FREE rent then, I ain't going

Sherman Hills the troubled complex at the top of Coal St is back in the news yet again, as they are now attempting to evict a woman for allegedly allowing a criminal with a gun to reside inside her apartment.

The resident identified in the Citizens Voice as Tanequa Williams is being evicted for a shooting inside her apartment in February, but hold the phone Tanequa said

• "They could try. They have no grounds,"

• "They have to have evidence. That's why we're going to court. You have to show your evidence in court. I don't know what their evidence is,"

Hum let’s see Tanequa

• Was there a 911 call regarding a disturbance at  your residence?

• Were shots fired?

• Did WBPD show up?

• I’m guessing WBPD has some evidence. 

Criminals at Sherman Hills??? I’m shocked. After all this is the same complex who has been dodging city inspectors for years, but in all fairness to Sherman Hills the city didn’t try to uphold their own ordinance either.

In fact several citizens like Linda Urban and Frank Sorick have been complaining about selective enforcement of that ordinance for years now, and the standard response from the city is, “we will look into that”.

Imagine for a second if rental inspectors had gone in, and seen the deplorable conditions, and condemned that dump, perhaps we wouldn’t have nightly shootings, or a nearby park controlled by gangs after dark. Perhaps we wouldn’t have had one of our officers shot by a scummy criminal, but I digress the kickback from the Out-Of-Town owners must be more important than public safety.

Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Source:

• Sherman Hills tries to evict resident after shooting
• W-B council may consider changes to city's rental inspection ordinance
• Council: Towing contract 'now lies in the mayor's lap'
• Residents give W-B council an earful

A Tale of Two Cities

There are just no words to describe the differences in the Parsons Park on Parkin St. and Barney Farms park. 

• All photos taken Memorial Day Weekend!

Parsons

Barney Farms

Parsons

Barney Farms

Parsons

Barney Farms

What city do you live in? 

• Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Who’s buying your VOTE?

County Controller Race:

This is likely the most important race in the county, and don’t for one second think that The King & Co. aren’t aware of that either, as they are already plotting to grab control. Without a watchdog in the controller’s office the King will have a clear path to all things CityVest, and who will stop them? County Council, or the I’ll do as I please County Manager?

Now onto the candidates, I’ll make this real easy for you. We have 3 Watchdogs and 1 politically connected tourist & travel major who by the way already has questionable campaign contributors, and won’t even call the paper back to offer an explanation. Yet in her WILK radio ad, she says she won’t be beholden to “special interest groups”. My guess is except for those that have already bought their way into her campaign. One can only wonder what type of county controller she will make.

Who will we in Luzerne County pick, you may be asking yourself, well my money is on the “financial lady” who didn’t even know the controller seat was open until the City Attorney and cousin of the King, Bill Vinsko told her to run.

Don’t take my word for it look at what Attorney Vinsko’s wrote on Facebook: (With WUWB clarifications)

Bill wrote: "I am for Michelle Bednar because she is the most qualified.”

• WOW Bill most qualified? A tourist & travel major over a criminal justice major, or is it that you know Steve will NEVER allow the city to control his office?

Bill wrote: “She will work for the people by addressing the issues.”

• Or will she be an absent controller similar to the one the city has?

Bill wrote: “I support her run, but she is not running because I directed her to run.”

• Nah she’s running because she has been watching the county so closely, that she was oblivious to the election until you Woke Her Up!

Bill wrote: “For those of you reading, know that Michelle Bednar would not act inappropriately or degrade people for the sake of personal gain.”

• But will she shut up on the CityVest issue?

Bill wrote: “Vote for Michelle because she is the right person.”

• RIGHT person? You mean the one who will do your bidding?

Bill wrote: “I say this without getting anything in return and she is not my relative.”

• That remains to be seen!

Bill wrote: “She is simply a good, qualified person."

• There is that word again “qualified” we all know what that means, and it has NOTHING to do with education or experience.

Democrat Choices:

Stephen A. Urban

Bachelors in criminal justice

Master's degree in justice administration

UNITED STATES ARMY COLONEL Retired

Michelle Bednar

Associate degree in tourist & travel management

Republican Choices:

Karen Ceppa-Hirko

MBA, focus in accounting with forensic auditing

Walter L. Griffith Jr.

The current County controller

Wilkes Barre Area School Board concerns

Joe Caffrey raised more than $17,000.00 (a lot of which came from The Kings & Queens of Wilkes Barre) to run for an UNPAID position on the school board.

Now I ask you, who is buying his vote on the school board?

I bet Mr. Caffrey will allow the School District to be “The Cash Cow” for the city.  

The name Thomas is rearing it's head again, and one MUST wonder if this is an attempt to return the school board to city control. For year folks complained about the school board hiring the city elite’s kin and being the "cash cow" for the city, paying for everything from Hawkeye to an old elementary school traded for some free fire trucks.

I urge you to consider for a second, the past woes the city had with the name Thomas and ask yourself, do you really want to try that again? Remember former councilman Tony (grab the FREE trips, and flee the city) Thomas. I can still hear his quotes to the press when asked about going on a city junkets just weeks before leaving office: “it’s not like I’m going anywhere” Tony said, and then the second he was out of office he disappeared like a fart in the wind.

Now enter his sister Denise Thomas: Although I do not know Ms. Thomas personally the name itself should be enough to make the good taxpayers of our city quiver, and I pray Denise is nothing like her city fleecing brother, especially if you choose to bypass all the other candidates in favor of yet another family connection, as I’m sure you will.

UGRENT UPDATE: Please be advised of the comments below, by Anthony Thomas also on the ballot for School Director. Please DO NOT leave without reading what this man has to say. As Anthony is NOT related to the city fleecing Thomas!

Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Source:

• Controller job now a solely watchdog
• The Kings and Queens of Wilkes-Barre
• Luzerne County Controller’s Race: Democrat Bednar outspends opponent with PAC money

Mr. Magoo saw more than Hawkeye

For about THREE weeks now citizens, guests, and college students of our city have been beaten, robbed, and apple picked by a group described only as black males, yet Magoo Security Solutions AKA Hawkeye has seen noting.

Tonight at about 9:45 PM (shift change time) a man was robbed and beaten so bad he had his nose broken. Yep by a group described only as black males. That’s only part of the tragedy. The other tragedy is the fact that this happened so close to several city cameras you could hit them with a rock, but why bother their utterly useless, and not because they don’t work but because there is only ONE person trying to watch nearly 300 cameras.

Then our thief of police has the nerve to say to WBRE's Joe Holden “this is an isolated incident”. NO IT IS NOT, and how would you know anyway, with Magoo seeing nothing I mean? 

The incident tonight happened near the corner of Carey Ave & Hanover. Magoo has several cameras right near Meyers that have a range of about 2 blocks, yet not one saw anything. Perhaps if the Hawkeye board truly wanted to offer a crime prevention system they could have offered less cameras yet more eyes on them, but my guess is the monitoring side didn’t offer nearly as many kickbacks as the installation side, considering we are paying about $10,483 per camera at install, yet replacement is only about $3,000. I'm not quite sure how that works considering their both wireless, but what do I know?

I really wish someone, anyone would explain how a $977 camera costs $10,000.00 NEW, yet only $3,000.00 on replacement? 

Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Source:

• Hawkeye or Blindeye? An in-depth look into the city’s surveillance system
• W-B Crime Watch Report
• Camera’s do you want them?

Can Wilkes Barre ever be honest?

By now you’ve all seen the racy photos first published here on Wake Up Wilkes Barre, of  “Detail” work. These photos were published ONLY to prove Municipal Affairs Manager spokesman Drew Mc-Laugh-lin deliberately misleads the press, and public.

When Times Leader reporter Ed Lewis went asking about the detail work Mc-Laugh-Lin could have told Ed about the Hardware Bar, and Sherman Hill, yet he left that out, and because we don’t like to make allegations without proof, we published photos in front of the Hardware Bar.

Photos for the Record:

Linda Urban presented these photos to city council in front of members of the press well over a year ago. 

• I was there. 

Bobblehead Barrett said “we will look into this Mrs. Urban”, well as you can see by the fallout from our publication that lying Bobblehead did nothing as usual.  

City Response to Photos:

Times Leader May 6, 2013: The two other pictures show a scantily clad woman squatting and grabbing the radio antenna on the rear of a police cruiser, and another scantily clad woman lying across the hood of a cruiser.

McLaughlin said those two pictures appear to have been taken in another city, perhaps Scranton.

Citizens Voice May 8, 2013: Municipal Affairs Manager spokesman Drew McLaughlin said Tuesday that the first two photos appeared to have been taken elsewhere, possibly in Scranton, and that no officers appeared to have been present regardless of where they were shot.

Take notice to only what you could clearly make out in the Black & White photos from WUWB

If nothing else was visible in this photo Mc-Laugh-Lin would like you to believe was taken “elsewhere, possibly in Scranton”, the license plate sure was. MG-0116D, now to the average person this my not be traceable, and I’m not suggesting Mc-Laugh-Lin RUN THE PLATE as that would be a misuse of police powers, not that Wilkes Barre would ever do that either, RIGHT FBI??? Anyway all Mc-Laugh-Lin had to do was check inventory.

Since our publishing new information has come to light, such as the original clear photos. 

Please note, not only the plate as this was visible on the B&W photo but a few other things, such as the book store, and department store to the top left of the photo, and the City recycling can in the mid-left of the photo, behind the yellow car. Now I ask Mc-Laugh-Lin where was this photo taken? Elsewhere??? I think NOT!!!

Also another fun pic TAKEN WHERE?

In color

Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Source:

• Photos of W-B cop prompt investigation
• Moonlighting police officers OK in W-B
• Chief looking into racy photos
• WNEP: Police Investigate Racy Photos of Woman Posing with Moonlighting Cop
• (AP) Wilkes-Barre chief probing badge-licking photo
• philly.com
• FOX NEWS: Pennsylvania police chief probing badge-licking photo

Moonlighting Cops grab fast cash

The Times leader today reported that, the police department’s Special Detail program places trained officers at public events or businesses at no cost to the city, said city administrative coordinator and spokesman Drew McLaughlin.

• OK Drew tells us about the beat down in front of the Hardware Bar. Is Jones in trouble or not, and who will face the civil suit, ONLY the OFF DUTY officer or The City???

• Linda Urban has been asking about this for years at council meetings, and not one of the bobbleheads ever gave her a straight answer.

Tonight in front of Movies 14

In Wilkes-Barre, off-duty officers who work special detail events are paid directly by the vendor who hires them for security, McLaughlin said, with the officer personally responsible to claim the extra income when they file taxes.

• Hum… Are they, at $35 per HR CASH????

“They are basically private contractors,” McLaughlin said. “Their pay does not affect their pension or is counted as city time. They are supplemental officers working a private detail and are not part of a patrol platoon working that day or night.”

• Now Drew, what if the officer is injured on detail, would that then affect their workers comp?

McLaughlin said off-duty officers working details pay the city a fee to cover the use of cruisers as well as insurance coverage.

• Can I see the canceled checks, not that I think an officer would lie. OK after watching Brian Gist in court, I know at least one that would.

We do have to wonder why Drew didn’t mention the Hardware Bar, and Sherman Hills as they always have detail. One Facebook poster said “the hardware bar falls under athletic events, chasing, wrestling and tackling drunks”.

Some fun detail photos sent to Wake Up Wilkes Barre, while on Detail, Enjoy 

Auto Detailing? 

Detailed Planking? (thought to be Scranton, but in front of Bell Furniture)

$35 Per Hr for this? (Hardware Bar WBPD)

Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Source:

•  Moonlighting police officers OK in W-B
• Moonlighting Theme Song

Kangaroo Kane

What a shocker that Cruella De Vil’s Hubby, The Horrible Justice Kane, would side with a cop who clearly committed perjury. 

For those of you who think I’m picking on an upstanding officer who does so much for our community, you should know, I am a huge advocate of the police, and truly believe they work under extreme pressure, and aren’t appreciated nearly enough. 

That is why it was so disheartening to watch a city officer Lie Under Oath, and MY GOD did he…..

Officer Gist’s story changed faster than LAG can increase it's storage fees.

First Gist said he was sitting in his police car watching Robbins do all that he did, and a few minutes later he was at his personal car getting something, when he first noticed Robbins.

Gist testified that on March 31 at 11:03 p.m., Robbins pulled his car abruptly into the parking area behind the city police station. Gist said he saw Robbins pull in, get out of his car and take pictures with his cellphone of a vehicle parked in the lot.

He said Robbins got back into his car and took another picture before Gist approached him.

Come on Brian you allowed Robbins to

• Pull in "Abruptly"

• Park

• Get out

• Roam around

• Take Photos

• Get back in his car

And that’s when you notice he was a danger because it was dark…

Gist said it is a "safety issue" for people to be there.

• I bet it was a "safety issue". Thanks to Robbins we now know just how dirty some members of The Wilkes Barre Police Department are.

The sad fact is, even if you are an honest officer, who does give this city your all; when you stand idly by and allow your fellow officers to be "on the take", you’re as guilty as they are.

Wake Up Wilkes Barre

Source:

• Vocal critic of LAG found guilty of trespassing
• Robbins guilty of trespass by motor vehicle