Judge laments behavior of Rostraver elected officials
Jan. 24—A Westmoreland County judge on Tuesday made it clear he is frustrated with the ongoing dispute among elected officials in Rostraver who are at odds amidst a court-ordered ban of one commissioner from attending some government meetings in person.
"I didn't come up with this solution. I just agreed to it, and the very next day I was getting phone calls about how this isn't working. What I don't understand is all this behavior by elected officials. I can't understand why grown men have to behave in this manner," Common Pleas Judge Christopher Feliciani said during a hearing requested by Commissioner John Lorenzo, who asked that the sanction against his in-person attendance be lifted.
Lorenzo, 43, was charged last year with felony counts of unlawful use of a computer to disrupt government functions and misdemeanor charges of harassment in connection with allegations he used fictitious Facebook accounts to harass political opponents and rivals.
In June, Lorenzo was allowed to enter the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program for first-time nonviolent offenders and was ordered by the judge to serve two years on probation. Lorenzo did not plead guilty to the charges and can have his record expunged at the completion of the probation term.
As part of the deal with prosecutors, the judge barred Lorenzo, who was elected in 2019 to the township's board of commissioners, from being present at informal public work sessions and private executive meetings to discuss personnel and litigation matters. Lorenzo is limited to participating in those by telephone or video conferencing. He is permitted to be in attendance at public voting meetings.
In court Tuesday, Lorenzo said the ban has prevented him from properly serving voters.
"I just want to work as a team and do what I was elected to do," Lorenzo testified. He claimed technology deficiencies have prevented him from participating in some township matters and said he has not been notified when fellow board members conduct closed-door meetings.
Township Manager Jeffrey Keffer testified Rostraver has technology in place to allow Lorenzo to participate by phone and video. Keffer rebutted Lorenzo's claim that he had been intentionally excluded from some meetings.
Deputy Attorney General Heather Serrano argued Lorenzo's ban should remain.
"We already made concessions so he is able to do his job. Sometimes you have to work harder, and that is what happens when you are a criminal defendant," Serrano said.
The judge declined to make a rulingon Lorenzo's request to amend the terms of his probation, saying he will wait until another criminal case against the Rostraver commissioner is resolved.
Lorenzo was charged late last year with four summary offenses in connection with allegations he had a verbal confrontation with elected township officials, including Keffer, at a Rostraver Halloween event. A hearing before District Judge Charles Moore is set for March 14.
Lorenzo has disputed the new charges.
"The voters left this up to council, so I'm not sure I should get involved," Feliciani said. "How do I make grown men and women act like grown men and women? I will wait until the (new) charges are resolved to decide anything."
Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Rich by email at rcholodofsky@triblive.com or via Twitter .
