Light sentences for Pawlowski cronies ridiculous
Just about a month ago, a federal judge stunned a lot of people when he sentenced former Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski to 15 years behind bars for political corruption. Equally stunning were the light sentences given last week to other city officials who participated in Pawlowski’s schemes.
When banishing
Pawlowski to prison, Chief
U.S. District Judge Juan R.
Sanchez no doubt was sending a message that abusing the trust of taxpayers and gaming the system will not be tolerated. Well done.
Then the judge went easy on former assistant solicitor Dale Wiles and former finance director
Garret Strathearn.
Wiles and Strathearn were not masterminds of schemes to trade city business for campaign contributions for the mayor. But they violated the public’s trust by rigging the bidding process for city tax collector to favor a company backed by Pawlowski’s political supporters.
Wiles also was accused of lying to FBI agents and of not providing city records that had been subpoenaed. Strathearn was accused of lying to the FBI and perjuring himself while testifying before a grand jury investigating the case.
Both men should have spent some time in jail after pleading guilty to wire and mail fraud conspiracy.
Instead, Wiles was sentenced to serve a whole eight hours in the custody of U.S. marshals, followed by three months of house arrest. Strathearn gets to serve all of his penalty comfortably at home on house arrest for six months. Both men also were fined and put on probation.
There’s no point in an eight-hour sentence. It’s not like Wiles will experience what life truly is like behind bars. He’ll probably eat a few meals, fill out some paperwork, take a nap and be home before most of us get out of work that day. He surely won’t be scarred by his stint in custody.
But they violated the public’s trust by rigging the bidding process for city tax collector to favor a company backed by Pawlowski’s political supporters.
It’s hard to reconcile those light sentences with what Pawlowski got in October. Fifteen years is a long time. I’m not condoning what Pawlowski did and believe he should have been locked up for quite some time. But he’ll be put away far longer than some other corrupt politicians, while his cronies are out and about.
There are differences. Pawlowski never apologized, while Wiles and Strathearn showed remorse and admitted guilt. Yet both men still committed what should be considered mortal sins for any government employee.
Wiles and Strathearn had a duty to act in taxpayers’ best interests when awarding city contracts. Instead, they took advantage of a system that they knew operates in secret. Then they manipulated that system, knowing it would be difficult to get caught.
The process of awarding government contracts in Pennsylvania occurs largely behind closed doors. Notes and records of government employees who evaluate bids and proposals are exempt from public release under the state’s Right-toKnow Law.
Government agencies don’t even have to disclose who sits on committees that review bids and proposals. So there was no way for anyone outside of Allentown City Hall to look at how the tax collector proposals were weighed.
During Pawlowski’s trial, I wrote that the Right-to-Know Law should be changed to allow the public to review those documents to make sure contracts were awarded fairly. The documents are among the most important that governments have, as they are the basis for how a significant amount of taxpayer money is spent. And losing bidders surely would be interested in knowing how to improve their chances the next time.
Under federal sentencing guidelines, Strathearn and Wiles each could have received a 12-to-18-month prison sentence. Last week, prosecutors asked the judge to lock Wiles up for three months; they cited his eventual cooperation. Prosecutors did not seek any jail time for Strathearn, citing his cooperation.
Several other former city officials await sentencing.
Others who pleaded guilty to or been convicted of participating in Pawlowski’s schemes have been sentenced to prison.
Jim Hickey is a lobbyist who pleaded guilty last December to honest services fraud in the Pawlowski case and in a parallel corruption case in Reading. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Attorney Scott Allinson was convicted in March of conspiracy and bribery for soliciting contributions to Pawlowski’s U.S. Senate campaign in exchange for promises of legal work for his law firm at the time, Norris McLaughlin & Marcus. He was sentenced to 27 months in prison. Like Pawlowski, he is appealing.
During Allinson’s sentencing hearing, Sanchez rejected Allinson’s request for home confinement, saying it was inappropriate and would minimize the seriousness of his crimes.
The light sentences given to Wiles and Strathearn did just that.
paul.muschick@mcall.com 610-820-6582 Paul Muschick’s columns are published Monday through Friday at themorningcall.com and Sunday, Wednesday and Friday in The Morning Call. Follow me on Facebook at PaulMuschickColumns, Twitter @mcwatchdog and themorningcall.com/muschick.