Tarapchak v. Lackawanna County

173 F. Supp. 3d 57, 2016 WL 1246051, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 38347
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedMarch 24, 2016
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 15-2078
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 173 F. Supp. 3d 57 (Tarapchak v. Lackawanna County) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tarapchak v. Lackawanna County, 173 F. Supp. 3d 57, 2016 WL 1246051, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 38347 (M.D. Pa. 2016).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM.

KEARNEY, District Judge.

' Arrested persons awaiting trial are entitled to due process whether they are detained in prison or released on bail. If the state has probable cause to believe a person violated terms of house arrest on bail, it can investigate and recommend charges for bail violations. We now face an apparent wrinkle where Lackawanna County allows its Director of House Arrest, accompanied by a corrections officer, to hold a prison hallway “hearing” to interrogate a person allegedly violating a house arrest condition without counsel. Following this.hallway hearing, the Director then recommends a term of detention to a judicial officer' pending trial. Pennsylvania Law requires a judicial hearing within seventy-two (72)-hours of a re-arrest for a bail violation. As such,' you would think the statutory judicial hearing, at the latest, should be held within seventy-two (72) hours of the House Arrest Director’s prison hearing. When, as here, a person suspected of a bail violation is interrogated by the House Arrest Director and then served over 160 days in prison on the bail violation without a judicial hearing, something has gone wrong. Setting aside a wide variety of pro se prolix claims which lack merit [65]*65against a vast conspiracy of judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, the warden and his lawyer, we find Plaintiff stated one Fourteenth Amendment due process claim against the House Arrest Director and Lackawanna County warranting discovery and we now await to find out what went wrong.

I. Relevant facts alleged in the second amended complaint.

Plaintiff Stephanie Tarapchak is imprisoned at the Lackawanna County Prison arising from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s criminal chargeá stemming from the operation of her medical practice.1 On January 2, 2014, the Commonwealth arrested Tarapchak and held her at the Lackawanna County Prison on $100,000 bail.2

Conduct in the Court of Common Pleas and County Prison.

On April 28/2014, Defendant Lackawan-na County Judge Geroulo reduced Tarapc-hak’s bail to $25,000, of which she posted ten percent (10%).3 Judge Geroulo ordered Tarapchak be placed in the Lackawanna County House Arrest Program while out on bail.4 His Order warned “[violations of House Arrest regulations will result in termination from the programs and further result in re-incarceration in the Lackawan-na County Prison” and “if you fail to abide by all conditions set forth by the House Arrest Programs or fail to return to Official Detention, a Bench Warrant will be issued for your arrest and Escape Felony Charges will be filed.”5 The Order further provided it “will serve as a temporary Bench Warrant until Formal Charges for [66]*66Escape are filed by the County District Attorney’s Office.”6 Tarapchak remained in the House Arrest program from May 5, 20 14 to October 22, 2014.

On October 23, 2014, Tarapchak appeared at the House Arrest facility to explain why her house arrest monitoring equipment indicated she violated the conditions of the house arrest program the previous' evening.7 Defendant Director of House Arrest Patrick Lynn (“Director Lynn”) remanded her to the Lackawanna County Prison.8

On October 24, 2014, Director Lynn, along with correctional officer Kelly, held a formal misconduct hearing, which Tarapc-hak alleges is a secret Lackawanna County procedure used to hold .inmates without giving them a hearing on the bench warrant issued for their arrest.9 Tarapchak did not wish to take part in the hearing without her lawyer.10 Lynn then prepared a report recommending Tarapchak violated the terms of her house arrest and she remain incarcerated pending further action.11 On October 27, 2014, Lynn sent his recommendations to Judge Geroulo detailing Tarapchak’s bail violation.12 - -

On October 24, 2014, the Attorney Gén-eral’s office faxed a motion to revoke Ta-rapchak’s bail to her criminal- attorney Defendant Joseph Kalinowski, as well as Judge Geroulo.13 The court filed this motion on Tarapchak’s criminal docket, of which we may take judicial notice, on October 30, 2014.14

Judge Geroulo scheduled a November 7, 2014 hearing on the Attorney General’s motion to revoke bail.15 At the November 7, 2014 hearing, Tarapchak’s Attorney Kal-inowski said his client Tarapchak wanted to recuse Judge Geroulo.16 Judge Geroulo asked Attorney Kalinowski to file the motion and he recessed the hearing to a later date.17 Attorney Kalinowski did not file the motion but instead moved to withdraw as Tarapchak’s defense counsel on January 16, 2015.18 We have no.explanation as to why Attorney Kalinowski waited almost two months, while his client sat in jail, to file this motion. In the interim, Tarapchak remained in prison on the bail violation with her only hearing held by Defendant Lynn and a corrections officer without counsel.

On January 23, 2015, Judge Geroulo granted Attorney Kalinowski’s motion to withdraw and further recused himself because Tarapchak sued the Lackawanna County Prison and the Prison Board, on Which Judge-Geroulo sits.19 Tarapchak remained in prison.

On February 4, 2015, Defendant Judge Michael Barrasse replaced Judge Geroulo as presiding judge in Tarapchak’s criminal ease, while she remained in prison on Defendant Lynn’s recommendation.20

[67]*67Six weeks later, Judge Barrasse appointed Attorney Bernard Brown as Ta-rapchak’s new defense counsel.21 Attorney Brown filed an omnibus pretrial motion, including a writ of habeas corpus. Judge Barrasse held a hearing on April 10, 2015 to discuss this omnibus pretrial motion.22 Tarapchak alleges Attorney Brown failed to include the fact she had not received a bench warrant hearing within seventy-two (72) hours of her re-arrest as required by Pennsylvania Rule of Criminal Procedure 150(A)(5)(b), as a basis for her immediate release.23 She remained in jail on the bail violation without a hearing.

At the April 10, 2015 hearing, Judge Barrasse hear d argument on the ómnibus pretrial motion and also addressed whether Tarapchak received a hearing under Pennsylvania Rule 150(A)(5)(b).24 Defendant Deputy Attorney General Joseph La-Bar, the prosecuting attorney, admitted the court did not hold a hearing on Ta-rapchak’s house arrest violations.25 Judge Barrasse asked Attorney Brown if Ta-rapchak is denying the house arrest violations and Attorney Brown stated he “talked to [his] client” and they were not going to deny the house arrest allegations.26 Judge Barrasse then told Tarapc-hak of her right to a hearing then and by admitting the violations she is waiving a right to the hearing.27 Tarapchak responded she understood.28 Judge Barrasse found her in violation of house arrest.29

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
173 F. Supp. 3d 57, 2016 WL 1246051, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 38347, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tarapchak-v-lackawanna-county-pamd-2016.