Disgraced judge Claims immunity for his actions against juveniles, who allege they were unjustly incarcerated; Juvenile Law Center’s response coming

April 1 Ciavarella moves to dismiss lawsuit
By Terrie Morgan-Besecker tmorgan@timesleader.comLaw & Order Reporter
SCRANTON – Claiming he has judicial immunity, former Luzerne County judge Mark Ciavarella on Tuesday filed a motion seeking to dismiss one of the federal lawsuits filed against him by juveniles who allege they were unjustly incarcerated.
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The motion, which Ciavarella authored and filed himself, argues he is immune from civil suits related to actions he took on the bench, even if those actions were done “maliciously or corruptly.”
The disgraced judge filed the motion in connection with a class-action lawsuit filed by the Juvenile Law Center of Philadelphia, which represents dozens of juveniles who allege Ciavarella wrongly detained them in order to financially benefit himself and others.
Ciavarella and former judge Michael Conahan pleaded guilty in February to charges of tax evasion and depriving the public of their honest services for accepting more than $2.6 million in kickbacks in exchange for rulings that benefited the Pa Child Care and Western Pa Child Care centers that were once co-owned by Butler Township attorney Robert Powell.
Ciavarella and Conahan have agreed to serve 87 months in prison, but remain free pending their official sentencing, which is not expected to be scheduled for at least another month. Although no longer on the bench, both have retained their license to practice law as their plea agreements call for them to resign from the bar within 10 days after they are sentenced.
Robert Schwartz, executive director of the Juvenile Law Center, said attorneys there had anticipated Ciavarella would file a motion to dismiss. He said the center will have a response to the motion but declined to state the legal basis upon which that motion will be based.
The center’s suit is one of three pending against Ciavarella, Conahan, Powell and several other persons who are alleged to have engaged in a scheme to send children to the PA Child Care and Western PA Child Care centers in order to pad their pockets.
Attorneys who filed the other suits, Michael Cefalo of Pittston and Barry Dyller of Wilkes-Barre, said Ciavarella had not filed a motion to dismiss in their cases as of late Tuesday afternoon.
Cefalo said he anticipated the judges might seek to claim judicial immunity. He said the judges do have immunity for acts they take on the bench, but that immunity may not extend to administrative actions they take outside of their office.
All three suits allege the judges took various administrative actions, including closing the county’s former juvenile detention, as part of the scheme.
“The acts he committed when he wears the robe, he has immunity. When he’s not wearing the robe, and it’s an administrative act, that may not be covered,” Cefalo said.