Compiled by Amanda Golden
Ten years ago, September 18, 1998
TASD Wins Devon Legal Ruling
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Accepts Part Of Devon/FMS Case
After months of getting battered in the legal system during the John G. Black/Devon case, the Tyrone Area School District finally had a legal decision go its way on Thursday.
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Bernard Markowitz moved part of the case into his court, which could allow Tyrone and 49 other school districts and municpalities to have a better chance of recouping more of their lost investments.
In his ruling, Judge Markovitz agreed with the 50 clients’ arguments that Black’s firms, Devon Capital Management Inc. and Financial Management Sciences Inc., should be forced into Chapter 7 liquidation.
But it’s unknown at this point whether Devon trustee Richard L. Thornburgh will appeal Judge Markovitz’s ruling.
Tyrone and the other clients pushed their case in the Bankruptcy Court after losing a bid in U.S. District Court to gain a better settlement.
Thursday’s court ruling changes the rules to favor the clients — like Tyrone — with bigger losses. U.S. District Court has no mechanism for Black’s clients to go after each other to recoup losses, bu t bankruptcy court does.
‘The trustee in bankruptcy will be able to pursue taint claims,” said Richard Finberg, the lawyer for the three school districts that sought the move: Tyrone, Bald Eagle Area and South Butler County school districts.
“It does allow us to make full discovery in the case,” explained Tyrone superintendent Dr. William N. Miller, “and look at the financial records regarding Devon and FMS.
Dr. Miller commented about the fact of Tyrone winning its first legal decision in the case: “The point is that this is a long, hard process. We need to do everything we can in this fraud case.”
The Black case created numerous levels of clients: in a basic sense, there were clients whose assets were pooled with others’ and those witn nonpooled accounts.
The pooled-account holders were mostly school districts and municipalities investing money raised through construction-bond sales, and they lost 48 percent of their money.
Those with nonpooled accounts lost 5 percent. They ranged from O’Hare Airport in Chicago to the Harrisburg Water and Sewer Authority and included some school districts.
At issue is an estimated $7.8 million to $10 million in so-called “tainted” funds, which is money that Black moved from pooled accounts to unpoolcd accounts, apparently to create the illusion of earnings.
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Seventy-five years ago, September 20, 1933
Hagerman wins big victory for Burgess
School Director Contest May Require Official Count
The battle of ballots that began yesterday will continue on through September, October, up to the election day on Tuesday, November 7. Approximately eighteen hundred votes were cast in the seven wards of Tyrone, showing that about one third of the people registered in the seven wards exercised their right of American citizenship. In the seven wards of the borough, there are registered 5075 of this number 3,275 remained at home.
The big battle in the borough was on Burgess and School Director. In this contest, the present chief executive of the municipaility, Raymond A. Hagerman, won on the Republican ticket by a large majority and also received the monimation on the democratic ticket.
The school directors nominated ont eh Republican ticket were the present officials, A. V. Vanneman and F. C. Farrand. While Jesse S. Stewart and Walter F. Stonebraker were nominated on the Democratic ticket.
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One hundred twenty-five years ago,
September 20, 1883
Warriorsmark Notes
A little girl of W. Crain, of Scotia, aged about three years, fell from her bed on Saturday morning last, breaking her neck and causing instant death.
A small child of C. Mumberg, aged four months, died on Sunday morning of cholera infantum.
Miss Blanche Leberd, of McConnellstown, was visiting friends in this place last week.
Scott Buck while engaged in drilling grain one day last week, was in the act of unhitching his team when the horses became frightened and ran away, making a complete wreck of the drill.
S. W. M. Peters has opened his new store room at Dry Hollow mines, and is putting in a full stock of goods, an is now ready to supply the men employed at the mines and the public in general. Wm. Coyner is clerk in charge of this store. Mr. C. is as good, jovial fellow as one might wish to meet.
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One hundred fifty years ago,
September 14, 1858
Local Department
The Camp Meeting of the Birmingham Circuit, which is now being held near this place, is quite large and well attended. There are about thirty tents on the ground, an quite a number of ministers from a distance. Good order has thus far prevailed – except on Saturday evening when there seemed to be a disposition among some drunkin rowdies who came on the cars, from a distance, to raise a disturbance; we hope these unprincipled blackguards may be rewarded according to their deeds. Our Landlords are deserving of “honorable mention,” from the fact that they positively refused liquor to any and every man who was in the habit of getting drunk, or who manifested a desire to do so on this occasion.
