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Attorney Peter Moses was looking forward to his appointment as Wilkes-Barre’s assistant city attorney. Until the thought of it gave him a migraine.
It “was not worth the headache,” Moses said, explaining why he passed on the appointment. Considering the job would have entailed dealing with a lot of headaches, it’s probably all for the best he bowed out.
New Mayor Tony George picked Moses for the post even though Moses is, reportedly, a deadbeat. Informed city resident Matthew Ford told the city council Moses owes $9,988 in back taxes, including $1,950 to the city he wished to serve.
That didn’t seem to bother George, but it apparently gave the council pause because not one of the five members brought up Moses’ appointment for a vote at the Jan. 14 meeting. Maybe George felt sorry for Moses because he couldn’t pay his bills. Or perhaps the new mayor was able to relate to Moses’ predicament because he, too, ran into an embarrassing situation when reports surfaced that his campaign finance reports were riddled with errors.
Since that didn’t stop George from getting the mayor’s job, maybe he thought a little thing like unpaid back taxes shouldn’t stop Moses from representing city officials in legal matters. It’s not like he was going to be advising the city’s tax collector or controller.
Also, Moses is more well known for defending hardened criminals than for handling municipal matters. Considering a lot can happen in four years, maybe Mayor George was being proactive in wanting a criminal defense attorney onboard.
Since it didn’t work out, the mayor and city attorney Tim Henry, who vouched for Moses, now look silly. What was expected to be a simple consent in appointing George’s pick for assistant attorney turned into a mini brouhaha.
At the council meeting, Ford charged it was a conflict of interest for Henry to be advising council on a mayoral appointee when he also serves as assistant city administrator. Ford went to the meeting armed with a draft complaint to the state Supreme Court’s Disciplinary Board against Henry whom he accused of failing to inform the council that, under the city charter, it could remove Moses.
Before deciding he didn’t need the “political tension” between the council and the mayor, Moses had taken the council’s not welcoming him with open arms in stride and said he looked forward to working as the city’s assistant attorney.
Why wouldn’t he? The job pays $52,500 and there are no set hours. So if it was a slow week at City Hall, and the city didn’t need its two attorneys to handle any legal issues, Moses would still have received his average $1,000 weekly pay. And he would have been free to take care of those back taxes.
Better yet, the job comes with about $15,000 in benefits. When I called Tyler Ryan, the mayor’s administrative assistant, to find out what those benefits were, she didn’t get back to me before my deadline. I’m sure she will, though, because Mayor George has promised transparency under his administration.
For now, I’m forced to guess those benefits, in addition to no set hours, include health care coverage. Why shouldn’t city taxpayers pay for this coverage for a part-time city attorney? It’s not the assistant city attorney’s fault some taxpayers don’t work for generous public sector entities and have to pay the lion’s share of their own coverage.
What other benefits might the assistant city attorney get? Black Friday off with pay? Why not? Luzerne County employees get to enjoy that manufactured holiday on the house. What’s fair is fair.
Is it possible the job with no set hours also comes with paid sick and personal days off? Who knows?
And to think Attorney Moses turned all of this down when all he had to do was take an Excedrin to deal with the on-the-job headaches.
The Times Leader tried to reach Moses for comment but had no luck. Mayor George simply said Moses requested to have his name withdrawn and he complied.
George didn’t have to do that because Moses was a shoe-in. City attorney/assistant administrator Henry made it clear George didn’t need the council’s blessing to appoint an assistant attorney. The part of the resolution that said on the advice and consent of the council must be a joke, although the council members didn’t find it funny that they were expected to rubber stamp this appointment when no one asked for their two cents.
Council Chairman Bill Barrett argued the council didn’t even see Moses’ resume. Oh, Bill, weren’t you listening? Pete didn’t have to prove anything to you. Your advice and consent were nothing more than a formality.
Maybe Moses didn’t have the right stuff for the job. Look at city police Lt. Marcella Lendacky. She didn’t cave when Mayor George named her the city’s new police chief even after some police officers warned him in an anonymous letter if he did name her, morale would plummet at police headquarters.
Now it’s up to city attorney Henry to choose another new assistant attorney.
I’m sure there will be no shortage of attorneys who would like the job. No set hours for a $52,500 salary plus $15,000 in benefits?
Those prone to headaches need not apply.