3rd judge takes plea in federal ticket-fix case
A third Pennsylvania judge has taken a plea in a federal ticket-fixing case in which nine jurists who work in Philadelphia traffic court and suburban courts were charged.
Federal prosecutors said senior Traffic Court Judge Fortunato N. Perri Sr., 76, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, the Philadelphia Business Journal reports. He could get as much as six months in jail when he is sentenced in June, although no jail time is also possible.
Perri also got freebies from home contractors, the Inquirer reports.
Co-defendants H. Warren Hogeland, a senior magisterial district judge in Bucks County, and Kenneth Miller, a senior district judge in Delaware County, admitted last month that they gave breaks on city traffic citations to friends, family and those with whom they worked and the politically connected. They will be sentenced in May.
Perri admitted that he received free auto repairs and towing, as well as free seafood and videos, in exchange for fixing tickets.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Traffic ticket-fixing charges levied against ‘the whole court’ in Philadelphia”
ABAJournal.com: “Judge pleads guilty to fixing traffic tickets; cases against 8 others still pending”
