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Are the crooked Pennsylvania juve judges really going to go to trial?

By Douglas A. Berman

As detailed this post and this post, a federal judge recently rejected the plea deal secured by two former Pennsylvania county judges who had pleaded guilty to a kickback scheme involving sending juveniles to private detention facilities.  Now, as reported in this new local story, these "judges charged in the 'kids for cash' corruption scandal withdrew their guilty pleas yesterday after a federal judge ruled they had failed to accept responsibility for their actions."  The local story goes on to assert that "the decision by disgraced Luzerne County Judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan paves the way for a trial on charges that they took $2.6 million in kickbacks to place youth offenders in privately owned detention centers."  But I cannot help but wonder if these crooked judges ? need I now say "alleged" crooked judges? ? are really going to contest their corruption charges at trial...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on August 25, 2009 (boomark / email).