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February 21, 2011

Pennsylvania Judge Convicted in Kids-For-Cash Scheme 
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A federal jury has found a former Pennsylvania judge guilty in a
so-called "kids-for-cash" scheme, in which he took money in exchange for
sending juvenile offenders to for-profit detention centers. Former
Luzerne County Judge Mark Ciavarella, Jr. was accused of taking $2.8
million in bribes and kickbacks for putting juveniles into detention
centers owned by friends. The former judge faces a maximum sentence of
157 years in prison. He is free on bail. On Friday, a woman confronted
the judge outside the courtroom and blamed him for her son's suicide.

Sandy Fonzo: "My kid's not here anymore! He's dead! Because of him! He
ruined my ... life! I'd like him to go to hell and rot there forever!"

The woman, Sandy Fonzo, said her son Edward Kenzakoski was never the
same after Judge Ciavarella sentenced him for a first-time offense of
possession of drug paraphernalia. In 2009 Pennsylvania Supreme Court
threw out thousands of juvenile convictions handed down by Ciavarella.



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