Postal Service whammed by coronavirus, mail volume. Packages mailed in December still haven't arrived, and may not til March
Feds seeking Harrisburg woman whose ex says she stole Nancy Pelosi's laptop during Capitol riot
Jim Thorpe man charged with participating in U.S. Capitol riot
Severe weather 101: Wind gusts and the damage they can cause
Prosecutors face high bar in proving case against Pawlowski
By Peter Hall, Riley Yates and and Kaitlin Washburn
Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski, accompanied by wife Lisa and attorney Jack McMahon, makes his first appearance in federal court Thursday, July 27, 2017, after being charged in an alleged pay-to-play scheme.
In 60 pages, federal prosecutors tell a story of Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski's aggressive efforts to raise campaign cash, allegedly by rewarding those who contributed with taxpayer funded contracts.
For a city held in suspense for two years after federal agents raided City Hall, the indictment unsealed Wednesday charging Pawlowski and two others in a pay-to-play scheme was riveting reading.
It lays out in exacting detail and gritty language how, prosecutors allege, Pawlowski, his political operatives and subordinates steered at least $9 million worth of engineering and legal work to companies whose principals gave the mayor more than $150,000 in campaign contributions, and, in one case, gave Pawlowski tickets to an Eagles playoff game and dinner at a Philadelphia steakhouse.
Working in the prosecution's favor are the testimonies of nine former city officials and contractors who already pleaded guilty and agreed to testify against the mayor. What could benefit the defense is a recent Supreme Court ruling that raises the bar for evidence in political corruption cases.
To win a conviction, prosecutors must show that Pawlowski's actions crossed a line from the go-along-to-get-along culture of local politics to something illegal.
"There's nothing illegal about scratching each others' back," said Philadelphia defense attorney Jeff Lindy, a former federal prosecutor. "But there is a line, and it's not a fine line, between scratching someone's back and asking someone to do something because you gave them money."
That line has shifted since the FBI raided City Hall in July 2015, with a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that overturned the public corruption conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. He, along with his wife, faced prison time for taking gifts, including a Rolex watch and vacations, from a dietary supplement entrepreneur. The McConnells intervened on the entrepreneur's behalf, arranging meetings with state officials and opening the governor's mansion for a product launch party. But a unanimous Supreme Court found McDonnell took no "official act" to help the businessman.
The decision means prosecutors will have to show a quid pro quo between the mayor and a donor, noted Arlo Devin-Brown, the former chief of the public corruption unit of the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan. They'll have to prove that Pawlowski did something in exchange for a contribution.
"The Supreme Court has made clear in cases dealing with campaign finance issues that when the only thing of value provided to a politician is a campaign contribution, there has to be evidence that the contribution was for a specific, official act that the politician would undertake. It can't just be for access," Brown said.
It's clear from the indictment that the U.S. attorney's office has thought carefully about how the McDonnell decision would play into Pawlowski's case and crafted the indictment in a way that addresses it, said Chris Hall, a former federal prosecutor in Philadelphia. Pawlowski may have been aggressive in soliciting contributions, Hall said.
"The question is whether he conditioned official acts on those contributions," Hall said.
Pawlowski maintains he did not. He pleaded not guilty Thursday to the 54 counts of fraud, bribery, extortion and related felonies in the indictment. He has vowed to remain in office and to continue his re-election campaign, despite calls from City Council and numerous others for his resignation.
In two indictments, federal prosecutors on Wednesday, July 26, 2017, spelled out charges against five people in parallel corruption cases in Allentown and Reading.
The indictment alleges that Pawlowski ensured city contracts went to people that contributed hundreds or thousands of dollars to his campaigns for governor and U.S. Senate — both of which failed. In one episode described in the indictment, Pawlowski allegedly took steps to expedite a property inspection for developer Ramzi Haddad, who had made numerous donations to Pawlowski's campaigns and agreed to raise $25,000 for his Senate campaign. Haddad has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery.
In another episode, Pawlowski told a city employee that he would be receiving donations from an architectural firm and wanted to award the firm the contract for design and engineering of city swimming pools, according to the indictment.
To prove that the campaign donations were part of a quid pro quo, the prosecution has to clearly identify a link — that the money provided to Pawlowski was in exchange for an official government act.
"You have to have a politician saying I am going to do something for you because you did something for me," Lindy explained.
That evidence can be circumstantial — a contract awarded to a company that made contributions even though it's not qualified to do the work; or it can be direct in the form of emails or recordings, Lindy said.
The indictment indicates prosecutors have recordings, Hall noted, given the number of quotes in it from defendants and witnesses. The document quotes conversations between Pawlowski's former campaign manager and best friend, Mike Fleck, and Allentown attorney Scott Allinson — who is charged in the same indictment with bribery and conspiracy — about securing Pawlowski campaign contributions in exchange for legal work.
Sources have told The Morning Call that Fleck, who has pleaded guilty in the case and is awaiting sentencing, recorded conversations with Pawlowski for the FBI.
"The task for the jury is going to be to understand what was going on in Pawlowski's head," Hall said.
Pawlowski's lawyer, Jack McMahon, asserts Fleck was behind the alleged bribery scheme, pressuring city contractors for contributions to ensure Pawlowski's campaigns were well funded. McMahon says it's significant that prosecutors have not revealed any recordings of Pawlowski. The indictment contains only a handful of words attributed directly to the mayor.
Hall said the defense could create doubt about what Pawlowski intended others to do with regard to the contributions and contracts.
"Jack McMahon will highlight that ... all he was trying to do was provide access to his constituents," Hall said.
That may be a tough sell, said former federal prosecutor Seth Weber, who teaches criminal justice at DeSales University, given the number of witnesses who have agreed to testify against Pawlowski as part of their plea deals.
Among the city officials, consultants and contractors who have implicated Pawlowski are Fleck, Haddad, former city Managing Director Francis Dougherty, former Controller Mary Ellen Koval, former Finance Director Garret "Gary" Strathearn and former assistant solicitor Dale Wiles. They stand to receive lighter sentences, but only if prosecutors are satisfied they have testified truthfully. They could present a strong obstacle for McMahon.
"He's got to make them all out to be liars or not credible for some reason — that they are mistaken or that they misinterpreted something," Weber said. "That is a very tough uphill battle for Mayor Pawlowski."
Another battle is one faced by all public officials in corruption trials, said Philadelphia defense attorney A. Charles Peruto Jr., who has defended many.
"A lot of people, off the block, hate politicians. All they have to hear is that it's a politician and they want to find 'guilty' right off the bat," he said.
One way Pawlowski can try to tilt a trial in his favor is to seat jurors who are Democrats like he is, or share liberal views, Peruto said. Likewise, politicians want to do anything they can to keep jurors of the other party off the panel, he said.
"Let's say your defendant was Donald Trump," Peruto said. "You most certainly wouldn't want a Democrat."
Judges won't allow lawyers to query prospective panelists about their political affiliations, Peruto said, a question that too obviously seeks advantage for one side or the other. But each side can use the basic information that jurors must disclose — including where they live — to guess at the answer, he said.
Supporters stand with Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski at fundraiser in wake of indictment
Ed Pawlowski supporters stand by the Allentown mayor despite indictment in alleged pay-to-play scheme.
By Andrew Wagaman
If politicians have an advantage at trial, it is that they are well-known and popular enough to be elected and re-elected. But Gary Asteak, an Easton defense attorney and a former president of the Pennsylvania Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, said Pawlowski is unlikely to reap either of those benefits.
Breaking News Alerts Newsletter
Because Pawlowski is charged federally, he'll be tried by a jury made up of residents from across eastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia and its immediate suburbs.
"He's not going to have a hometown jury," Asteak said. "It's likely that most of the jurors will have never heard of him or will not care about him much."
Pawlowski isn't a household name outside of his city, Asteak said, and he lacks the charm that other politicians might use to persuade jurors of their innocence.
"He is not a naturally charismatic person," Asteak said. "He may have been successful in Allentown, but he has not been very successful outside of Allentown. He has a very small circle of friends and supporters."
Hibachi and sushi restaurant opens with a bang — actually, two bangs —on Allentown's Lehigh Street
Pawlowski's case, which is connected to a Philadelphia grand jury and dates to an investigation that started about four years ago, is still far from over. Legal experts say it could take a year or two before it comes to trial.
Amid shouts of "Lock him up," Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski defiantly maintained his innocence in a news conference outside his home on Wednesday, July 26.
Mike Fleck
Ed Pawlowski
'She just showed no emotion.' Friend reveals text messages with Berks County mother accused of hanging children
Bethlehem Township's engineer overcharged developer of Traditions of America community, arbitrator rules
The Morning Call
Valley Life & Health
Retail Watch
Place a death notice
LV Music
TV Watchers
Lehigh Valley Insider
Lehigh Valley Craft Beer
All Puzzles & Games
Allentown News
Bethlehem News
Easton News
Nazareth/Slate Belt
Whitehall Area
Capitol Ideas