Free Republic

A witness will testify one or both of the disgraced Luzerne County judges who have pleaded guilty to accepting millions in kickbacks have “direct connections” to jailed mobster William “Big Billy” D’Elia, according to a petition filed Thursday in the state Supreme Court by lawyers for the owners of The Citizens’ Voice. The petition asks the court to vacate a $3.5 million defamation verdict issued by suspended Judge Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. in June 2006 against the Scranton Times LP, a related company called the Times Partner and former Citizens’ Voice reporter Edward Lewis. After a nonjury trial, Judge Ciavarella...

The Democrat's name appears on billboard and bus ads for the merged Scranton Times-Tribune. It might just have faded like any other promotional campaign. The newly merged Scranton Times-Tribune wanted to call attention to itself with advertisements that appear this summer on TV, billboards and buses. The ads featured a mock newspaper with a banner headline: "Casey to run for Senate." But at issue now - unfolding against the backdrop of a high-profile U.S. Senate race between Republican incumbent Rick Santorum and Democrat Bob Casey Jr. - is whether the ads are a harmless promotion for a business or a...