Plaintiffs in Halcovage case ask that commissioner, his lawyer be found in contempt of court
Feb. 16—The plaintiffs in the federal court case involving Schuylkill County Commissioner George F. Halcovage Jr. are asking the court to find Halcovage and his lawyer in contempt of court for a "brazen violation" of a confidentiality order.
Catherine Smith, of the Derek Smith Law Group, Philadelphia, attorney for the four women employed by the county who sued Halcovage in March 2021 for sexual harassment and assault, filed a motion Tuesday in Middle District Court, Harrisburg.
The motion asks the court to find Halcovage and Gerard J. Geiger in contempt and to pay the plaintiffs' attorney fees and costs related to the motion.
"This conduct constitutes a brazen violation of this honorable court's direction, compelling a finding of civil contempt and impositions of sanctions," the motion reads.
The confidentiality order was instituted Nov. 12, 2021, and sets restrictions on the disclosure of information and documents associated with the case.
For example, the order states that no deposition transcript may be disclosed within a specified time frame to anyone who should not have access.
Smith's filing claims Halcovage approached and talked to someone about a deposition of one of her clients.
"Defendant Halcovage's action were intentional because there would have been no reason to approach the individual, as he has not been employed by defendant Schuylkill County since January 2013," the filing reads.
When confronted through the court, Halcovage expressed no remorse and instead "doubled down with additional false statements in another filing only days later," according to Smith's filing.
A contempt ruling and sanctions are "justified given the egregious nature of this violation (as well as defendant's pattern of behavior in this case)," Smith's motion reads, "which now includes false statements under oath, perhaps as an attempt to intimidate potential witnesses in this matter."
One of the four plaintiffs, who was deposed Jan. 10 in Harrisburg, mentioned a former employee's name in reference to Halcovage.
Halcovage was deposed Feb. 7 and asked if he had spoken to the former employee, documents show. Halcovage said he was at a funeral and admitted to speaking to the individual, but denied that he told the person he heard information through a deposition.
An effort to resolve this matter before seeking legal redress was attempted, documents indicate.
Federal Judge Martin C. Carlson ordered Thursday that Halcovage has until Feb. 28 to respond to the motion.
Geiger did not return a call for comment Thursday.
Halcovage has not commented on developments related to the lawsuit.
Contact the writer: amarchiano@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6023
