Scrooge parking cop can't crush Judge's Christmas spirit

Reading Magisterial District Judge Wally Scott said a Reading Parking Authority meter maid cited him for parking overtime at a meter as he was setting up for the tree-lighting ceremony for the Childrens Tree of Christmas earllier today.
Scott, who is spearheading the Childrens Tree program with the city school district, said he was parked at a meter near the corner of Ninth and Washington streets about 10 a.m. today when a meter maid approached his SUV on a bicycle and began to write a ticket.
"I went over and told her that when I put a quarter in the meter it said it was out of order," Scott said.
He said the meter maid, whose name he did not get, told him the city's parking ordinance prohibits people from parking in spaces with faulty meters.
"She told me the ordinance says anyone who parks in a parking authority space has to pay," Scott said. "I told her again that I did put a quarter in the meter, it just didn't register, but I had paid."
Scott said the meter maid, who knew him to be a city judge, told him to move his car or she would give him a ticket.
"I said go ahead and give me a ticket because it's not my meter that is broken," Scott said.
Scott said he was ticketed and plans to fight the citation in court.
The further irony in this case is that Scott had just arranged with Muhlenberg Township Parks and Rec to receive a donation of mulch to surround and add to the magic of the Childrens Tree of Reading.
The concept is a gift to the beleagured citizens of Reading from the children who live and go to school there.
Scott, like Reading Schools Superintendent Tom Chapman, is a big fan of Christmas and the whole Childrens Tree project is largely their doing. Scott helps decorate the whole 900 block of Washington Street every year. Chapman has a Christmas Tree in his office year round.
They're big Yuletide fans, but they have had help.
Already installed on the vacant lot across from Scott's district court office at Ninth and Washington streets, is an 18-foot Douglas fir donated by Mar-Jo Tree Nursery of Boyertown, white picket fencing and light poles donated by Amity Fence Co., old-fashioned lights donated by WalMart.
Sam's Club also has donated 1,500 cups of hot cocoa to be used for chilly nights of caroling to come.
"And our latest donation is a citation from the Reading Parking Authority," Scott said.

Don't blow by that sheriff's car

Blowing by a marked county sheriff's car on the local highway because they can't or won't enforce traffic laws will soon be urban legend, at least in Reading and the rest of Berks County, PA.
Berks County Sheriff Eric J. Weaknecht will announce Monday, Sept. 15, that he has authorized the almost 100 sworn personnel in his department that they can now enforce the traffic laws of the Commonwealth in the county.
The sheriff's department has 25 vehicles that daily roam the county serving traffic warrants, subpoenaes and other court papers.
In the past, you could speed right past one of Route 422 or you could run a red light or blow a stop sign with one of them behind you and they'd couldn't do a thing.
"We got tired of having to sit there in a marked unit in full uniform as people committed traffic violations and flipped us off," one deputy said.
I remember hauling ass for the Jersey Shore on Route 422 or the Schuylkill Expressway. I'd be cruising down the left lane and see a marked unit in the right hand lane doing 55 or 60 mph. I'd creep up, and creep up until I could read the markings on the side of the vehicle and if it said sheriff, no matter from what county, I'd cruise right past them at 65 or 70 mph.

I've never been a speed demon but I've always taken comfort that I had learned that one little trick as a teenager, from who I don't know, and have used it whenever the opportunity has presented itself.
Now I happen to live in the one county where it's no longer true.
I may be lying to you. I haven't checked every county. I know Allegheny County sheriff's have a detective squad, or a countywide police force, or something like that, but around here no sheriff's department is enforcing the traffic laws, until now that is.
Still, grouse as I will, everyone seriously concerned about law enforcement in the city and county knows that having another 80 or so lawmen out roaming the streets with the power to bring the hammer down on evil doers is a good thing.
I just hope the deputies don't go overboard and start flexing their new found powers.
Sure they had the legal authority to arrest people for violations committed in their presence for a long time, but they never used the power until Monday.
It'll also be interesting to see what happens when deputies start having to show up at hearings in district courts around the county. Can you say overtime?

Constable probe widens to include court staff

It was bound to happen.
Sources now say in addition to at least three constables facing criminal charges, a court secretary also has been caught in the Web of deceit.
As the story goes, the constable makes nice with the court staff. In the case of one court, the constables are required by the judge to donate a couple hundred dollars per year to buy Christmas presents and other gifts for the court secretaries.
The premise was because they do all the paperwork for the constabulary.
Here's the real reason:
A constable makes nice with a court secretary and she sets aside tickets for the constable.
Innocent and unwitting civilians come in to voluntary pay a ticket that has been sent to the court as a scofflaw for failure to pay. The person, alarmed by the letter from the court, dashes up to the window to pay and avoid a warrant being issued for them.
The secretary tells the civilian they are going to be charged court fees. The court fees are actually the process serving fee paid to the constable as if the constable had personally contacted the civilian and told them to come to court. Each time a warrant is issued, a constable is assigned to the warrant. If a different constable serves the warrant, the court staff changes the warrant to indicate who served the warrant.
The civilian doesn't know any better and just wants to pay the fee and get the hell out of there and back to work.
All the walk-in tickets the secretary collects that day sit on her desk until her favorite constable comes in and she gives them to him to sign. She then goes into the court computer and changes the computer record to show her buddy's name on the ticket so that her buddy and not the original constable assigned to the ticket gets paid for it.
When the constable signs the ticket he's swearing under penalty of perjury that he was assigned the warrant.
The constable then submits that paperwork to the Berks County Controller's office for payment.
Constables are elected officials and don't earn a salary.
Every penny they get they must earn by performing services for the court.
Unless of course, they marry a court secretary and get her to set aside parking tickets for them all day and show up at the end of the day and rake in the cash.
That's one way to earn $250,000 per year.