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Luzerne County Council’s decision to declare the office of county district attorney vacant led to chaotic maneuvering Wednesday, with the district attorney’s office sending seemingly contradictory memos to local police
Luzerne County Council declared the position of county district attorney vacant on Tuesday, after longtime District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis filed to run for a seat on the county court of common pleas.
The county charter requires council to declare a vacancy if a district attorney files a nominating petition for another office, said Councilwoman Linda McClosky Houck, who proposed a resolution to declare the seat vacant.
Council voted 6-3 to approve the resolution.
Tim McGinley, Robert Schnee, Sheila Saidman, LeeAnn McDermott, Harry Haas and Houck voted yes.
Stephen J. Urban, Walter Griffith and Kendra Radle voted no.
Chris Perry and Matthew Vough abstained. Perry said his son-in-law is an assistant district attorney, while Voughâs father is county President Judge Michael T. Vough.
Residents remain reluctant to answer the call for jury duty at the Lehigh County Courthouse while COVID-19 is in the air, creating a backlog that one judge estimated could take up to two years to clear. But in neighboring Northampton County, the situation is exactly the opposite.
The COVID-19 pandemic will surely continue to dominate our coverage as we turn the page to 2021. It will continue to impact schools, the court system, small businesses and more. As we move forward, here are the stories weâll be following in 2021:
Schools
Wilkes-Barre Area School District plans to merge its three highs schools â GAR, Meyers and Coughlin â after opening the new consolidated high school in Plains Twp. in August or September.
The $121 million project began in April 2019 and was 71% complete in December. This yearâs graduating classes at GAR, Meyers and Coughlin will be the last.
The district may sell the Coughlin property in downtown Wilkes-Barre and the Meyers property in South Wilkes-Barre in 2021. The district plans to use GAR as a middle school after merging the high schools.