Delco Legal Spending Out of Control — Delaware County (Pa.) Council, last night, Sept. 4, was taken to task for profligerate spending in matters legal.
Cynthia Sabatoni (phonetic) of Upper Providence said spending on outside legal fees grew from $402,000 in 2019 to $4.5 million this year. Further she noted that the solictior’s budget of $3.9 million is more than twice what it was in 2020.
“The county is enhancing the hiring of lawyers in the region,” she said.
Prison Issues
Kimberly Brown of Colwyn took issue with praise Council bestowed on Laura Williams, who is warden of the county’s George HIll Prison. Ms. Brown, a caseworker at the facility, says it was undeserved.
She later took issue with how the prison’s non-security staff doesn’t get the same holidays as other employees. Ms. Brown says the policy makes little sense because case managers can only work when courts are in session and courts are closed on those holidays.
She ripped Councilman Kevin M. Madden, who is council’s liaison to the prison.
“Madden you praise the prison; praise and praise but you don’t do nothing,” she said.
She said the prison is hemmoraging workers.
Facebook Censoring
Kathy from Haverford said County Council is putting misinformation on its Facebook page and preventing citizens from correcting it.
She noted that the ERIC voter registration system, used by Delco, fails at keeping the rolls clean, and the county fights public record requests.
She, too, ripped Madden regarding prison issues, which in her case were a plethora of lawsuits.
Kathy also wished wished to know how much Madden’s firm has invested in the Bluecrest sorters used in Delco’s elections.
Oaths And Sheriffs
Carris Kocher of Glen Mills said that the only oath taken by election workers is to do what the Board of Elections tells them and not uphold the Constitution.
The wording must be returned to how it onece was, she says.
She also says Delco is using the radical Partners for Justice orgnization as part of its public defenders program, and that county sheriffs have lost their ability to make arrests.
Councilman Richard R. Womack questioned her regarding the claim and said he would look into it.
Bruce of Glen Mills, part of a contingent of Quakers in attendance, praised Council for how they handle elections and said his religion doesn’t use oaths but affirmations.
He said the public should refrain from abusive comments.
Election Machine Ransomware
Barb Lewis of Radnor noted that the FBI had issued a warning about ransomware attacks on election machines and that other agencies noted malicious code cold be installed on the machines.
She called for a return to handcounting and paper ballots.
Parking Lot
Michael Straw of Media said the new county parking lot on Orange Street is unused after work hours. He noted that it would provide an excellent revenue sharing opportunity with Media Borough.
Councilwoman Elaine Paul Schaefer expressed agreement.
