By BOB KALINOWSKI | The Citizens Voice | Published: January 24, 2021 (Tribune News Service) Patrick Solano, a World War II combat veteran from Pittston Township who served in the administrations of nine Pennsylvania governors, has died. He was 95. Solano died Saturday at home surrounded by his family, said attorney Frank Nocito, his nephew. Nocito, 63, remembered Solano as a humble man who befriended and gained the trust of the most notable powerbrokers in the state and nation, but never forgot his roots. He was truly a confidant to all from presidents to a guy who came from Italy to Pittston. From the highest of the high to the everyday ordinary man, he treated everyone with respect, Nocito said.
Solano died Saturday at home surrounded by his family, said attorney Frank Nocito, his nephew.
Nocito, 63, remembered Solano as a humble man who befriended and gained the trust of the most notable powerbrokers in the state and nation, but never forgot his roots.
âHe was truly a confidant to all â from presidents to a guy who came from Italy to Pittston. From the highest of the high to the everyday ordinary man, he treated everyone with respect,â Nocito said.
Nocito, who visited Solanoâs home nearly every Sunday since he was a child, said Solano was lifeâs biggest mentor.
Charges filed against three current and former Scranton School District officials accused of endangering children and the public are based on a flawed investigation that is wholly unsupported by evidence, attorneys for the defendants said in court papers.
In a sharply worded legal brief, attorneys Frank Nocito and Brian McMonagle contend the state attorney generalâs officeâs filing of charges against their client, Alexis Kirijan, Ed.D., and her co-defendants, Jeff Brazil and Joseph Slack, is a âmiscarriage of justice.â
Facing the reality it has no case, the office now seeks to forgo a preliminary hearing because prosecutors fear the charges will be dismissed outright, the attorneys said.
James A. Nocito, 92, of West Pittston, passed away Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020.
Born in Pittston Twp. on June 22, 1928, he was the son of the late Frank and Mary Ardo Nocito.
In 1945, he graduated from Pittston Twp. High School and thereafter enrolled at the University of Scranton. However, within three weeks of his 18th birthday, he left school and enlisted in the United States Army and served as a military policeman in occupied Japan. He was awarded a World War II Victory Medal and the Army of Occupation Medal for his service.
After his honorable discharge from the Army, he returned home and worked at Detatoâs Market and later at Acme Markets, Pittston. He then spent over 40 years in the insurance business before retiring.