MIDDLEBURG — Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association Executive Director Michael Piecuch has confirmed he’s interested in succeeding Snyder County District Attorney Michael Sholley early next year.
Piecuch, who lives in Selinsgrove with his wife and three children, said he’s spoken to Snyder-Union President Judge Harold F. Woelfel Jr.
“I’m a career prosecutor who has a deep interest in criminal law and public service,” he said Friday. “Being district attorney would be a culmination of that.”
Woelfel and Sholley will begin reviewing applications for the post as soon as Sholley is sworn-in as court of common pleas judge Jan. 4.
Woelfel said he hopes by the end of January to name a successor to fill the seat through the end of 2010, when a November election would determine who would serve the remaining two years of the term.
As executive director of the state association, Piecuch is responsible for the public policy, advocacy and outreach priorities of the state’s sixty-seven district attorneys.
After graduating from Albany (N.Y) Law School in 1993, Piecuch served as an assistant district attorney in Philadelphia and later as a deputy attorney general at the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.
He’s also worked as chief of staff for House Speaker Dennis O’Brien, majority chief counsel to the House Judiciary Committee, and counsel to the Minority leader of minority leader of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
Referring to the unique situation the county judges have in filling the district attorney position and the differing interpretations of the statute, Piecuch said he’s pleased to be among a group of well-qualified candidates.
“This is not a campaign,” he said. “I know the others who are interested, and it’s a good thing. The best situation is for the judge to have a difficult situation. It only benefits the community.”
So far only Piecuch and Snyder Countys chief public defender John Reed, who challenged Sholley for the office in 2007, have publicly said they’re interested in the job.
Woelfel said Friday that one other person expressed interest, but has asked not to be identified.
Although there are several potential candidates living in Snyder County, one name that’s making the rounds in legal circles is Frank Fina, chief deputy attorney in the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office and former federal prosecutor.
A resident of Selinsgrove, Fina served as a Union County assistant district attorney in the early 1990s.
A recent call to his Harrisburg office to confirm any interest he may have in the Snyder County job was not returned.
News
DA job interest growing
- News
-
-
Firefighter union may char pacts
LEWISBURG — Paid members of the William Cameron Engine Company have voted to unionize under the International Association of Fire Fighters, a move believed to stem from internal tension between paid and volunteer members of the department, according to various sources.
-
M-W rule on drug testing is area’s boldest
MIDDLEBURG — Midd-West is the only school district in the Central Susquehanna Valley that requires students interested in participating in extra-curricular activities to agree to submit to random drug testing.
-
New shelter exec gets busy
When Cathy Teisher stepped down as executive director of Haven Ministries, in March, Pamela Steffen stepped up.
-
Tax boost could bring $120G pad
The Lewisburg Area School District will seek a 3.2 percent real estate tax increase for the 2012-13 school year, the maximum allowed under the index, under a proposed budget now available for public comment.
-
Fire has burned beneath Centralia for 50 years
CENTRALIA — Fifty years ago on Sunday, a fire at the town dump ignited an exposed coal seam, setting off a chain of events that eventually led to the demolition of nearly every building in Centralia — a whole community of 1,400 simply gone.
-
'To Do': Montandon Community Days
MONTANDON - Montandon Community Days will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 26 along Railroad Street.
-
California’s Coronado named nation’s best beach
CORONADO, Calif. (AP) — Like a Hollywood star, Coronado’s 1.5 mile-long beach literally sparkles, thanks to the mineral mica glinting in its sand.
That’s one of the reasons why Coronado — flanked by the iconic hotel featured in Marilyn Monroe’s 1958 film “Some Like It Hot” — has been named the No. 1 beach in the United States in the 2012 survey by “Dr. Beach” professor Stephen P. Leatherman of Florida International University. -
Typical CEO made $9.6M last year, AP study finds
Profits at big U.S. companies broke records last year, and so did pay for CEOs.
-
Barnstorming cattle badger citizens for beer
BOXFORD, Mass. (AP) — Police say a roving group of cows crashed a small gathering in a Massachusetts town and bullied the guests for their beer.
-
'A Day in Towne' tradition draws crowds to Boalsburg
May 25--For the 148th year, Boalsburg will be the gathering place for regional families to remember all ranks of Armed Forces veterans.
-
Fired Pa. president gets more time to clear office
CALIFORNIA, Pa. (AP) — A judge has canceled a hearing to determine whether California University of Pennsylvania president Angelo Armenti can remove his personal property from his former office, because state officials have given him more time to do so.
- Weird crime of the week: Peddler in pickup scams bargain-hunting meat seeker
- More News Headlines
-
Firefighter union may char pacts
