Judge Gus Kwidis of Beaver, PA; ethical ogre

The state of Texas presented Jeanine Larussa Howard with a law license in 1970 after he graduated from the University of Toledo Law School.

Jeanine succeeded in duping the voters in the Dallas area into electing her as a judge on the Criminal District Court in Dallas.

Former Gov. Tom Ridge was duped into appointing Gus as a Common Pleas Court Judge in 2001. Gus didn’t receive the appointment because he was the most qualified attorney in the Beaver County area, he received it because he had proven to be a reliable lackey for the local political hacks.

In one matter, Judge Kwidis presided over a foreclosure case involving widower Eileen Battisti’s home that was valued at $280,000. Eileen’s home was ordered sold because she owed $6.30 in interest.

Eileen asked Judge Kwidis to reverse the order for the sale of her home. Eileen told an Associated Press reporter that “I paid everything, I didn’t know about the $6.30. For the house to be sold just because of $6.30 is crazy.”

Judge Kwidis is paid a yearly salary of $175,000, which equates to an hourly wage of $90.00. Therefore, in the interest of justice Gus could have afforded to pay the $6.30 out of his own pocket. The $6.30 would have amounted to less than 5 minutes of his hourly wage.

Some will argue that the law was on Kwidis’ side; however, the law was never intended to be used as a bludgeon to punish someone. This is especially true in this case where a widower will loose her $280,000 home over a $6.30 debt.

Unfortunately, Judge Kwidis remains sitting on the bench in Beaver, Pennsylvania.