Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts Maria Casey demanded that Commissioners chairman Boots Hetherington open an investigation into an alleged July incident in the Courthouse parking lot.
Casey spelled out what she says happened on the morning of July 16 during the Public Comment portion of the Schuylkill County Commissioners meeting on Wednesday. But she also says a video exists that proves what she says is true.
I filed on Friday, as you all know, a formal complaint,” Casey said. “I want an immediate investigation into the actions that occurred on July 16th, 2020, by George Halcovage, when he tried to intercept these two victims.”
Clerk of Courts Demands Investigation Into Halcovage Parking Lot Incident
The alleged incident is one we spelled out previously, however one detail has changed. Rather than it being a rock embankment separating the lower and upper Courthouse parking lots, Casey said Wednesday it was a dirt embankment.
Either way, Casey says surveillance footage from that morning shows the embattled Halcovage scaling this embankment to get to the upper parking lot. His and other Commissioners’ parking spaces are located in a lower parking lot off Progress Avenue in Pottsville.
The reason he scaled this embankment, Casey claims, is to confront two of the women who claim they were harassed by Halcovage and have entered into lawsuit against the Schuylkill County Commissioner. Since the harassment allegations first came to light, Halcovage has maintained his innocence and promised to fight back.
“You know you’ve seen the video. Law enforcement’s seen the video,” Casey said, addressing Hetherington directly, via a Zoom call.
As if Halcovage “Dropped from the Sky”
However, Casey says Halcovage never got to the two women that morning. And that’s only because another Courthouse employee spotted him and intercepted him.
“He didn’t know where he came from. He thought he dropped from the sky,” Casey said during Wednesday’s meeting.
She thought Halcovage’s timing of this incident was quite fortuitous. Casey claims the two alleged victims were in a vehicle having a conference call with their attorney regarding the lawsuit they filed against him.
“How he knew they were going to be having that conference call is something we will find out,” she said. “But why he would try to initiate this very improper contact with these two victims, one of whom did meet with you Boots and again asked that he be banned.”
Investigation Demanded
Casey didn’t address Halcovage during her commentary on Wednesday. Instead, she pointed a finger of blame at Hetherington, whom she says is responsible for an ongoing cover-up of this incident, specifically, and of the entire Halcovage scandal.
The Clerk of Courts says one of the victims did meet with Hetherington and asked him to open an investigation into the incident in July.
To my knowledge, you did not institute any kind of report, any kind of investigation. Again, you squelched it,” Casey said to Hetherington. “The one victim spoke to me on Friday. She told me she feels beaten down by you and this administration. No woman should be afraid to come into this Courthouse. Ever. And you’ve created that environment here for all these women. This is such abhorrent, perverted behavior. And you just let it continue.”
Cover-up Afoot?
Casey continued to hound Hetherington during her comments on Wednesday, further accusing him of running cover for Halcovage throughout this scandal. She even mocked an oft-repeated Hetherington response that he’s used several times to try to prove he’s impartial in this fiasco.
Hetherington routinely brings up the fact that he has 3 daughters and wouldn’t want them working in an environment that Casey and Halcovage’s alleged victims claim is present at the Courthouse.
“Honestly, we don’t want to hear any more about your three daughters because you show a total lack of respect for women at the Courthouse by concealing and covering up this latest incident and I demand answers,” Casey said.
She added that it’s been nearly 2 months since this alleged incident happened. And Hetherington has apparently done nothing about it, including handing over the video to the state Attorney General who is apparently still investigating whether Halcovage committed any criminal acts in what he’s accused of doing at the Courthouse to several female employees.
Casey said it’s time to get a proper independent investigation started.
“I filed a formal complaint. I want it to go through HR. I want you to institute the proper process. And more importantly, you must have an independent investigation. Bring in independent people to look at this and to look at his latest predatory antics, which must end,” Casey said. “You’ve done nothing and this is a cover-up. You didn’t expect that we’d find out about it. And you’re just working with him at every turn to cover up these extremely improper and criminal actions. I’m expecting a quick response to my complaint that was filed last week. And I expect that it will proceed in the normal course.”
The “Tape”
And about that “tape” showing Halcovage scaling the embankment, she said, “You know there is an active Attorney General investigation. You did not provide that to the Attorney General. Again, part of the cover-up. Give that tape to the Attorney General. The Special Agent has not seen it and he’s entitled to see it.
Hetherington did as he normally does during these Public Comment sessions and waited for Casey to finish. He did not address anything she said and simply replied after her remarks, “Thank you for your comments.”
He then asked for a motion to adjourn Wednesday’s meeting. Halcovage made that motion and the show was over.
THE LATEST IN THE SCHUYLKILL COUNTY #METOO CASE:
- Halcovage Attorney: Don’t Convict in Court of Public Opinion
- Halcovage on Rock Climbing Adventures?
- Schuylkill County HR Director Resigns Amid Halcovage Saga
- Maria Casey Tells Taxpayers Halcovage Saga Could Cost Us Millions
- Casey Accuses Boots of Running Cover for Embattled Halcovage
- The Summer of George Halcovage (A Meme Story)
- Women Claiming to be Courthouse Employees Say They Don’t Feel Safe at Work
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The Guy Who Wishes You Would
October 30, 2020 at 12:00 pm
“Hetherington routinely brings up the fact that he has 3 daughters and wouldn’t want them working in an environment that Casey and Halcovage’s alleged victims claim is present at the Courthouse.”
I see what you’re trying to do here, largely because it’s laughably simplistic and wrought with indefensibly transparent elements of deception and apologist rhetoric – that means you’re a short-minded sociopath who can’t help but engage in ineffective attempts at defending the worst sort of people, but….
The “gentleman” in question supports an institution that pretends to admire a man who has settled over 20 legal actions against his person for sexual assault. Meaning he paid off more women than you have ever even thought about disappointing sexually because he is an admitted sexual predator. One who makes a mockery of both the legal system and the moral values his party also pretends to hold dear. One who joked about his sexual desires towards his own daughter. One who also settled a lawsuit with his ex-wife over the matter of forced intercourse and assault. One who we’ve all heard say that his Daddy’s mob-gifted wealth entitles him to physically assault any woman he wants.
Now, I’m not a rocket surgeon, but it stands to reason that anyone with daughters who embraces an institution that ignores this has a clear and shameful disregard for human decency and absolutely NO right to pretend to care one bit about his offspring.
As such, please be aware that your use of his open admittance that, despite his role as a publicly elected official, he has an utter indifference towards fostering an environment where his 3 daughters don’t have to wonder why Daddy is willing to sell his soul and their virtue to the idea that their safety and metal well-being is a commodity is beyond embarrassing.
And while I do indeed appreciate you making plain the fact that monsters like him empower monsters like you, you can take your pathetic attempt at indignation and shove it directly up the business end of your digestive system.
Your ilk are nothing short of liars and cowards, and your attempts to put righteous lipstick on your hate-filled pig ain’t what “great” looks like.
Canary Commenter
December 8, 2020 at 8:38 pm
None of what you say makes a lot of sense.