Activists issue ‘citizens’ indictment
WAYNESBURG – Activists representing a grassroots reformist group visited state Rep. Bill DeWeese’s Waynesburg district office Wednesday morning to “indict” the House Majority Leader for his alleged involvement in a controversial bonus scandal. Gene Stilp of Harrisburg and Dennis Baylor of Hamburg, representing the Taxpayers and Ratepayers United PAC, arrived in front of DeWeese’s office in Stilp’s “Pink Pig Bus” to issue a symbolic “Citizens’ Indictment” to DeWeese.
The activists said they are issuing the documents to DeWeese and other legislative members connected to a controversial staff bonus scandal – referred to as “Bonusgate” – and other legislative members currently embroiled in investigations across the state.
“We are issuing these citizens’ indictments now because we are approaching the first year anniversary of the official filing date of the complaint that launched the ‘Bonusgate’ scandal investigation and the attorney general has not issued any indictments directly related to Bonusgate,” Stilp said.
Last year, State Attorney General Tom Corbett announced that his office would be conducting an expanding grand jury probe into allegations of illegal legislative bonuses to General Assembly employees.
Corbett is investigating whether Republicans and Democrats in the House and Senate handed out $3.6 million to staffers during 2005 and 2006 as a reward for work on campaigns and whether state resources were used for political purposes. Both are illegal.
No one has been charged in the bonus probe, but at least a dozen Democratic staffers have been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury handling the case in Harrisburg.
House Republicans also received subpoenas for personnel documents.
On Nov. 13, DeWeese forced seven of his top aides, including longtime chief of staff Michael Manzo, to resign after reviewing documents about to be turned over to Corbett.
Stilp and Baylor said Wednesday that said the grassroots group decided to issue the indictment to DeWeese because of his alleged role in the current bonus scandal as well as his involvement in a pension grab controversy in 2001 and a legislative pay raise issue in 2005.
“Bill DeWeese is always in the middle of every scandal that shakes the capital,” Stilp said. “We cannot afford to keep him as a leader…He has to step down from his leadership now. We are fed up, and that’s why we’re here today.”
The activists were met in the lobby of DeWeese’s Waynesburg office by staff member Mark McCurdy, who listened as Stilp read a list of reasons for the indictment, which he also provided to the media.
The list included the bonus scandal, political polling scandal, illegal pay raise, legislative perks, pension grab, misuse of state resources, no real reform, no real audits, maintaining hidden leadership accounts and excessive hiring.
McCurdy acknowledged that the office knew of the activists’ intentions to visit the office but offered no other comments regarding the visit.
Tom Andrews, DeWeese’s press secretary, said Wednesday that neither his office nor DeWeese would offer any comment on the symbolic “indictment” or the visit from Stilp and Baylor.
Stilp said the two men would also be traveling in the bus to other parts of the state to issue similar documents to other legislators, including Sen. Gerald Lavalle in Beaver County and state Rep. Sam Smith in Jefferson County, as well as Sen. Vince Fumo and House Speaker Emeritus John Perzel.
“It is time for a change,” Stilp said. “But it’s ultimately up to the people to make that statement. The Commonwealth cannot survive this kind of leadership.”