Street. In a release, the volunteers said they are not able to pick up or store donations. Any Tamaqua resident wanting to receive donations is encouraged to be at the site by 9 a.m. The giveaway will start at 9:15 a.m. All items will be given away free to residents via a drawing. Donations are never given out prior to the start of the giveaway. Any residents within the 18252 zip code area, no matter their income, can take advantage of the giveaway. Anyone from anywhere can drop items off. The group expressed appreciation to Thorn Cycle’s, M&M Self Storage and the Moyer family for donating the facility every month for the giveaways, which are held the last Saturday of every “warm” month. For more information or updates, visit the event on Facebook at www.facebook.com /events/935216 883161191 or call 570-668-1234.

HARRISBURG — Nearly within minutes of a state Supreme Court order Wednesday making public the pornographic emails at the core of a nearly yearlong legal battle, reporters descended on the Pennsylvania Judicial Center.

In a conference room, they paged through binders labeled “Exhibit A Memorandum of Law,” legal jargon at disconnect with the scores of images of nude women engaged in various sex acts or in states of disrobe and sexually suggestive emails introducing them.

The emails were distributed or received among a circle of top attorney general’s office prosecutors and agents and other law enforcement personnel from 2008 to 2012.

When the supreme court released more grand jury documents related to state Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane’s criminal case, most of the documents were posted on the court website.

But the court made special viewing arrangements for the documents at the heart of what Kane called a filthy email chain in the attorney general’s office of her predecessors. This was done because of what the court termed their “graphic, objectionable material.”

Some emails were released by Kane last fall, but this release included a broader list of names. A number of these emails were forwarded by Frank Fina, a former top OAG prosecutor who now works in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.

Fina and other OAG employees are recipients of some of the most sexually graphic emails, including one titled “7 XXX Ways to Serve a Man a Drink” and an altered nude image supposedly depicting President Barack Obama and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton. Fina also received an email titled “Men in Training” depicting a photo of a young boy looking into the underwear of a young girl.

Former State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan of Clark Summit is a recipient on some emails. Former Gov. Tom Corbett said a review last fall of Noonan’s state email account showed he didn’t participate in opening, originating, forwarding or replying to pornographic emails.

Among the documents:

•A Dec. 11, 2008, email from Fina to attorney general’s office employees titled “FW: McDonald’s Kalendar 2009” showing images of partially clad women.

•A Jan. 21, 2009, email from Fina titled “Need Motivation for the Weekend” has an image of a woman bent over with the caption “A great butt.”

•A May 21, 2009, email from Fina titled “FW: New Office Motivation Policy Posters” has images of women engaged in oral sex.

•A May 27, 2009, email from Fina to attorney general’s office employees titled “FW: Banana Split” has images of women in sexual poses.

•An April 25, 2011, email from Fina titled “Sarah for President” shows supposed nude images of 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.

A Luzerne County man must pay costs and a fine after admitting Wednesday in Schuylkill County Court that he violated a protection from abuse order earlier this month in Pottsville.

Christopher Haldeman, 38, of White Haven, pleaded guilty to indirect criminal contempt, which is contempt committed outside the courtroom.

Judge James P. Goodman accepted Haldeman’s plea and sentenced him to pay costs and a $300 fine.

However, Haldeman will not have to worry about any more violations since Goodman terminated the order against him, at the request of the victim, immediately after imposing the sentence.

Schuylkill County deputy sheriffs had charged Haldeman with violating the order Aug. 5 by having verbal contact with the victim.

In other recent county court action, Judge Jacqueline L. Russell accepted guilty pleas from, and, pursuant to agreements between prosecutors and defendants, imposed the indicated sentences on, these people:

Brian M. Oliver, 26, of Shenandoah; two counts of theft of leased property; 12 months probation, $50 payment to the Criminal Justice Enhancement Account and $853.29 restitution.

Thomas J. Pcolinsky Jr., 37, of Talleyville, Delaware; driving under the influence; five years in the intermediate punishment program, $1,500 fine, $300 payment to the Substance Abuse Education Fund and $60 restitution to Schuylkill Medical Center-South Jackson Street. Prosecutors withdrew a charge of accident involving damage to attended vehicle or property.

Frank T. Pivero, 52, of Pine Grove; DUI; five years in the intermediate punishment program, $2,500 fine, $300 SAEF payment, $50 bench warrant fee and $60 restitution to Schuylkill Medical Center-South Jackson Street. Prosecutors withdrew charges of disregarding traffic lane, failure to drive at a safe speed and careless driving.

All defendants who were sentenced must pay costs as a part of their sentences.

His first trial ended in a hung jury, but jurors in his second trial deliberated only about 15 minutes before finding Zebrick H. Jones guilty of driving under the influence in April 2014 on Interstate 81.

Jones, 54, of York, did not react as the jury of nine women and three men convicted him of DUI at the end of a one-day trial over which Judge Charles M. Miller presided.

Miller ordered preparation of a presentence investigation, scheduled Jones’ sentencing for 2:30 p.m. Oct. 8 and allowed Jones to remain free on his own recognizance pending further court proceedings.

State police at Schuylkill Haven alleged Jones was DUI about 5:40 p.m. April 4, 2014, near mile marker 119 on I-81 in Butler Township. Jones had a blood alcohol level of 0.174 percent, police said; the legal limit for driving in Pennsylvania is 0.08 percent.

“His exact words were, ‘I slipped and I hit a tractor-trailer,’ ” state police Trooper Michael S. Allar testified about what Jones told him after he came to the scene.

Allar said he saw damage to the hood, side and front passenger-side window of the sport utility vehicle Jones was driving and quickly realized the incident was a DUI-related accident.

“I could tell that he was drinking” because of the smell of alcohol and the defendant’s bloodshot eyes, Allar said.

He said he saw Hope Johnson, Jones’ live-in girlfriend, in the passenger seat with glass around her and a small cut on one of her hands. Jones and Johnson were the only two people by the SUV, Allar said.

Jones and Johnson each testified that the latter had been driving, and the defendant said he could not recall telling Allar that he had caused the accident. He said he had told Johnson to move into the passenger seat so she could safely leave the SUV.

In Jones’ first trial, on Feb. 10, another jury could not reach a verdict, and Miller declared a mistrial. Because that jury did not reach a verdict, prosecutors could retry Jones without violating the constitutional prohibition on double jeopardy.

Police investigate

Lost Creek theft

LOST CREEK — West Mahanoy Township police are investigating a burglary that occurred between 3 p.m. Aug. 20 and 6 p.m. Aug. 21. at a home at 473 Mount Olive Blvd.

Police said someone entered the home and stole numerous items and then fled the area undetected.

Police did not release information as to how the thief or thieves entered the home or what items were taken from inside.

Police are asking that anyone with information on this crime call them through the Schuylkill County Communications Center at 570-462-1991.

In addition, police are reminding residents to make sure their homes, vehicles and other property are secured at all times when unattended.

Police said anyone leaving their home unattended for vacation or other reasons can call their department and report the date they will be leaving and their anticipated return date. Doing this will allow officers to keep a check on the property while it is unoccupied.

Police charge man

for disturbance

LYKENS — A borough man was arrested by state police at Lykens and charged with disorderly conduct after an incident occurred about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at 384 N. Crossroads Road in Lykens Township, Dauphin County.

Police said Warren Weaver Jr. will have to answer to the charge before Magisterial District Judge Rebecca Margerum, Elizabethville.

The charges against Weaver were filed after police were called to the address for a disturbance.

Police arrest man after traffic stop

PORT CARBON — Borough police Wednesday arrested a Pottsville man with two active arrest warrants, according to police Officer Walter A. Knepper.

At 10:10 p.m. Wednesday, police stopped a vehicle headed west on Jackson Street that had failed to stop at a stop sign. The driver was Stephen Bloschichak, 44, of 512 W. Spring St., Frackville. Upon further investigation, police learned the passenger, Cody John Gaumer, 28, of 605 W. Arch St., Pottsville, had two active arrest warrants.

Police charged Bloschichak with a stop sign violation and transported Gaumer to county prison, Knepper said.

SCRANTON — After firefighters spent more than 24 hours battling a warehouse fire with hoses and foam, demolition crews moved in Thursday evening to take down parts of the building to prevent a collapse.

Demolition began on the Sandone Tire warehouse’s north side about 5:30 p.m. Crews with Highground Industrial and Smart Recycling Inc. used heavy equipment to begin biting into the smaller, beige-colored section on the north side of the warehouse. They want to clear some space north of the higher part of the building to create a work zone, Scranton fire Chief Patrick DeSarno said. They will then will begin “nibbling” their way south to the building’s tallest points.

With a potential collapse zone about 165 feet around the building, the goal is to reduce the structure’s height to make it safer for demolition workers, firefighters and surrounding businesses, Assistant Fire Chief Jim Floryshak said.

“As the demolition process continues, the extinguishment process will continue side by side or hand in hand,” Floryshak said. “And that may take days.”

The fire broke out about 5 p.m. Wednesday and quickly spread to the thousands of tires packed inside the building. Firefighters worked in shifts through the night.

Stacks of burning hot tires were encased in old walls likely insulated with cork or sawdust, with many bricked windows that allowed no ventilation, Floryshak said. At its worst, the building became a fireball that sent golf ball-sized embers floating through central Scranton streets. Parts of the building began collapsing about 2 a.m.

“We had a lot of things going against us,” Floryshak said.

Several walls had collapsed at the 702 Wyoming Ave. building Wednesday night. By the time the sun rose, the charred skeleton of the approximately 110-foot-tall warehouse was laid bare among swirling plumes of acrid smoke.

The Scranton Fire Department and several other fire companies kept their distance and had a block around the building closed to traffic. Ladder trucks kept a constant stream of water on the structure. Unmanned hoses angled up close to the building also unleashed a torrent of water.

Caution tape cordoned off the area directly around the building. Officials worried the warehouse could collapse further. Long, ragged cracks ran up the increasingly blackened and damaged structure. Nearby businesses, including Cooper’s Seafood House and Friedman Electric, remained closed.

Staff with the state Department of Environmental Protection monitored air quality Wednesday night through Thursday morning to gauge whether firefighters’ health was at risk, Floryshak said. “We are not concerned with the results,” he said.

Tire store co-owner Mike Sandone estimated between 35,000 and 50,000 tires are burning.

“It was a devastating fire; we didn’t expect it,” Sandone said.

Sandone said the business will survive the hit. There are other warehouses and a retail store, but going will be slow at first. The Wyoming Avenue location was a main warehouse and the fire consumed a lot of their inventory.

“We’re ready to roll,” Sandone said. “We just got to get situated here.”

The American Red Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania established relief tents stocked with water, soda and food for weary firefighters. Red Cross spokesman Dave Skutnik said the disaster services agency will remain there until the firefighters say they can leave.

Some firefighters worked shifts as long as 29 hours, DeSarno said. Every firefighter in the city responded to the blaze and many from surrounding communities came as well. Firefighters were being rotated in as Thursday progressed to keep teams fresh.

No injuries were reported as of Thursday night. Early in the fight, a couple of firefighters inside the building tried following the hose line out of the pitch black, smoky, hot structure but became disoriented as their oxygen ran low, DeSarno said. They called “may day” and made it out safely.

The owners of Goodfellas have sued Mount Carbon borough and four of its officials in federal court, alleging they deliberately tried to put it out of business in order to help the council president’s business.

In a 24-page lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Scranton, Michael W. and Deborah A. Glauda, Pottsville, alleged the borough repeatedly tried to enforce its amusement tax and permit requirements against Goodfellas, but not against Julian’s Tavern, which is owned by Harry Haughney Jr.

Goodfellas and the Glaudas are asking the court for unspecified compensatory and punitive damages in excess of $100,000 from each defendant, plus attorney fees.

They named as defendants Mayor Jeffrey J. Dunkel, Haughney and council members John McCord, Jennifer Raess and Michelle Stephenson.

In the lawsuit, the Glaudas alleged that since 2001, the borough has tried to put Goodfellas, 1105 S. Centre St., a popular bar and entertainment venue, out of business.

Actions the borough and its officials have taken, according to the lawsuit, include:

• Asking to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board to deny Goodfellas a renewal of its liquor license.

• Citing the Glaudas for having a holding tank at Goodfellas, in spite of there being proper permits for it.

• Illegally levying an entertainment tax without advertising it properly.

• Dunkel unlawfully taking a guitar autographed by entertainer Bret Michaels, along with proceeds of a charitable fundraiser.

• Dunkel, “impersonating a code enforcement officer,” issuing 14 citations to the Glaudas for alleged violations of the entertainment permit requirement without issuing any to Haughney for identical conduct. The Glaudas defeated all such citations, according to the lawsuit.

• Dunkel making racist remarks to a Goodfellas promoter.

• Haughney attempting to intimidate a witness to whom he said he would get even with the Glaudas.

• Selectively enforcing and then amending borough ordinances to hurt the Glaudas’ business and help Haughney’s business.

These actions violated the Glaudas’ constitutional rights by unlawfully seizing their property and by maliciously and selectively prosecuting them, according to the lawsuit.

The citations also constitute harassment and malicious prosecution under Pennsylvania law, the lawsuit reads in part. Additionally, the taking of the guitar and the racist comments to the promoter are conversion and libel under state law, according to the lawsuit.

A key witness in state Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane’s case gave conflicting statements regarding conversations he had with Kane and a top aide about grand jury documents he passed to a reporter, newly unsealed court documents show.

Joshua Morrow, a political consultant for Kane, initially testified before a grand jury on Nov. 21, 2014 that he believed Adrian King, who then served as Kane’s first assistant, identified some of the documents — including a transcript and an internal memo — that he wanted Morrow to pass on to a Philadelphia Daily News reporter.

When Morrow appeared before the panel a second time, on Jan. 12, he claimed he erred regarding the content of the conversation with King, according to a document filed by Thomas Carluccio, the special prosecutor who presented the case before the grand jury that recommended charges against Kane.

“Morrow now stated that, upon further reflection and research ... he did not recall having any discussion about the documents with King and he wanted to correct the record,” Carluccio said.

The conflicting statements could be important to the case as Kane maintains she authorized King to release certain documents relating to the 2009 grand jury probe of J. Whyatt Mondesire, but played no role in deciding what to release. She instead left that decision to King.

Kane was charged on Aug. 6 with perjury, official oppression and several other offenses for allegedly releasing confidential documents to reporter Chris Brennan of the Philadelphia Daily News in 2014. Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Ferman contends she did so to retaliate against Frank Fina, a former chief deputy attorney general she blamed for making her look bad.

The documents released were a 2009 memorandum between prosecutors in the Mondesire case, two emails and a 26-page transcript of an interview that was conducted in 2014 with one of the agents who worked on the case.

Morrow also made conflicting statements regarding his conversations with Kane, documents show.

The affidavit filed against Kane says Morrow told investigators Kane called him in April 2014, and told him a staff member had documents he wanted to give him. When he asked what they were, she told him it involved “an investigation into Jerry Mondesire by Frank Fina and that he had shut it down.”

That differs from what Morrow told the grand jury at his November appearance, according to Carluccio. On that occasion, he testified he had a brief conversation with Kane in which told him to call King, but “nothing of substance” was discussed.

When he appeared before the panel again in January, he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and refused to answer questions regarding his conversations with Kane.

Details of Morrow’s changing stories were contained in a court document Carluccio filed in support of Montgomery County Judge William Carpenter’s decision to hold Morrow in contempt of court for refusing to answer the questions regarding the conversations with Kane. Carpenter presided over the grand jury that recommended charges against Kane.

Morrow refused to answer the questions because he feared he could be held criminally liable for his role in passing the documents on to Brennan, his attorney, Catherine Recker, Philadelphia, said in court papers. He was also concerned because he spoke with Kane around the time he appeared before the grand jury and feared that could lead to an inference that Kane helped craft his testimony.

Kane continues to maintain her innocence. At her preliminary hearing Monday, her attorneys, including Amil Minora of Scranton, focused on attacking the prosecution’s theory regarding her purported motivation for allegedly releasing the documents.

Morrow did not testify at the hearing, so any information regarding his conflicting statements could not be introduced as this point in the case. Contacted Thursday, Minora said he could not comment on whether that issue will be brought up at trial.

Attempts to reach Recker and Henry Hockeimer, attorney for King, for comment were unsuccessful Thursday.

Shortly after Jeffrey S. Zwiebel became superintendent of Pottsville Area School District in 2012, he and school officials started to develop a system to improve the learning environment.

After more than two years of discussion and development, that new district-wide system, called “Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports,” will be rolled out on the first day of the 2015-16 school year, which is Monday, Michelle “Mikki” McGinty, high school guidance director, said Thursday.

“We started working on this almost three years ago under the direction of Dr. Zwiebel,” McGinty said.

“This year, we’re rolling it out to the teachers and the students,” Lara Swartz, a social worker at the high school, said.

“We hope PBIS will help to promote positive behavior to ensure the best learning environment possible for our students,” Zwiebel said Thursday.

“The focus is to create a more positive environment among students and faculty alike. It’s a program designed to eliminate barriers to learning. It will teach students better social skills and create a better cultural school climate, to make learning a little bit easier for them and create a better working environment for faculty members. And each building in our school district has a PBIS team,” McGinty said.

“It will increase the positives in school climate,” Swartz said.

Deirdre Boris, an educational consultant at Schuylkill Intermediate Unit 29, assisted with the project’s development, McGinty said.

McGinty, Swartz and Tiffany L. Reedy, high school principal, discussed it with high school teachers Thursday afternoon at Pottsville Area High School’s Robert W. Wachter Auditorium.

“We’re in the infancy stage. We’ve never done this before. If you think something isn’t working or something isn’t as positive as it could be, please let us know. The idea is to make sure we’re all on the same page and we’re driving it home to the students,” McGinty told the crowd.

McGinty said Pottsville Area is the first school district in Schuylkill County to adopt such a system. It was developed with help from the state Department of Education. Pine Grove Area School District is in the process of developing one too.

“It’s an initiative by the state, too. And it makes sense. And it will teach students about our expectations. Everybody’s house functions differently. What’s appropriate in your house may be different than somebody else’s house,” Reedy said.

PBIS is promoted by the Pennsylvania Positive Behavior Support Network and the network’s website at www.papbs.org includes a list of all school districts in the state employing the system.

Reedy and McGinty believe the state may one day mandate such programs.

PBIS will include a few things students at Pottsville Area will notice immediately.

There’s an upgraded system for recording disciplinary actions.

“It will improve discipline referrals. We came up with a district-wide way to take a look at the data, and that’s a big thing. Everything is research-based, data-driven. So what we did is came up with a discipline referral form. Previously, every building had their own. This new one will have consistent definitions across the board. And these forms will help us further develop our student information system,” McGinty said.

Teachers will use new disciplinary notices to report and track minor infractions, including: inappropriate language, expressions and physical contact, dress code compliance issues, technology misuse, being unprepared for class, class disruption, property misuse, cheating, lying and defiance.

Teachers will also use the forms to track major infractions, including: abusive language, fighting, making terroristic threats, use of controlled substances, bullying, theft, possession of weapons and vandalism.

PBIS also includes a positive philosophy similar to the one Zwiebel introduced when he became the district’s 14th superintendent.

On April 5, 2012, before a crowd of 150 in the auditorium at the D.H.H. Lengel Middle School, Zwiebel gave new meaning to “The TIDE.” He turned it into an acronym: “Tradition. Integrity. Dedication. Excellence. I know that’s what you expect out of me as your superintendent. And that’s what I expect out of all staff and students in our school district,” he said shortly after he took the oath of office.

This new system will adopt another acronym to accompany it: PRIDE: Prepare. Respect. Inspire. Demonstrate. Excel.

Each word should encourage the following actions, McGinty said:

• Prepare: Have supplies and agenda books with you. Complete homework and assignments on time.

• Respect: Respect others’ personal boundaries. Treat others with kindness and respect. Respect school and personal property.

• Inspire: Be a positive role model. Consider others’ thoughts and opinions.

• Demonstrate: Follow directions.

• Excel: Always do your best. Seek to help others.

“We have chosen to focus on TIDE PRIDE to incorporate our goals into the overall theme of this school district. And the students are going to be greeted every morning with something, a conversation piece or lesson plan that ties into TIDE PRIDE,” McGinty said.