Posted on 08/04/2010 4:34:59 PM PDT by Born Conservative
SCRANTON - Former Luzerne County Commissioner and single father Greg Skrepenak's "unparalleled devotion" to his three minor children should win him a reduced sentence on the corruption charge that drove him from office, his attorney argued in a motion filed Tuesday.
Skrepenak, 40, faces a likely prison sentence of 33 to 41 months under federal sentencing guidelines when he appears before U.S. District Judge Richard P. Conaboy on Friday. But the defense motion argues Skrepenak's status as a single father of three children aged 11, 13 and 15 warrants a lesser sentence.
Skrepenak's ex-wife, Carrie, suffers from severe drug addiction and "has not been part of the lives of Mr. Skrepenak's children for some time," according to the motion.
Carrie Skrepenak, 42, is being held in a state facility in western Pennsylvania, the motion said, but she was not listed in a state Internet database of inmates. Carrie Skrepenak, who has a string of arrests on drug-related and theft charges dating to 2001, was last arrested in Wilkes-Barre in June on charges of driving under the influence of a controlled substance.
Skrepenak, a former NFL and University of Michigan offensive lineman, "is the only individual, ready, willing and able to care for his children," according to the defense motion filed by attorney Peter John Moses. The motion says Skrepenak's children have sleep apnea and allergies that "require constant attention and vigilance."
Moses declined to say what he would consider a fair sentence for his client.
"We believe the motion speaks for itself and we will leave the decision in the hands of Judge Conaboy," he said.
The motion argues that a reduced sentence would meet the intent of Congress when it passed the federal sentencing guidelines to eliminate disparities between sentences based on gender and other factors.
"Historically, sentences for females and single female parents have statistically and significantly been less harsh than those of their male counterparts," the motion says.
Skrepenak pleaded guilty in January to the corrupt receipt of a reward for official action, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. His plea agreement required him to resign from the county board commissioners. Skrepenak, a Democrat, was first elected to the board in 2003 and re-elected in 2007.
Court records show Carrie Skrepenak served time at the State Correctional Institution at Cambridge Springs in northwestern Pennsylvania on theft and drug paraphernalia charges in 2007 and 2008, but was released on parole in March 2009. Wilkes-Barre police charged her with driving under the influence of controlled substances and possession of paraphernalia following a minor traffic accident in June.
Officials at Cambridge Springs would not confirm or deny Tuesday evening if Carrie Skrepenak is being held there.
Neither Carrie Skrepenak nor the attorney who represented her on the earlier retail theft/drug paraphernalia charges, Cheryl Sobeski-Reedy, could be reached for comment.
Ping
Give him the minimum...not a minute less.
Don’t do the crime... if you can’t do the time... Sorry,, no sympathy...... Give the kids to grandparents,, that seems to be the norm these days.
As county commissioner, he approved the closing of the county juvenile detention facility, and then approved use of a private facility which the county paid dearly for (IIRC, it cost the county $58 million). This facility was at the heart of “Kids for Cash”, whereby county judges sentenced kids there for small things, and in exchange, got kickbacks. The $5000 incident is what he ADMITTED to. Luzerne County is rife with corruption, and as commissioner, he was in the middle of it all.
ping
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.