—_ The Post NEWS Sunday, January 11, 2004 Many big issues still to be settled By RONALD BARTIZEK Post Staff KINGSTON TWP. — Dur- ing their January 5 reorganiza- tion meeting, the supervisors voted to postpone action on a number of issues. Two key ones are a traffic study of Route 309 and fund- ing for the Back Mountain Council of Governments (COG). Last month, the supervisors voted to ask the state Depart- ment of Transportation to study the highway with an eye toward declaring that it runs through an urban district. That title would allow a 35 mile per hour speed limit, which is al- ready in effect north of the in- tersection with Center Street. Chris Yankovich wants to re- scind that request, which he sees as incomplete. “I would like to see a complete study done,” he said, from Harris Hill Road to Franklin Street. Police Chief James Balavage said he has had conversations with PennDOT officials who have told him they want to ad- dress the Route 309 corridor in a comprehensive manner. Bal- avage said he believed the en- tire length of the highway in Kingston Township will meet the requirements for an urban district. The need for interaction with PennDOT was illustrated in the township’s desire to ban left turns from side streets onto Route 309. Balavage said while the township has the au- thority to do so, signs would rest in the PennDOT right-of way, requiring that agency’s ap- proval before they could be erected. In the long run, Balavage feels that if the township, Pen- nDOT and businesses can’t agree on a comprehensive plan to eliminate serious collisions that occur frequently, the only solution left will be a median barrier. _ After a long discussion, Jeff Box suggested calling a special meeting of supervisors with PennDOT officials, which all supervisors agreed to. ox wants the township to rescind a vote that authorized support of up to $17,000 for a regional comprehensive plan through the COG. Carl Goodwin, who has championed COG member- ship, vehemently opposed the move, and insisted on reading into the record the full text of two letters addressing the is- sue. One, from Solicitor Ben Jones III, suggests, the Novem- ber, 2003 vote by the board has committed the township to the funding, with potential liability arising if the vote is now changed. Recovery fund for fire victims A fire recovery fund has been established for the family of Gordon Witt. The Witt home on Main Street in Dallas was heavily damaged by fire on De- cember 28. Gordon Witt is a volunteer with the Trucksville Fire Department, which has set up an account to accept dona- tions to assist the family of five. Contributions may be sent to: The Gordon Witt Fire Victim Family Fund c/o First Liberty Bank 165 S. Memorial Hwy. Trucksville, PA 18708 POST PHOTO/RON BARTIZEK District Justice James Tupper swore in new Kingston Township Supervisors Jeff Box, Chris Yankovich and David Jenkins last week. Kingston (continued from page 1) called for “cooperation in a professional manner,” and gave his fellow supervisors a vote of confidence. “I really think we can,” he said, hopefully. Jenkins and Box, who was elected vice chairman, are new to the board. Yankovich was ap- pointed in the spring of 2003, then earned a seat by being the high vote-getter in November’s election. It was clear as last week’s meeting progressed that they form a loose majority with very different ideas than the su- pervisors they replaced. Even the vote for chairman was tight, with Yankovich win- ning 3-2 over J. Carl Goodwin, the former vice chairman. The people who filled the meeting room showed their approval with a round of applause. Immediately after Box was unanimously elected vice chair- man, the changes, confusion and contentiousness began. Box moved to name Jenkins township: secretary; taking one of the posts formerly held by O'Neill, who in addition to be- ing manager was secretary and treasurer. That move drew a rebuke from Paul Sabol, former chair- man. “It seems like we're getting into politics now,” said Sabol, who listed accomplishments he attributed to O'Neill, most of them having to do with fi- nances. “We shook hands and “You accomplish what you can, you move forward.” Richard Hughes Acting solicitor said we were going to work to- gether and right away we have a problem.” : J. Carl Goodwin, the former vice chairman, objected, ques- tioning the need to break with past practice that assigned the other functions to the manager. But acting solicitor Richard Hughes, sitting in for the ailing Ben Jones III, read a portion of the township charter that specifically allows board mem- bers to serve as secretary or treasurer. After Goodwin charged that the action bordered on “admin- istrative interference,” Jenkins was elected secretary on a 3-2 vote, with Sabol and Goodwin opposed. During the reappointment of township employees, Goodwin and Yankovich abstained from voting on retaining Kathleen Sebastian as township clerk, each for a different reason. Goodwin is named in a pend- ing discrimination lawsuit Se- bastian filed against the town- ship as a result of her demotion from assistant township man- ager. Yankovich abstained be- cause he voted against the de- motion at the time. Box cast a “no” vote, saying he thought Sebastian was inap- propriately and illegally demot- ed. But the appointment car- ried when Sabol and Jenkins voted for it. Goodwin again voiced objec- tions when his motion to -ap- point John A. Bonita as outside auditor for 2004 failed. “This board has now engaged in an il- legal act,” he stated loudly, be- cause the old board, of which he was a member, had already signed a contract with Bonita. After more spirited debate, Yankovich suggested tabling the issue until this week’s regu- lar meeting, which Hughes supported. “You accomplish what you can, you move for- ward,” Hughes said. As disagreements continued, Hughes urged the supervisors to put off contentious issues until next week’s regular meet- ings, when Jones is expected back after a bout with the flu and pneumonia. With a number of actions subsequently tabled, next week’s work session and regu- lar meeting will likely continue the recent trend of pointed dis- cussion before a packed house. Monday’s work session will be preceded by an executive session that Yankovich request- ed for discussion of personnel issues. Jackson Township recycles third Tuesdays Jackson Township is now col- lecting recyclable materials. A recycling trailer with a divider separating two sections will be at the township municipal building the third Tuesday of each month, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Each section will be clear- ly marked either co-mingled (co-mingled is plastic, glass and metallic bottles, jars and cans) or newspaper/cardboard. Recyclable must be place in the specified section. Residents are asked to bring their recycling materials in reusable contain- ers to the Jackson Township Municipal Building, 2211 Huntsville Rd. Please take the container home with you. No recyclable can be in a plastic bag; they are not recyclable For plastic bottles and jars, remove lids, rinse and flatten. For glass bottles and jars, re- move lids and rinse. Do not break. For tin, aluminum and bi-metallic cans, rinse cans and flatten. For paper, place newspapers and cardboard together. Call the township at 675- 8371 with questions. Kingston Township reminds residents to keep right-of-way clear Kingston Township residents and property owners are re- minded not to place encroach- ments, such as fences, land- scaping timbers, trees, shrubs or any other item within the Township street right-of-way. Property owners need to be aware that they do not own up to the edge of the roadway. Street right-of-ways vary from 33 to 50 feet. Residents that are unsure of the width of their street may call the township of- fice for further information. It is very important that the right-of-way remain free of en- croachments for snow removal, utility construction and street maintenance. Residents are also reminded that this area is not their prop- erty and that the township has the authority to order removal or to remove, the encroach- ments. The Township is asking for cooperation from all residents in respecting the public right of-way. Residents with ques- tions may call the Township Administrative Office at 696- 3809. : Judge Olszewski chide® Selenski prosecutors By DAVID WEISS For The Post WILKES-BARRE — Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas Judge Peter Paul Ol- szewski Jr. told prosecutors January 6 they are taking a “very slippery slope” by not giving Hugo Selenski’s attorney all police reports about his client. By law, prosecutors must give Selenski reports related to his two homicide charges to prepare for that trial, tentative- ly scheduled for Sept. 7. But Assistant District Attor- ney Joseph Giovannini on Tuesday said prosecutors will instead review more than 2,000 pages of reports and give Se- lenski reports they believe are relevant to his double-homicide case — but not any reports re- lated to other ongoing homi- cide, robbery, or missing per- sons investigations in which Selenski is the “target defen- dant.” That decision, attorneys say, creates a legal quandary for prosecutors and gives them no room for error. If prosecutors give Selenski and his attorney, Demetrius Fannick, all reports of every in- vestigation, it could seriously jeopardize the future cases, Giovannini said. adi But if they omit a report with the slightest connection to the current case, there is a chance a conviction could be over- turned, attorneys said. “It may come back to haunt you in the future,” said former District Attorney Robert Gille- spie. Selenski, 30, of Mount Olivet Road in Kingston Township, is awaiting trial on homicide and other charges. The charges stem from the May slayings of Frank James of New York City, and Adeiye Keiler, a legal alien from Guyana using a Kingston address. The remains of the two men were found after police went to Selenski’s home June 5 to in- vestigate other homicides. Po- lice found a total of five bodies at the home. An informant had told au- thorities that Selen: ould be responsible for at “least “16 homicides,” and police have in- vestigated the additional deaths. Fannick said prosecutors had previously agreed to give him all of the reports. He was “dis- gusted” by Tuesday’s move, telling the judge the delay was done to prevent him from hav- ing time to build a solid de- fense. During a scheduling confer- ence Tuesday for Selenski’s double-homicide trial, Giovan- nini told Olszewski he did not want to give Fannick all reports because he wanted to preserve the integrity of the ongoing in- vestigations. Olszewski said that decis QP could lead prosecutors down a “very slippery slope” that could lead to “errors that are not cor- rectable.” Gillespie said he is familiar with the prosecution’s dilemma and acknowledged that turning over information about a pend- ing case could hurt the chance of successfully prosecuting fu- ture cases. “There’s two sides to the sword.” For example, if a report con- tains information about a homi- cide involving Selenski and a co-conspirator, Selenski could theoretically persuade the co- conspirator to lie or flee before the case is resolved. / But Gillespie also said an omitted report could lead to an overturned conviction. “I could see the argument be- ing made: ‘Hey, if we find that the informant gave information about other homicides and it turns out ... the informant } untruthful, that could certai be relevant in the current case,” Gillespie said. Plus, Gillespie said, prosecu- tors could consider taking ex- tra steps — even in being liber- al with the police reports — to ensure the ultimate conviction on Selenski’s current case. That would ensure Selenski would serve life in prison and make any jeopardy of the addi- tional cases less substantial. Homes robbed Tuesday hm E ROSS TWP. — A number of homes were robbed in Ross and Fairmount townships Tuesday morning, according to state oN reports. The robberies took place on Booth Road, Henrico Ro and Jackson Hill Road. Police said items taken include a Sony PlayStation 2 and games, $1,600 in cash, a handgun, three sets of baseball cards, 40 com- pact discs and a camera. Anyone with information is asked to call state police at 542- 4417. Jackson (continued from page 1) nia Department of Trans portation. Supervisor Wilkes said that the agreement is a cost-effective way for the town- ship and PennDOT to share services, materials, and labor. The agreement, which is re- newed every four years, runs like a barter system, allowing each side to borrow equipment at no cost, Wilkes said. For ex- ample, after a gasoline spill in Chase in 1999, PennDOT pro- vided “road closed” signs and assistance to township police. Meeting on Jackson Twp. plan In exchange, PennDOT has borrowed the township’s grader for various projects. “I's a valuable service,” Wilkes said. Supervisor ~~ Wilkes an- nounced that a holiday tree dropoff will take place January 20-24, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the rear of the township build- ing. Trees must be live and can’t exceed six inches at the base diameter. Wilkes also said no metal and plastic objects should remain on the trees. meeting on Tuesday, January 20, at 7:30 p.m. in the township building. The commission will be discussing a comprehensive plan for the township. The Jackson Township Planning Commission will hold a public THE POST by to order. 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