TimesLeader.com

5:04 AM

Ex-judges launch their attack

SCRANTON – Attorneys for former judges Michael Conahan and Mark Ciavarella launched their defense with a blistering attack Monday, filing dozens of pre-trial motions that include allegations of prosecutorial misconduct and bias by the trial judge.

5:06 AM

W-B Twp. fire chief a suspect in crash

PLAINS TWP. – Wilkes-Barre Township Fire Chief John Paul Yuknavich may be facing several citations stemming from a hit-and-run crash in a parking lot early Sunday morning.

5:10 AM

Developer: $30M project in Swoyersville now dead

SWOYERSVILLE – Borough officials on Monday night heard from the developer of the proposed $30 million West Ridge Acres residential expansion that the project is dead.

6:36 AM

Cops charge man with stealing coupons

PLAINS TWP. – A 76-year-old man was charged with stealing coupons from a newspaper and providing township police with a false name on Sunday.

1:40 AM

W-B schools replace Pizzella with Polakoski

WILKES-BARRE– The Wilkes-Barre Area School Board picked longtime Wilkes-Barre Township Councilman Gary Polakoski to fill the remainder of former board president Frank Pizzella’s term at a special meeting Monday.

1:40 AM

Luzerne County will reinstate 911 director job

Luzerne County Commissioners plan to hire someone to oversee the 911 department.

1:40 AM

Teen’s lawyers want trial in juvie court

WILKES-BARRE – A nurse at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility testified Monday that he did not believe Cody Lee, the 16-year-old charged with killing his great-grandfather in Lake Township, was suffering from hypothermia on Dec. 10.

1:30 AM

Richards, creditors to have hearing

WILKES-BARRE – Late payments in the bankruptcy of a former county official charged in the public corruption probe prompted an attorney in the case to seek its dismissal and remove the protection from creditors guaranteed under the proceedings.

1:40 AM

Environmental groups rip Delaware River dredging

The deepening of the Delaware River was derided by a trio of environmental groups as a power play by Pennsylvania and federal agencies to the detriment to New Jersey and the ability of individual states to have a say in what happens in their jurisdiction.

6:38 AM

Specter bill helps Hazleton

HAZLETON – The Delaware River’s dredge soon could become Hazleton’s treasure.

1:40 AM

Jay Leno is happy to be ‘home’ on ‘Tonight Show’

NEW YORK — Jay Leno had been absent from the nation’s TV screens for less than a month, but he returned Monday night with renewed purpose.

1:30 AM

Gotay found guilty in shooting death

WILKES-BARRE – A Luzerne County jury on Monday found a Tobyhanna man guilty of voluntary manslaughter and related drug charges in the December 2008 shooting death of 22-year-old Donald Spry.

1:40 AM

State praised for Route 115 work

BEAR CREEK TWP. – The safety of state Route 115 continues to be a topic of concern for the township supervisors after accidents on the steep, winding road claimed two lives earlier this year.

1:30 AM

Jackson Twp. fixes recycling

JACKSON TWP. – On Monday night, supervisors announced improvements in the recycling program and adopted two resolutions that could help the municipality be reimbursed for the cost of snow removal.

1:30 AM

Fairview Twp. snow-removal work lauded

FAIRVIEW TWP. -- Supervisors Monday noted that although overall costs from last week’s snowfalls are not yet in, the township roads department weathered the storm.

5:12 AM

Hazleton council exploring options for water system

HAZLETON – City council on Monday voted to hire – together with the city water authority board – an attorney to explore alternatives to the city taking over and selling off the local water system to a private company.

1:30 AM

Budget impasse brings furloughs

WASHINGTON — The federal government Monday began to furlough workers, while hundreds of thousands of jobless Americans nationwide braced for an end of their unemployment checks and health insurance benefits while doctors saw fees for treating Medicare patients decline — the result of a one-man roadblock for a Senate spending bill.

1:30 AM

Arrests don’t stop looting

CONCEPCION, Chile — Rescuers found signs of life in the wreckage of a 15-story building Monday as the world offered aid to victims of an earthquake that killed more than 700 people. Looters roamed the streets even after troops and police arrested dozens of people for violating a curfew.

1:30 AM

Some states may ban credit checks on job applicants

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — It’s hard enough to find a job in this economy, and now some people are facing another hurdle: Potential employers are holding their credit histories against them.

1:30 AM

Survey: 10 House Dems may switch health vote

WASHINGTON — Ten House Democrats indicated in an Associated Press survey Monday they have not ruled out switching their “no” votes to “yes” on President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, brightening the party’s hopes in the face of unyielding Republican opposition.

5:11 AM

International News brief

Rescue workers in dinghies cruised flooded streets on France’s Atlantic coast Monday, searching for people still trapped in their homes by storms that smashed through concrete sea walls and killed at least 62 people across Western Europe.

1:20 AM

Farmer fears fueled

PHILOMATH, Ore. — Organic farmers fear this year’s spring breezes will be carrying pollen from genetically altered sugar beets, which they say could render their crops worthless, and they hope to persuade a federal judge this week to halt the plantings nationwide.

1:20 AM

Complaint: TRL’s value disguised

WILKES-BARRE – Real estate sold in the deal for Transcontinental Refrigerated Lines in 2007 was inflated in a scheme by the former owners of the property to defraud company creditors, according to a complaint filed in connection with the hauler’s bankruptcy.

1:20 AM

Major indexes do best in more than a month

NEW YORK — Major stock indexes rose to their highest levels in more than a month Monday after corporate buyouts raised hopes about the economy.

1:20 AM

FNCB chief steps down

First National Community Bank announced Monday that J. David Lombardi unexpectedly resigned as CEO and director for personal health reasons. He will be replaced on an interim basis by Jerry A. Champi, who most recently served as senior executive vice president and retail/commercial division manager.

1:40 AM

Building Trust

The caption that ran with a picture of Harry Rothstein on Monday should have credited Mrs. Arlene Rothstein, Harry’s wife, for putting together the collage of Boy Scout memorabilia.