Rumor Mill: Has Trachta Had His Last Cupcake? (Updated)

Several sources in Nazareth tell me that Chief Thomas Trachta has had his last cupcake. Late last week, he reportedly returned his uniforms and cleaned out his office. I personally experienced his vindictive behavior when he tried to have me arrested for blogs critical of him. I also experienced it when he as police chief started looking for my car so he could write up parking tickets for parking 13" away from the curb (he apparently measured it) and other such bullshit. But that's nothing compared to what he did to the Sticker Gang. In a thin-skinned reaction to tiny "FT" stickers that decorated the borough, he had the trio arrested, chained and led on a perp walk in front of a fawning press. All charges were eventually dismissed, and a judge told him he needs "to suck it up, cupcake!"

The infamous Sticker Gang was awarded $39,000 in a settlement announced last week. Nazareth also agreed to adopt three major policy changes concerning the first amendment, pretrial publicity and staged perp walks.

Commissioner Randy Miller tells me he has heard the same rumors, but does not know whether they are true. He indicated that Trachta still has a police cruiser in his possession and that the door to his office is locked. I filed a right-to-know with Miller, but will have to file one with Nazareth.

Miller also told me that Trachta was scheduled to be off this week.

Trachta has sued Nazareth himself. There is no indication that the case is settled on the record, but on February 6, Borough Council authorized negotiation of a settlement in at least one unstated matter. What I'm hearing is he was paid $70,000 to walk away, which should have happened years ago.

Does this mean Nazareth has turned a corner?

Not at all. In January, disgraced ex-Mayor Carl Strye was placed on the Nazareth Day Commission. He's back at Vigilance Hose, too, and still sits on the Ambulance Board. He reportedly is running a stealth campaign for Borough Council.

Updated 11:00 am

Bethlehem Civil Rights Activist Esther Lee Honored

Flanked by Elks' civil liberties directors Carmela Boykins and Marcel Howard,
Esther Lee accepts its first ever community service award.

Bombastic. Humorous. Bold. Empathetic. Domineering. Inclusive. These are just a few of the adjectives describing Lehigh Valley civil rights pioneer Esther Lee, whose distinctive church lady hats and booming yet eloquent voice make her instantly recognizable. After spending a lifetime fighting for social justice in the Lehigh Valley, Lee was honored by the IBPOEW, or Black Elks, at their state annual convention at Bethlehem's Best Western Hotel on June 6. Over 200 members were on hand, including President Edward Dawkins and the state directors of civil liberties, Marcel Howard and Carmela Boykins, to present Lee with their first ever community service award.

"You know, I'm 82 years old," said Lee with a wry smile. "But I can still walk. I can think. I can see you out there," she joked as Boykins called her "the eyes and the ears of the Lehigh Valley."

About 200 members of the Black Elks honor Lee

She was born and raised in South Bethlehem, one of five children. Her commitment to her Baptist faith is apparent from more than the hat. A member of St. Paul Baptist Church, she is a Sunday school teacher, senior choir member, missionary member, church financial secretary and church treasurer. She also belongs to several statewide Baptist organizations.

"Church, church and more church," said Boykins in introducing Lee.

A graduate of Liberty High School, Lee never attended a day of college. Yet she calls education "the key to my life." That, and her interest in children is what sparked her interest in civil rights and community involvement.

"Our children are very important, and they should come first," she said. As the mother of two children attending Madison Elementary School, she peppered teachers and the principal with questions.She decided to join the PTA even though she was the only black face in a white room. "The white mothers decided I should be their President," she said. Those same white parents then encouraged her to run for school board, and in 1971, she became the first African American woman to be elected to a school board in the Lehigh Valley. She would serve for six years.

As a school director, she asked questions, and pushed for changes to improve Bethlehem's school system. But she noted that change is painfully slow. "It took us until 2016 to hire a black secretary in the school district of Bethlehem," she lamented. "that will let you know just how slow we are in getting things done."

She stressed the importance of parental involvement.

"We need parents to raise their children," she said. "Bring them to school. Preachers tell you to bring them to church, but we don't have Sunday Schools any more. That's where you can help children to read." She challenged parents and grandparents "to get up off your seats" and "insure that our children can read. Parents, it's on us."

Lee entered the workforce in the early 1950's, a time which many Lehigh Valley residents view with nostalgia. It was different for Lee. "Bethlehem wasn't hiring us as a people," she observed, but said she was fortunate that a Jewish family took pit on her and out her to work in their dry cleaning business.

Things changed when the Civil Rights Act was enacted, and businesses with federal contracts were forced to hire minorities. She hated leaving the dry cleaner, but was trained as a secretary, and finally got work with several companies during a long secretarial career that ended when she retired as an administrative assistant for the Bethlehem Council of Churches.

As her interest in civil rights deepened, Lee became involved in the NAACP, and is currently the president of the Bethlehem branch. She spoke of the marches that the NAACP and Elks made together on Martin Luther King Day, trying to persuade Bethlehem officials to close city hall on that national holiday. Mayor Ken Smith eventually agreed. She also recounted protests at Lehigh University, which also refused to recognize the holiday.

"I read that Lehigh wants to become more involved in the Bethlehem community," she observed. "The way to become more involved is to acknowledge that we are part of society and not just second class citizens."

Most recently, Lee has been hosting interesting and well-attended forums on topics ranging from education to police violence, and Police Chief Mark DiLuzio and Mayor Bob Donchez have both participated.

"I'll keep working, and I'll get ugly when I need to, as you all know," she said as people chuckled. "May God bless your children and grandchildren so that they can stand up and bear the pressure that this world brings to them."

From L to R: President Edward Dawkins, Esther Lee, Carmela Boykins and Marcel Howard

Sticker Gang Sues Nazareth

(The Sticker Gang with their legal Dream Team. From L to R: Dan Logothetis, Attorney Gary Asteak, Trevor Gehret, Attorney Phil Lauer, Jeremy Peters and Attorney Mark Minotti)

The infamous Sticker Gang has filed its long awaited civil rights suit against Nazareth. Filed in the United States District Court, the suit was filed Thursday afternoon by Trevor Gehret, Jeremy Peters and Daniel Logothetis. They are represented by prominent civil rights Attorney Joe Welsh, along with Phil Lauer. Named as Defendants are Nazareth, Police Chief Thomas Trachta, Patrolman Dan Troxell and the entire Borough Council. The suit seeks compensatory and punitive damages, as well as attorney fees, for civil rights violations, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, assault, battery and the intentional infliction of emotional address.

It also seeks injunctive relief against a Borough that seems to have lost sight of the Constitution.

This lawsuit is the result of tiny "FT (Fire Trachta)" stickers, which were springing up all over Nazareth nearly two years ago, along with the dandelions.

They were small but everywhere. Mailboxes, telephone poles, benches and even crime prevention signs.

The FTs were someone's way of saying FU to Police Chief Thomas Trachta.

Dan Troxell does his own perp walk

After a major investigation conducted by perhaps the dumbest cop on the planet, Chief Trachta served notice that there will be no free speech in Nazareth, a point that Borough Council has tried to make with me on several occasions. 

Not only did Trachta arrest the trio that ultimately became known as The Sticker Gang, but he conducted a staged perp parade in front of a fawning press.

He detained these desperadoes until both papers arrived. Then he paraded them outside, up from the police station to District Judge John Capobianco's courtroom. They were shackled and handcuffed, so the dailies could snap pictures of these evil criminals doing what is called a "perp" walk. The Morning Call video shows Jeremy Peters getting at least one shove by a cop who wants him to move faster.

It was actually more of a parade, along the entire length of the bank building. It was done to publicly humiliate this trio and impress a powerful image of guilt in the mind of the public. People charged with littering were treated as though they had just attempted to assassinate the President.

It was also totally unnecessary. Trachta could have easily escorted them up the stairway from the police station into the courtroom.

Online comments in both newspapers have expressed outrage at this abuse of police power. The Chief has been called a megalomaniac, egotistical maniac, Nazi, moron, transplanted clown, Barney Fife and out-of-control.

Legal Dream Team With Sticker Gang T-Shirt

After a 3 1/2 hour hearing before Magisterial District Judge Jacqueline Taschner in Palmer Township, all charges were ultimately dismissed against Nazareth's infamous Sticker Gang. Instead of doing a perp walk, Defendants Trevor Gehret, Jeremy Peters and Daniel Logothetis could do an Irish jig as Police Chief Thomas Trachta and Officer Dan Troxell exited the crowded courtroom with their tails between their legs. After hearing an incredibly weak case from seven Commonwealth witnesses, including a police officer who actually testified that placing stickers on parking meters creates a hazardous condition, Judge Taschner reached the only conclusion she possibly could - Not Guilty.

The FT stickers were initially spotted by meter officer Lou Skrapits as he made his rounds. That's when Chief Trachta ordered Troxell to begin his investigation.

That led him to Michele Howey, who said that Logothetis and Peters had each placed a sticker on her car late one evening, with her consent, and that she placed a third sticker herself.

"I didn't think it was that big of a deal," she repeated several times.  "It was just a sticker."

The Evil Sticker Gang

Troxell also subpoenaed Logothetis' mother, though she knew nothing about Stickergate, to testify about where she lives. He never explained precisely why that matters. When she took the stand and it quickly became apparent that she is completely deaf in one ear and only has partial hearing in another, Judge Taschner exploded.

"You brought this woman here to testify without notifying us so we could have someone here who understands American Sign Language?" she asked. Troxell, who was the investigator, had no idea that one of his witnesses is deaf.

Judge Taschner excused Logothetis' mother.

During the trial, Troxell attempted repeatedly to introduce numerous pictures of the stickers on meters, benches, trees, a car and telephone poles. But he had no training on how to lay a foundation to get them into evidence, and failed. As a result, about 20 pictures never made it into evidence. He just stopped trying. It hurt his head too much.

Troxell also called Public Works Superintended Robert Reimer, who had an invoice of $970.71 for the sticker clean up. But his invoice was prepared after charges had been filed, and with knowledge that he had to be over $500 for a misdemeanor to stick. He admitted that when the Chief first asked him about the clean up costs, he told him he really had no idea.

Dream Team discusses strategy

The Sticker Gang was represented by a legal Dream Team of three of the area's most prominent criminal defense attorneys - Phil Lauer, Gary Asteak and Mark Minotti. When they arrived at the courthouse, they introduced themselves to Trachta and tried to shake his hand. He refused. "That's the first time that ever happened to me," noted a baffled Lauer, who has devoted a career to major criminal cases on the federal and state level and is well-respected by law enforcement.

As the case developed, there was no real evidence that any of the Sticker Gang members had actually done the dirty deed. But there was evidence that, in addition to manufacturing a victim, Trachta and Troxell tried to get the feds involved. Troxell actually testified that he contacted the United States Attorney's Office for the stickers found on mailboxes, bringing some chuckles from the defense team. Postal Inspectors apparently have better things to do.

The Sticker Gang had been facing misdemeanor criminal mischief charges (eight counts each), as well as disorderly conduct, harassment and eight counts of scattering rubbish.

"Why eight?" asked Attorney Asteak at one point, especially considering the evidence was insufficient for even one count.

"There's nothing here to support the misdemeanor charge," concluded Judge Taschner. "Nothing." She indicated all the evidence from the Commonwealth showed an expression of political belief, not an intent to damage any property.

She then told Chief Trachta that he, like she, is a public figure who has to expect some criticism.

"Suck it up, cupcake!" she advised.

She also tossed the harassment and disorderly conduct charges for much the same reason. That pesky First Amendment kept getting in the way. Mark Minotti, legal scholar for the Dream Team, furnished the judge with another Superior Court decision finding that a person wearing a "Fuck You" T-shirt inside a courtroom is not disorderly, as a matter of law. He noted that disorderly conduct charges cannot be used as a dragnet for all irritations. It is a statute intended to preserve the public peace.

Troxell made a last-ditch effort to get the judge to at least buy a scattering rubbish charge. But he failed there, too. He said he found some stickers in a Valero gas station parking lot, but conceded to Attorney Lauer that he was unable to say how they got there or whether the Sticker Gang was even responsible.

Adopting a clinical approach, Attorney Asteak read the Scattering Rubbish statute, which provides that a person is guilty of an offense if he "causes any waste paper, sweepings, ashes, household waste, glass, metal, refuse or rubbish, or any dangerous or detrimental substance to be deposited into or upon any road, street, highway, alley or railroad right-of-way, or upon the land of another or into the waters of this Commonwealth."

He noted the FT stickers were not waste paper, but pure political speech. He also denied there was any evidence FT stickers were deposited on a road, street, highway, alley or railroad right-of-way, or upon the land of another or into the waters of this Commonwealth.

Quoting from a Thomas Jefferson letter to James Madison, Judge Taschner observed that "a little rebellion now and then is a good thing." Speaking for herself, the night judge added, "We don't grow as a society unless there's disagreement."

In addition to this matter, Nazareth is facing a civil rights lawsuit filed by Officer Stephen Schleig, another suit filed by Officer Adam Shimer and a wrongful death action by the Timothy Nixon estate.

When the complaint becomes available on Pacer, I will post it.

Nazareth Faces Another Civil Rights Suit By a Police Officer

Police officers are often named as Defendants in civil rights suits, but not in Nazareth.  It has paid out $500,000 to settle claims brought by two police officers over violations of their own civil rights. Officer Fred Lahovski, who had already been awarded and paid backpay as a result of an illegal termination, got an extra $440,000 out of the Borough. This might be the highest sum ever paid to a police officer in the Lehigh Valley for a violation of civil rights. But there are two more police officer claims that need to be resolved, including a suit that was just filed on December 11.

The Shimer Suit

This suit was filed by Adam Shimer, a Nazareth resident and veteran who always wanted to be a cop.Chief Thomas Trachta wanted his lackey, Danny Troxell hired. But unlike Shimer, Troxell was no veteran and Trachta knew that Shimer would rank higher with the Civil Service Commission. So Trachta set out to sabotage Shimer's chances.

When he was still a high school teen, Shimer had experienced a number of deaths in his family. When his father passed away unexpectedly, he had trouble accepted what had happened and decided to seek help. He voluntarily committed himself to a mental health facility for a brief period. But Trachta misrepresented that as an involuntary commitment, which would disqualify Shimer.

Shimer was forced to retain Allentown civil rights attorney Pat Reilly to fight for him, and Shimer was ultimately hired by Nazareth on August 14, 2014.

After being hired and during his one-year probationary period, Trachta continued to sabotage Shimer with chickenshit claims of mishandling evidence. That's ironic because a state study of the police department came down very hard on Trachta over the way he handles evidence  I'd peronally love to see a firearmsaudit to determine if everything is where it should be.

Shimer was also given a rough time over his service in the Coast Guard as a reservist.

Exactly one year after her was hired, Shimer was fired by Nazareth Borough Council. Those are the same rocket scientists who publicly denied the existence of Investigator Dan Moneck's study of the police department and are so terrified of Trachta that they refuse to fire him and instead are going to name Randy Miller a "Commissioner" to be boss over Chief Trachta and two full-time cops.

In a suit filed by Attorney Reilly, Shimer claims that Nazareth was penalizing him for serving in the Coast Guard. In addition, he alleges that Trachta intended to fire him all along, and just strung things out.
Shimer is seeking reinstatement, back pay, punitive damages and attorney fees.

The Schleig Suit

Nazareth also faces a civil rights suit by Officer Stephen Schleig, who claims the Borough retaliated against him for union activity. Among the things they did was require him to seek mental counseling, at his own expense. He was publicly berated and even threatened by Trachta lackey Danny Troxell, wjo was hoping to get a job as a full-time officer. The humiliation included forcing this officer to wear the same worn bicycle uniform for several months. That suit is still in the pleading stage.

Other Civil Rights Suits

In addition to the civil rights suits filed by police officers, there's a civil rights suit against Nazareth by the heirs of Timothy Nixon, who was re or less goaded into killing himself by Nazareth Police Officer Danny Troxell. Nixon is dead because Troxell just had to be a cowboy. That case, filed by Attorneys Phil Lauer and Joe Welsh, is still in the pleading stages.

Still to come are the Sticker Gang suits.

Orloski Asks DA To Dismiss Shula's Crooner Case

Should Lehigh County DA Jim Martin dismiss all charges filed against James Ochse, the Allentown crooner who was bodyslammed by an Allentown cop for daring to sing in front of the gentrified NIZ crowd? That's what noted civil rights Attorney Rick Orloski thinks. He fired off a letter yesterday, asking him to "personally review" the matter and withdraw all charges.

Such a decision would be smart for everyone. Allentown police can claim it was a misunderstanding. Martin has come under some unfair flack for a very justifiable defamation action against WAEB and others. This could make very clear that part of his duty as the county's chief law enforcement officer is to protect the rights of others.

Across the river here in Northampton County, DA John Morganelli has on his own dismissed charges filed against antiwar protesters who were charged with trespassing at the Palmer Post Office. He dumped a goofy prosecution brought by a Washington Township cop who charged a resident for daring to fly the American flag upside down. He even reduced some serious charges brought against "Nature Dave" when he walked into a bank with a sign saying, "You're being robbed." Nature Dave was making a political statement, but he scared some people.

Ochse had no political agenda. He was simply singing, exercising his right to artistic free speech.

In the meantime, this Nazareth cop is in serious trouble for singing into his dash cam.

Why Is Nazareth Mayor Blowin' Oil?

Nazareth Mayor Carl Strye blocked me from his Facebook page some time ago for some reason. But a friend has sent me a rant Strye posted there yesterday, battling his foes with sports cliches. Someone better throw him up on a lift and find out why he's blowin' oil. Here's what he says.

There comes a time in ones life to throw up your arms and just give in. NOT ME! I am in it to win it. Throw what you want at me. There is always a bright light at the end of the tunnel and I know how to find it. I will not be intimidated or controlled! Take your best shot and most likely it will be your last.

I'm unsure exactly who his enemies are because he never names them. But he has made few friends among full time Nazareth police officers. He and Borough Council recently fired Adam Shimer, a military veteran and Nazareth resident, just days before his probation was set to expire. Officers from other police departments, many of whom know Shimer, consider him a good cop. They consider this termination "chickenshit" from a Mayor and Council intent on destroying good cops and replacing them with those who will do their bidding and let them know when the next gambling raid is coming and who is working undercover at the clubs.

I cover Hanover and Bethlehem Township for a local weekly. Elected officials there only get involved in police budgetary considerations. They leave police operations to the police. It's much different in Nazareth and many other small communities, where Mayors intercede in matters as minor as a parking ticket and many just happen to be involved in the social clubs.

Nazareth is currently facing three civil rights suits filed by current (Stephen Schleigh, Fred Lahovski) and former (Connie McGinniss) police officers. That alone should send off all kinds of warning signals that something is seriously amiss.

But that's not all.

A civil rights suit has also been been filed over the death of Timothy Nixon, who was battling mental illness and shot himself when part-time Officer Danny Troxell, a full-time wannabe and protege of Chief Thomas Trachta, barged into his apartment building.

Nazareth Police Department and Troxell were sued over the use of excessive force on a man who was repeatedly tased while handcuffed, inside of a police vehicle. That matter was settled prior to trial. (Hendricks v. Swan, et al., Eastern District of Pennsylvania, # 11-cv-7394).

Chief Thomas Trachta and Troxell unlawfully prosecuted three Borough residents for exercising their First Amendment rights by allegedly posting small postage stamp stickers urging the dismissal of Chief Trachta. Magisterial District Judge Jackie Taschner admonished Trachta that sometimes, “You have to suck it up, cupcake.”

Instead of doing that, Trachta next fired school crossing guard Karen Herbst because her husband dared run against Mayor Strye.

Officer Lahovski's complaint, which has survived a Motion to Dismiss, details a series of unlawful retaliatory actions taken by the Nazareth and Trachta. They show an utter disregard for the constitutional and legal rights of residents and some individuals within the Department. Officer Schleig's lawsuit is a mirror image, listing all kinds of retaliatory actions taken against him for union activity, including the refusal to provide a proper uniform.

Now Borough Council did order an investigation into its police department’s operations. But they rejected the report when it came back highly critical of them and the Chief. When I confronted Council over this study, they denied its existence twice during open meetings.

When Nazareth hired Randy Miller as Deputy Chief, I though things would improve. They've grown worse. Now it's a top heavy department with too many chiefs. Miller did nothing to stop the unnecessary termination of Officer Shimer while civil rights violator Troxelll is allowed to come and go as he pleases. He appears to have been brought aboard as a union buster, not a police officer.

Nazareth condones and ratifies violations of Constitutional and legal rights by certain officers and the Chief. They have hired lawyers to scour the sagebush and bayous of southern circuit courts to find opinions friendly to their view, which seems to be that the Constitution has no application in Nazareth. They will fail.

Now that Shimer has been shoved aside, the door is open for Trachta to insert Troxell as a full-time officer.

Against this backdrop, I find it astonishing that Strye is lashing out the way he is.

Very few people are willing to publicly criticize elected officials. Most keep their heads down, while others become sycophants who blow smoke up the asses of these officials, instead of being honest with them.

On Strye's page, one of his cheerleaders actually states, "A lion doesn't need the approval of sheep."

That comment betrays a rather condescending opinion towards the people that any elected officials is supposed to serve. I always thought of government officials as servants, not lions.

Wolves might be a more appropriate word.

Officer Schleig's Lawsuit Against Nazareth

A reader has asked me to post Officer Stephen Schleig's lawsuit against Nazareth. Below you will see his Complaint, which was filed earlier this month.

Stephen Schleig Lawsuit v. Nazareth

Second Police Officer Sues Nazareth For Union-Busting

About this time last year, Nazareth police officer Fred Lahovski sued the borough and various officials in a lengthy civil rights complaint over various disciplinary actions taken against him, including a termination that was ultimately set aside by an arbitrator. He argued that the real reason he was fired was for speaking out on union  and other issues. A federal judge agrees. In an opinion issued just last month, Judge Juan Sánchez has ordered the case to move forward, noting that "[i]t is clearly established that a public employee has the constitutional right to speak as a citizen on matters of public concern without fear of retaliation." Now there's a second case on the burner. Officer Stephen Schleig, a former union President and Vice President, has also filed a civil rights suit against Nazareth and numerous officials over what can only be described as a concerted effort to destroy their union. His suit was filed on Tuesday.

Schleig, first hired by Nazareth in 2008, became a full-time police officer in 2010. In his complaint, he alleges that he soon ran into an anti-union animus that extended from the Mayor to part-time police officer Dan Troxell. Specific acts include the following:
* Refusal to provide him with uniforms, requiring him to spend months in a bicycle uniform with excessive wear and tear.
* Refusal to pay shift differential until ordered to do so in an arbitration.
* Forcing him to see a psychologist without explanation, and then disclosing that private information to officers in other police departments.
* Berating him as "no cop" and as someone who should not have passed the police academy.
* Arbitrarily switching his work shifts.
* Belittling him for thanking Borough Council for allowing him to attend a training course.
* Informing him that hunting cameras and recording devices were hidden in the station to catch him discussing union girevances with other officers.
* Threatening him with violence when he discovered a hidden camera and reported it to Chief Thomas Trachta.
* Threatening him with losing his job for testifying truthfully in an arbitration hearing for Officer Fred Lahovski.
* Placing a plastic rat in a trap and putting it in a room he was using.
* Suppressing an investigative report prepared by Private Detective Dan Moneck that corroborated Schleig.*
* Forging his name to a TOW tag to make it appear to the vehicle's owner that he had ordered the car moved, when in fact the TOW sticker was prepared by Chief Trachta.
* Forcing him without explanation to attend ten counseling sessions at a cost of $8.70 per session.
* Pressuring him to withdraw legitimate grievances filed on behalf of the union, and then commencing unfounded internal affairs investigations when he would refuse.
* Threatening him, through Officer Dan Troxell, with physical harm and even death if he assisted Officer Fred Lahovski in exposing the union-busting activity in Nazareth.

This civil rights action is the fourth civil rights action filed against Nazareth since 2013. Three of them were filed by police officers and one of them involved the wrongful death of Timothy Nixon.

In the meantime, I have an unconfirmed report that Nazareth Borough Council voted last night to fire an Iraqi was hero, Adam Shimer, as a police officer. He was just hired last year.

I had warned Nazareth about a procession of civil rights suits last year, but was ignored. Expect to see more.

Blogger's note: * Borough Council would later deny the existence of this report when I questioned them about it at two Borough Council meetings.

Fed'l Judge: Cop's Civil Rights Suit Against Nazareth To Continue

An Arbitrator has described Nazazreth Police Officer Fred Lahovski as a "highly motivated police officer". He's the kind of cop you'd want to have if you were in trouble. He's one of two officers who whisked a 9 year-old Nazareth boy to safety as that boy's distraught father fired on state troopers, killing one of them. But in Nazareth, he's been painted as a troublemaker who upset the good ol' boys. They got rid of him. That decision was reversed by an Arbitrator, and Lahovski fired back with a 410-paragraph civil rights complaint aimed at Nazareth, its mayor, its police chief and the entire borough council. In the course of trying to bring him under control, they violated his civil rights repeatedly. Unfortunately, we the people will pay for this arrogance.

United States District Court Judge Juan R. Sánchez, in an Order issued today, has ruled that "Defendants retaliated against [Lahovski] for exercising his First Amendment Free Speech and Petition Clause rights. It is clearly established that a public employee has the constitutional right to speak as a citizen on matters of public concern without fear of retaliation."

Judge Sanchez also ruled that Lahovski has stated a claim for municipal liability at this stage.

"Lahovski’s Complaint adequately alleges the Borough had a policy of retaliating against citizens who exercise their First Amendment rights and that [Mayor] Daugherty and the members of the Council were the authorized decisionmakers in carrying out this policy. "

Although Judge Sanchez did not buy into the conspiracy theory or due process violations, he has dismissed those claims without prejudice to renew them if Lahovski can substantiate those claims with evidence at the trial.

He has also refused to release individual Defendants like Chief Thomas Trachta, and has allowed the claim for punitive damages to proceed.

You can read Lahovski's civil rights complaint here. It paints a sad picture of Nazareth government.

Nazareth Cop Faces Civil Rights Lawsuit Over Suicide

Timothy Nixon was a troubled soul. He had a lengthy history of mental illness, and was well known to residents and police officers. Two years ago, he ended it all with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He left two children without a father. What makes this story all the more tragic is that it never should have occurred. Nixon was more or less goaded into killing himself by Nazareth Police Officer Danny Troxell. Nixon is dead because Troxell just had to be a cowboy. When I made Nazareth Borough Council aware of what had happened, I was ignored. It will be harder to avoid the civil rights lawsuit filed on Tuesday.

According to a complaint filed in federal court by Attorneys Phil Lauer and Joe Welsh, Nixon was an African American. Troxell and Trachta have been accused of using derogatory terms to refer to minorities in radio chatter as UNBs (unauthorized n----- in borough) or UNITs (unauthorized n------ in town).

In May of 2013, Timothy Nixon, age 32, broke into a friend's home and stole his handgun. Then Nixon called his friend admitted his crime, and said he was going to kill himself and his baby's mother as well. He also called his girlfriend and said he would kill himself.

Nixon's friend and girlfriend both reported the matter to Nazareth police. Troxell, who was assigned the matter, got an arrest warrant for Nixon, who was sitting in an apartment alone. .

Nobody with supervisory authority over Troxell was on duty. Troxell decided to arrest Nixon. He called Upper Nazareth and Stockertown, which sent four officers for assistance.

So far, so good.

That changed when more seasoned officers arrived at the scene, and noticed that Nixon was on the second floor of an apartment building.

"I don't like this," said an Upper Nazareth officer. "This is dangerous. Somebody is gonna' get hurt."

The officers suggested that a perimeter be set up for reasons of public safety. They encouraged Trachta to contact the state police, which has a swat team and negotiators. They suggested that Troxell just call Nixon, noting it would be far safer to spend a few hours talking to this guy than getting in a shootout and risking the lives of innocent bystanders.He also ignored their suggestion that the girlfriend be asked to call him.

Instead of heeding reasonable advice from veteran officers, Troxell called them "fucking pussies" and eventually kicked open the door to the apartment building.

Nixon saw Troxell coming and shot himself. It was a senseless death, made more so by the actions of a hot dog who couldn't even be bothered to try to talk to this guy.

The next day, Chief Trachta attempted to cover for Troxell's ineptitude. "[W]e needed to move on this," he told The Express Times. "The police went to execute an arrest warrant, found the person deceased," Trachta misled the press.No attempt was made to discipline Troxell. Quite the contrary. Chief Trachta has tried repeatedly to have Troxell named as a full-time officer.

He allowed an inexperienced officer to help a mentally disturbed man kill himself. And the person did not kill himself until Troxell kicked in a door.

I am told that police reports prepared by Upper Nazareth officers, and the one prepared by Troxell, are inconsistent.

The Complaint details a pattern of civil rights abuses and cover-ups.:

• a private investigation into the police department was highly critical of its management, but Borough Council has refused to accept this report. It has refused to make its contents public and has even denied it exists.
• Troxell participated in the use of excessive force, which included tasing a man who was handcuffed and inside a police cruiser.
• Troxell was the arresting officer in the botched Stickergate prosecution, in which all charges were dismissed after a staged perp walk. 
• Nazareth amazingly fired a school crossing guard whose only sin was to be married to the man who ran against Mayor Carl Strye.
• Nazareth retaliated against and ultimately fired Officer Fred Lahovski for casting a spotlight on mismanagement within the police department.in what appears to be a "custom and culture of disregard" for the constitutional rights of residents and even some police officers.
• Officer Lahovski had prepared policies and procedures for dealing with mentally ill persons and those in emotional crisis, but they were never acted on by Borough Council or the Mayor. 

Here's what some those who knew Timothy recently had to say on the second anniversary of his death:

Latita Hill: Rip Tim you will b truly missed u were always there making someone smile u were a good person + fun to b around my condolences to his family + friends : (

Simone Attel Rip thoughtss n prayers to his family may he b at peace what beautiful man so sad

Angela Rose Thank you Julie Brennan. Timmy, we miss you so much already. My heart hurts.

My understanding that additional suits arising out of Stickergate and the firing of a crossing guard are imminent.

Civil Rights Movement: The Best of Times, The Worst of Times

Michael Dyson

Moravian College's Foy Hall is usually a venue for harpsichords and bassoons. Dr. Michael Eric Dyson had neither, though he did sing at times to over 150 people on February 26. As part of black history month, Dyson was invited to explain where we are in the civil rights movement. Charles Dickens might say "it is the best of times, and it is the worst of times." The hip hop group Future would say, "at the same damn time." Dyson acknowledged that we've made tremendous progress, but we have a long way to go.

Dyson, a sociology professor at Georgetown University, has been described as both "a Princeton PhD and a child of the streets" who grew up in Detroit. He is an admitted welfare dad who never started college until he was 21. Since that time, he has authored 18 books and is one of the talking heads sometimes seen on cable TV or heard on NPR, discussing race relations.

According to Dyson, the civil rights movement is nothing less than the complete fulfillment of the social contract articulated by Thomas Jefferson at the founding of our nation. The immortal declaration that "all men are created equal."

He reminded the audience that it is really not all that long ago that blacks were required to drink out of separate water fountins, sit at the rear of buses and were denied access to places like Disneyworld. He noted his own experience as a child, being denied service at a restaurant because he's black.

"What's a n-----, momma?" he asked, never having heard that word before. "Just you don't tell your daddy," she warned him.

Those days are over, but because we live in what Gore Vidal has called the United States of Amnesia, we quickly forget these indignities. He noted it is "not truly American to hold people hostage to their racial identities."

Today, Dyson explained, there is some evidence that the country is actually moving backwards. The Supreme Court has nullified a core provision of the Voting Rights Act, ending nearly 50 years of U.S.oversight of elections in much of the South. And Dyson insists that black people are "precriminalized" in the minds of both black and white police officers.

"Black people don't hate the police," he stated. "They just don't want the police to mistake us for the criminal."

Though he generally supports President Obama, the nation's first black president, he had some criticism for him, too. "Obama can't act as black in public as Bill Clinton does. He can't play the sax or start rappin' on Ellen's show." He complained that, all too often, Obama acts as though his mission is "to control the Negro madness." Dyson believes this is just as ridiculous as when Obama complained about Pennsylvania voters who "cling" to their guns and religion. In many ways, Obama has continued to reinforce a view of white superiority.

Dysin suggests hip hop as a way of understanding what it is like to be born black and disadvantaged. He calls Tupac Shakur, a black rapper gunned down in a 1996 drive-by shooting, the "Truman Capote of the hood," a genius whose lyrics graphically described life in the ghetto.

Not to disrespect my peoples but my poppa was a loser
Only plan he had for momma was to fuck her and abuse her
Even as a little seed, I could see his plan for me
Stranded on welfare, another broken family
Now what was I to be, a product of this heated passion
Momma got pregnant, and poppa got a piece of ass
Look how it began, nobody gave a fuck about me
Pistol in my hand, this cruel world can do without me
How can I survive? Got me asking white Jesus
will a nigga live or die, 'cause the Lord can't see us
in the deep dark clouds of the projects, ain't no sunshine
No sunny days and we only play sometimes
When everybody's sleeping

Independence Day ... For Some

NAACP Presidents Dan Basket (Allentown), Esther Lee (Bethlehem) & Verna Howard (Easton)

It may have been Independence Eve, but the Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton NAACPs planned no celebrations. "Enjoy yourselves tomorrow, as they celebrate their holiday," Bethlehem NAACP President Esther Lee told a group of fifteen civil rights leaders. They met at Bethlehem's Payrow Plaza to protest a recent 5-4 Supreme Court decision that gutted key provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Designed to ensure ballot access and combat racial gerrymandering, the Voting Rights Act requires mostly Southern states to get clearance from the Justice Department before making even minor changes, like moving a polling place. But Chief Justice John Roberts complained that the latest version of the Act, adopted in 2006, is "based on 40-year-old facts having no logical relationship to the present day.”

Contending that the Voting Rights Act is designed to protect the rights of all people, Lee claimed, "This is not a partisan issue, it is an American issue." Allentown NAACP President Dan Basket and his Easton counterpart, Verna Howard, echoed Lee.

There was some mild disagreement over the Voter ID Law. Basket called it a disenfranchisement of the minority vote, while Howard has no issue with producing an ID.

One onlooker, on his way out of the nearby library, told these leaders, "If you want to vote, please get an ID."

"Identify yourself!", demanded Lee. He did, but left immediately.

"It's almost like they don't consider us human beings," lamented Lee. "We're still slaves in their eyes."