Free Republic

SCRANTON – Attorney Al Flora lost his bid to have a mistrial declared in former Luzerne County judge Mark Ciavarella’s corruption trial Friday, but he planted the seed for an appeal should Ciavarella be convicted, several attorneys said. Flora requested U.S. District Judge Edwin Kosik declare a mistrial after Kosik objected, for the third time in two days, to questions Flora sought to ask prosecution witnesses regarding Robert Powell. The judge denied the motion. The objections, which were raised by Kosik and not prosecutors, precluded Flora from introducing evidence he contends is important to Ciavarella’s defense of a 39-count federal...