Luzerne County will initiate legal action against former county controller Walter Griffith in an attempt to recoup a $12,000 settlement and legal fees paid in Y. Judd Shoval’s suit over an alleged illegal recording made by Griffith, a council majority decided Tuesday.
The surprise move came after several council members questioned why the county was responsible for the $12,000 settlement, which was on Tuesday’s agenda for a decision. Council left for a closed-door executive session and emerged with an amended vote to settle the litigation with the caveat that Griffith would be sued.
Griffith did not attend Tuesday’s meeting and declined comment by phone.
Shoval filed the complaint in January 2013 against Griffith and the county, alleging Griffith’s recording of their March 2011 telephone conversation without Shoval’s knowledge or consent violated the state wiretap law and was a privacy invasion.
Griffith has blamed himself for failing to research the law before recording the call with Shoval, a member of the nonprofit CityVest board that handled the Hotel Sterling project in Wilkes-Barre, which failed to materialize in a restoration as planned.
A Kingston Township resident, Griffith ended probation in September for his 2013 guilty plea on three misdemeanor charges of obstructing the administration of justice due to his recording of Shoval, a 2010 phone call with county pension fund officials, and a county retirement board closed-door executive session that same year.
Griffith has stressed he had no malicious intent in making the recordings and said they were intended to create an internal record for informational purposes.
Councilman Stephen A. Urban was the first to question county payment of the settlement at Tuesday’s meeting, saying Griffith committed criminal acts. Urban said he also was recorded by Griffith and “feels victimized.”
Council Vice Chairman Tim McGinley said he had a “hard time” approving the settlement because he does not believe Griffith acted in the county’s best interest.
“Even though at that point he was employed as controller, this was not the duty of the controller to tape others, and I have a very difficult time saying the county is responsible,” McGinley said.
According to a 2013 Times Leader report, Vito DeLuca, the county’s chief solicitor at that time, said Griffith was entitled to county legal representation in the Shoval suit because the alleged violations were committed in Griffith’s official capacity as controller.
County administrators cautioned the litigation would continue at an added expense if council rejected the settlement.
In addition to McGinley, six council members voted to settle and pursue litigation against Griffith: Jane Walsh Waitkus, Rick Williams, Harry Haas, Robert Schnee, Eugene Kelleher and Linda McClosky Houck.
Voting no were Urban, Kathy Dobash, Eileen Sorokas and Edward Brominski.
Griffith has filed a nomination petition to run for county controller as a Republican in the May primary. Former county councilman Rick Morelli is challenging signatures on Griffith’s petition and Griffith’s eligibility to serve. A court hearing on that challenge is scheduled for Thursday afternoon.
Phones, appraisal
In other business Tuesday, council:
• Agreed to accept $1.3 million in state-funded computerized phone upgrades at county 911 as part of a regional agreement with seven other Northeastern Pennsylvania counties.
• Authorized the administration to complete an appraisal of the county’s former juvenile detention center overlooking the county’s Water Street prison in Wilkes-Barre. County Manager C. David Pedri said he obtained four quotes from certified appraisers who would charge $2,450 to $5,000 for the appraisal.
Some council members had cited the lack of an appraisal as their reason for rejecting local businessman Jim Casey’s offer to buy the structure for $20,000 to create a long-term residential program for recovering female addicts. Casey recently said he is still interested in that project.
