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	Ex-prosecutor's Sentence to Be Reviewed By Laurie Mason The Intelligencer April 6, 2009 http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/the_intelligencer/the_intelligencer_news_details/article/27/2009/april/05/ex-prosecutors-sentence-to-be-reviewed.html When former chief deputy district attorney Anthony Cappuccio came to court last month to plead guilty in a case involving sex, drugs and teenage boys, he didn't have to stand in a crowded courtroom with other criminals and tell his embarrassing story before a room full of strangers. Court officials scheduled his hearing on a day when other trials weren't on the docket. And although he's now on house arrest, Cappuccio was seen walking freely in downtown Doylestown last week, picking up a sandwich with his attorney during a recess in his divorce hearing at the Domestic Relations wing of the courthouse. Is Cappuccio - because of his connections in the courthouse - getting special treatment? Bucks County Judge Rea Boylan, who oversees the criminal division of the courts, said no. Although she refused to comment on Cappuccio's case specifically, she noted that she often pre-assigns complicated cases or hearings involving numerous victims to less-crowded days on the court schedule. "This is not an unusual phenomenon," she said. Harris Gubernick, the county's director of corrections, also denied that Cappuccio is being treated differently. Although people on house arrest usually must report to the county prison to be escorted, in handcuffs, by a deputy sheriff to and from court hearings, Gubernick said exceptions are made when a defendant's attorney makes arrangements in advance, and agrees to chaperone a client. He said Cappuccio's divorce lawyer did just that. "A lot of factors are taken into consideration, including whether the person is deemed to be a risk to the community. We look at these on a case-to-case basis," Gubernick said. Accusations that officials are bending the rules for one of their own are adding even more drama to a case that's still sending shockwaves through the Bucks legal community. On Monday, county Judge C. Theodore Fritsch Jr., who handed down Cappuccio's controversial sentence last month, will hear arguments in a rare prosecutorial motion to overturn the sentence. Senior Deputy Attorney General Marc Costanzo called Cappuccio's three- to 23-month house arrest sentence the equivalent of him "being grounded." Costanzo wants Fritsch to change Cappuccio's sentence to prison time, saying the victims and community were cheated by the judge's ruling. Cappuccio, 32, of Perkasie, was arrested in October, one month after a Richland Township police officer found him in a parked car with a 17-year-old boy. Both were half-dressed. Cappuccio admitted in court to having a consensual sexual relationship with the teen and to supplying him and two other teens with alcohol at rock concerts. He also admitted smoking marijuana with the teens, whom he had met through his work as a church youth group volunteer. A father of two, Cappuccio resigned from the DA's office when the charges came to light. He pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of children, corruption of minors, criminal use of a communication device and furnishing alcohol to minors. The sentence Fritsch imposed was within state sentencing guidelines. The judge had a wide range of choices under the law, from probation to as much as three years in prison. Among the issues being debated in the courthouse hallways since Cappuccio was sentenced was whether Fritsch should have disqualified himself from hearing the case, since he and the defendant worked together briefly in the DA's office, and the judge had overseen at least one of Cappuccio's jury trials. Fritsch and Cappuccio's defense attorney, Louis Busico, also shared an office for nearly a year in the late 1980s, when Busico was an assistant DA and Fritsch was a high-ranking prosecutor. Costanzo did not petition for Fritsch's removal before the case began, nor did he voice concerns when the judge asked, on the record, if either side had a problem with him hearing the case. Costanzo on Friday refused to comment on Fritsch's relationship with Busico, saying only that he did not perceive a conflict with Fritsch's involvement before the case began. Busico was less tight-lipped. "On Aug. 8, 1988, I was hired by Alan Rubenstein to be an assistant DA. Being new, I was placed in an office with a very senior member of the staff, Mr. Fritsch. I was an office mate of Mr. Fritsch for approximately eight months until it was determined that a newer assistant DA should be his office mate. All of that transpired more than 20 years ago. "I have never socialized with Mr. Fritsch and we remain nothing more than professional acquaintances. I appear before Judge Fritsch in the same fashion as I appear before other distinguished members of the bench who I've worked with in the past, such as Judge Gibbons and Judge Rubenstein. "To insinuate that my sharing of an office with this gentleman more than 20 years ago would cause anyone to be less than forthright and honorable in the courtroom is an insulting and patently absurd concept. I have appeared before Judge Fritsch in other matters and he has given my clients sentences of state prison, house arrest, county prison and probation," Busico said. Busico said that if people are going to draw conclusions about his relationship with people involved in the Cappuccio case, they should know that he and Costanzo grew up in the same neighborhood and, in fact, bumped into each other and chatted briefly at the Thanksgiving 2008 Father Judge High School football game. "I know Marc. I like Marc, and have the utmost respect for him. He is doing everything he can to prosecute this case ethically, and I am doing everything I can to defend my client ethically. Just because individuals are acquaintances or have a certain relationship does not mean that the integrity of the judicial system is affected." Shira Goodman, executive director of Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts, said that cases like Cappuccio's often raise eyebrows, because the public does not fully understand that - especially in a small, close-knit legal community like Bucks County's - it's very common for judges and lawyers to have professional ties. Although she was not involved with the Cappuccio case, Goodman said that it appears that Fritsch didn't break any rules. "The judge allowed himself to be challenged at the start of the hearing," she noted. "Judges are allowed to preside over cases where they know the attorneys. It is not always a conflict of interest." Bucks President Judge Susan Devlin Scott wouldn't comment on the Cappuccio case specifically, but said that court cases are handled differently for a variety reasons, and that a change in a schedule does not mean that someone is getting special treatment. "This is the sort of area where if you have a hard and fast rule, it doesn't work,'' she said. Laurie Mason can be reached at 215-949-4185 or lmason_court@yahoo.com. Accusations that officials are bending the rules for one of their own are adding even more drama to a case that's still sending shockwaves through the Bucks legal community.
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