Newly employed ex-judge out of jail on work release
Former Washington County judge Paul Pozonsky was released from Washington County jail on work release 14 hours after he was committed to the facility.
Washington County jail Warden John Temas confirmed Wednesday Pozonsky is employed by Tri-State Restoration Services Inc., 42 E. Maiden St., Washington. He was first released for work Tuesday morning after reporting to the jail Monday. A message left for the business owner was not returned.
Pozonsky was sentenced Monday to 30 days to 23½ months in jail and 2 years of probation. He also forfeited his yearly pension of $98,000 and full medical benefits and faces the loss of his law license.
He pleaded guilty in March to misdemeanor charges of theft, obstruction of justice and misapplying entrusted government property for stealing cocaine evidence while he served on the bench.
During the sentencing hearing, visiting Senior Judge Daniel Lee Howsare, of Bedford, said he would consider house arrest and work release from the jail at the request of Pozonsky’s attorney, Robert Del Greco Jr.
Inmates on work release must provide the jail with information about their employment, including their employer’s address, phone number and hours of employment. Deputy Warden Edward Strawn said Wednesday he was “sure (the jail) got a letter confirming his employment and the employer was contacted for further verification.” Temas confirmed that Pozonsky provided a letter when he arrived at the jail Monday, and that his employment was “legitimate.”
Del Greco said on several occasions Monday that Pozonsky was unemployed and penniless, prompting the judge to waive any fines. Mark Fiorilli, another attorney representing Pozonsky, said in an email Wednesday that “Paul has been hired by Tri-State Restoration as a laborer, and he was offered the job after sentencing Monday.”
“Tri-State Restoration’s business operations involve the remediation and repair of property damaged by fires, floods, or otherwise. In fact, I spoke with Paul this morning to verify some details about his employment and when we spoke, Paul was working on repairing the roof of a home,” Fiorilli said. “Tri-State is owned and operated by Scott and Kimberly Bernett.”
Fiorilli said Pozonsky is scheduled to work Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Saturdays when needed. He must return to the jail after work hours.
A motion requesting house arrest or parole has not been filed, he said.
Howsare initially wanted Pozonsky to serve his sentence in another county, but Del Greco insisted on Washington County. While his safety is a concern, Temas said Pozonsky is not being housed with the general population, and instead is being held in the work release unit.
“The circumstances are extraordinary, but he’s being treated just like anybody else,” Temas said.
Investigators accused Pozonsky of stealing cocaine evidence after ordering police to bring it into his courtroom during several routine pretrial hearings. He kept the drugs in a locked cabinet in a vault in his office and replaced the drugs with other substances, including baking soda.
Pozonsky’s arrest in May 2013 followed the recommendation of a grand jury convened by the state attorney general’s office, which handled the case.
He served on the bench for nearly 15 years before resigning in June 2012 after he was removed by former president judge Debbie O’Dell Seneca from overseeing criminal cases.
He moved to Alaska following his retirement but has since returned to Washington County to care for his elderly parents.
Pozonsky also previously served 13 years as a district judge in Cecil Township and McDonald before being elected to the Washington County bench.
O-R staff writer Barbara Miller contributed to this story.