Cashman, Mychak to help cover for Bolton

SUNBURY - A senior magisterial district judge (MDJ) familiar with Northumberland County will return in March to cover proceedings in the Milton area.

The appointment of Senior MDJ Richard Cashman to fill Robert Bolton's seat was announced in a press release Tuesday, along with changes in preliminary hearing schedules in order to accommodate the loss of an assistant district attorney (ADA) because of county budget cuts.

Meanwhile, a request has also been approved to have Senior MDJ Michael Mychak, of Mount Carmel, cover Bolton's on-call schedule.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille approved a request from county President Judge Robert Sacavage to allow Cashman to cover the district court cases at District Court 08-3-02, effective March 1.

Bolton announced Jan. 17 he would be retiring at the end of February. Elected to his fourth six-year term in November, he has handled cases in the Milton area since March following the retirement of longtime Magisterial District Judge William Kear in January 2011.

Bolton, who did not give a reason why he was leaving office so soon after his re-election, previously served for many years as one of the magisterial district judges assigned to the Sunbury area.

Cashman is no stranger to the Northumberland County court system; he was assigned to the Sunbury district court office after the unexpected death of 49-year-old Carl Rice in late July. Attorney Benjamin Apfelbaum, Sunbury, was elected Nov. 8 to serve as magisterial district judge in Sunbury and assumed the office in January.

"The court has been very pleased with Senior MDJ Cashman's work and professionalism and is grateful that he has agreed to return to Northumberland County until a decision is made as to a permanent replacement," county court administrator Brandy L. Yasenchak said in the statement.

In addition to Apfelbaum and Bolton, the other two county MDJs are John Gembic III, of Shamokin, and Hugh Jones, of Mount Carmel.

Per state legislation, senior MDJs receive a salary of $522 per day they work.

Schedule changes

The press release also announced a new hearing schedule for the magisterial district judges in light of the Northumberland County Salary Board cutting one ADA position of District Attorney Tony Rosini's staff. ADA John Muncer was laid off, but has filed a grievance through his union.

"I believe it's important to have assistant district attorneys prosecute felony cases," Rosini said on Jan. 31, when Muncer was laid off. "Handling misdemeanors is also important, but given the staff cuts we have had, it is impossible to cover all cases."

In January, Rosini said he hoped various courts would accommodate his staff with scheduling so they can spend a half day at the district court level handling felony cases.

"This is not an ideal situation, but we are working to keep the criminal justice system functioning as smoothly as possible," he said. "Obviously, there will be repercussions from the cut of one of my staff. We will not be able to cover all cases and some cases will be lost as a result. At least we will have the time to handle the serious cases in an appropriate manner."

After discussions between Sacavage, Rosini, court administration and the Northumberland County Criminal Management Team, the president judge announced that all preliminary hearings will be held at the four offices on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, effective March 5.

Under the changes, Apfelbaum's Thursday morning hearings will move to Tuesday afternoons, and Jones's Wednesday hearings will move from morning to afternoon. Cashman's hearings in Milton will not change, staying on Wednesday mornings, as will Gembic's hearings on Tuesday mornings.

"This change will allow the current district attorney's staff to continue to cover preliminary hearings," Yasenchak said.

Deputy court administrator Kevin F. O'Hearn said the court would do its best under the circumstances.

"We are aware that the changes may cause a backlog of cases and other unforeseen issues, but due to the circumstances presented," he wrote, "we are trying to manage the entire court system in the most efficient, economical and practical way."