Luzerne County approved for an additional Court of Common Pleas judge

An additional judge will be added to the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas under new Pennsylvania legislation, officials said Monday.

“We’re very excited. It gives us the ability to have some breathing room and give us some balance,” said county President Judge Michael T. Vough.

The county currently has 10 Court of Common Pleas judges. The new eleventh judge will be elected by county voters in 2025 and seated the first Monday in January 2026, Vough said.

Vough said he was taken aback when he reviewed year-to-date statistics through Nov. 9 as part of a “state of the bench” presentation for attorneys.

“I knew we were busy, but the numbers show we are very, very busy,” Vough said. “Our numbers clearly justify the addition of a judge.”

His research prompted him to immediately reach out to state Sen. Lisa Baker, R-Lehman Township, who chairs the state Senate Judiciary Committee.

Baker informed him a bill was pending in the state House proposing additional judgeships in several other counties.

State Rep. Aaron Kaufer, R-Kingston, then spearheaded an effort to get an additional Luzerne County judge included in the house bill through an amendment.

Kaufer said the addition of a judge is warranted here based on statistical caseload analysis that has been used for such decisions in the past. In speaking to county judges, he learned they are overwhelmed, he said.

“I’m glad this is well on its way to getting done to maintain speedy access to our court system,” Kaufer said.

Vough said State Reps. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre, and Jim Haddock (D-Pittston Township) also agreed to support the request.

It was approved by the House 168 to 35 on Dec. 13, and the Senate unanimously concurred. It was signed by Gov. Josh Shapiro as Act 58 of 2023 the next day, the record shows.

Baker said each county approved for a judge increase had to submit a letter of support and meet caseload criteria.

“Justice delayed can be justice denied, and with growing violent crime and complexity of cases, this will ensure individuals within the system have their case heard in a timely manner,” Baker said.

The support letter submitted by Vough and county Manager Romilda Crocamo says population growth has “caused all areas of court activities to escalate,” including civil, family law and criminal matters.

“Unfortunately, the rising population is accompanied by increasingly high crime rates in the cities of Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton. Our county has also experienced a significant increase in the Hispanic population requiring the use of language interpreters, which extends the time it takes to complete court proceedings,” the letter said.

An additional judge is “crucial to maintaining efficiency and ensuring a level of due process compelled by the Constitutions of the United States and Pennsylvania,” it said.

On Monday, Vough provided a range of 2023 case statistics through Nov. 9 and said they have increased compared to prior counts.

In criminal court, there were 47 jury trials, 23 bench trials, 995 guilty pleas, 2,110 sentencings and 527 cases in the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition, or ARD, program for first-time offenders, the president judge said. There also were 1,450 probation revocations and 2,849 capias hearings.

On the civil side, 793 cases were settled through Nov. 9, and there were 11 jury trials, Vough said.

Some other year-to-date case counts:

• Proceedings involving juveniles — dependency, 447; delinquency, 414; and truancy, 209

• Protection-from-abuse, or PFA — 1,491 filed and 657 hearings on violations or requests to return weapons

• Delinquent tax sales — 160 petitions seeking removal from a sale and 35 hearings

• Guardianships — 77

• Failure to pay child support — 872 hearings

Vough said the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, or AOPC, also reviewed the numbers and agreed a judge should be added.

The state legislation’s scheduling of the new judge election in 2025 will give the court time to identify space for an additional judge chambers, Vough said.

As part of a plan to centralize court operations at the county courthouse and nearby Bernard C. Brominski Building in Wilkes-Barre, a first-floor courthouse room previously occupied by tax claim has been converted to a jury-ready courtroom, Vough said.

The first proceeding in this new courtroom was held Monday, he said.

Probation services is the only court department remaining at the Penn Place Building on Pennsylvania Avenue in Wilkes-Barre, which now houses tax claim and many other offices that were previously in the courthouse.