We deserve better from our elected officials

In ancient Rome, Julius Caesar paid for his ambition with his life; Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski paid for his ambition with his political life. Pawlowski was convicted by a federal court jury in Allentown last week on 47 of 54 charges of public corruption. He is appealing the verdict, but the question is whether he will be allowed to stay in his $95,000-a-year job until he is sentenced.

The judge in the case has called for a conference later this week to discuss a sentencing timetable and whether Pawlowski must step down immediately.

The City of Allentown is governed by a Home Rule Charter, which calls for the mayor to forfeit office if he is convicted of any crime higher than a Class 2 misdemeanor. All 47 charges on which Pawlowski was convicted are felonies, higher levels of crimes than misdemeanors.

The state Supreme Court has ruled in prior cases involving these types of public crimes that the officeholder does not have to leave until sentencing is completed. In Pawlowski’s case, this could be another several months.

The FBI raided Allentown City Hall on July 2, 2015, casting a wide net that took down not only Pawlowski but also nine other city officials and contractors who had dealings with the city in an elaborate “pay-to-play” scheme.

In this case, the FBI explains that “pay-to-play” means that companies which had or wanted contracts with the city were expected to make political contributions to Pawlowski’s bids for higher office. This is where Pawlowski’s blind ambition comes in, the FBI prosecutor said.

In 2014, Pawlowski announced his candidacy for governor but dropped out when he was unsuccessful at raising money to bankroll his campaign. The following year, he announced that he was running for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate, challenging incumbent Republican Pat Toomey, also of Lehigh County.

It was during this campaign, the FBI says, that Pawlowski and his associates, Mike Fleck and Sam Ruchlewicz, attempted to put pressure on contractors who did business with the city to donate to his Senate campaign fund.

Pawlowski’s Senate bid ended with the raid on city hall. Fleck, a close personal friend of the mayor’s, and Ruchlewicz, a Fleck employee, both wore wires to gather incriminating evidence, which was used during the six-week trial. Fleck pleaded guilty to extortion, bribery and tax evasion. Ruchlewicz was never charged, presumably for agreeing to testify against the mayor. Fleck did not testify.

Throughout the proceedings, Pawlowski maintained his innocence, even taking the stand in his own defense. In the end, the jury, made up of residents from throughout the Lehigh Valley and southeastern Pennsylvania, did not believe him.

Pawlowski’s conviction is yet another stain on Pennsylvania government. Next up will be former Reading Mayor Vaughn Spencer, whom the FBI has also charged in connection with “pay to play” illegalities in that city. His trial is scheduled to begin on May 7.

Also in Reading, Rebecca Acosta, a former Reading School Board member and wife of former Reading City Council President Francisco Acosta, who previously pleaded guilty in a parallel corruption case, has been charged. Francisco Acosta is serving a prison term.

Last June, former Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams pleaded guilty to one count of bribery and resigned from office.

U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah, D-Philadelphia, is serving a 10-year prison term for corruption; former state Attorney General Kathleen Kane was sentenced to 10 to 23 months in prison for criminal conspiracy and perjury, and former Pennsylvania Treasurer Rob McCord pleaded guilty to two counts of extortion in trying to shake down contributors who did business with the state to fund his unsuccessful 2014 gubernatorial campaign.

On top of that, state Reps. Leslie Acosta was convicted of embezzlement, Louise Bishop was convicted of corruption, Michelle Brownlee was convicted of conflict of interest, Harold James was convicted of corruption, and Ronald Waters was convicted of corruption. All are Philadelphia Democrats.

The list does not include two Pennsylvania State Supreme Court justices who stepped down after being caught up in the infamous “porngate” investigation launched by the state Attorney General’s office in 2015. They are Michael Eakin, a Republican, and Seamus McCarthy, a Democrat, both of whom were accused of sending inappropriate emails to friends.

We Pennsylvanians deserve better. In a statement released after the Pawlowski conviction, Gov. Tom Wolf said of the Allentown mayor: “He has disgraced his office and cheated the people of Allentown.”

We expect sentencing U.S. District Court Judge Juan R. Sanchez to send a strong message to other elected and appointed officials across the state by being tough on Pawlowski.

We need to hold our elected officials accountable, and when they break the law, we demand the harshest penalty possible for violating our trust and for failing to uphold their oath of office.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com