Misconduct

HARRISBURG - Former State Rep. Bill DeWeese appealed his corruption conviction Tuesday, alleging judicial errors and prosecutorial misconduct. In the appeal, filed in Superior Court, DeWeese (D., Greene) contended that the trial judge erred by limiting the number of defense witnesses who testified and refusing to let his lawyer challenge a prosecution witness' credibility. He also said prosecutors committed misconduct at his preliminary hearing by selectively reading parts of his grand jury testimony.

RE: THE ARTICLE on police misconduct: All police violations or infractions don't automatically warrant discipline. The officer's whole file, personality and overall service to the department must be factored in. And many infractions are not criminal acts. James Dixon Philadelphia

Chief Inspector Anthony DiLacqua, who heads the Philadelphia Police Department's Internal Affairs Bureau, is leaving to become director of security at SugarHouse Casino. "It's tough to walk away from something I've loved so long," DiLacqua, 50, a 29-year veteran, said yesterday. "We have a saying that this is the ticket to the greatest show on earth. You see people at their best and their worst. You get to make a difference . . . but it's been 29 years and I think it's time to do something new. I'm looking for new challenges.

Rick Tocchet will play for the Flyers tonight against the Chicago Blackhawks, even though he has three game misconduct penalties, and NHL Rule 29 (e) appears to mandate a one-game suspension for any player who compiles three such penalties. "In regular league games, any player who incurs a total of three game misconduct penalties shall be suspended automatically for the next league game of his team," the rule states. The catch, according to NHL statistician Bennie Ercolani, is that despite the wording of the rule, the league differentiates between types of game- misconduct penalties.

I'D LIKE TO to speak out for all of those who've had time taken out of their lives due to alleged crimes (committed or not committed), and about the articles on the police narcotics unit and some of its officers under investigation for alleged misconduct. It takes store owner allegations of these acts to get attention. I can explain that firsthand, just like thousands of others who experienced unpleasant situations with these officers. Their altered reports and testimony and unjustified behavior has been going on for too long.

What will it take before Pennsylvania adopts an effective method of discipling judges? Judges taking cash in unmarked envelopes from union bosses? A judge fleeing to Slovenia rather than face prison after being convicted of bribery? Judges suspended or removed from office continuing to receive their pension? Supreme Court justices bickering and fighting among themselves while an accused murderer goes free because of court delays? Believe it or not, we've seen all that here in Pennsylvania.

Back in February when the Supreme Court suspended 15 Philadelphia judges from their duties amid allegations of corruption, it allowed them to continue drawing their salaries. And they have been - for the last six months. That's about $32,500 apiece for the 12 Common Pleas judges and $31,500 for the three Municipal Court judges during the period in which they've done no work. (One of the 12, Joseph P. McCabe was cleared of misconduct charges and reinstated last month.) Enough's enough.

WASHINGTON - A federal judge on Wednesday rejected arguments from four attorneys who prosecuted Sen. Ted Stevens to keep private a report that reveals details of their mishandling of the case, but said he would not hold them criminally responsible for their "ill-gotten verdict. " U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan ordered that a 500-page report into the Justice Department's botched corruption case against Stevens be released March 15, along with any written objections the attorneys targeted in the investigation wish to include.

Vancouver Canucks forward Todd Bertuzzi's 10-game suspension was upheld by the NHL yesterday, while Colorado Avalanche forward Scott Parker was banned for two games. The suspensions will cost Bertuzzi $118,556.70, and Parker $6,055.84 in lost salaries. Bertuzzi's suspension was automatic after he got a game misconduct for leaving the bench and starting a fight during the third period of the Canucks' 4-0 win over Colorado on Saturday night. He came on the ice after Vancouver's Jarkko Ruutu received a major penalty and game misconduct for kneeing Stephane Yelle, and Parker began throwing punches at Vancouver's Ed Jovanovski.

Lawyers for reputed mobsters Raymond "Long John" Martorano and Albert Daidone fired their first legal shots yesterday to try to prevent a retrial in the 1980 murder of Roofers Union leader John McCullough. During a pretrial hearing, the lawyers accused Mayor Rendell - when he was district attorney - of assigning Assistant DA Barbara Christie to prosecute their clients in the first trial even though he knew she had been admonished in court five times in previous cases. Martorano and Daidone were convicted in 1984 of hiring hit man Willard Moran to gun down McCullough, but the state Superior Court accused Christie of misconduct and overturned the convictions.