Panel seeking testimony from at least 2 district employees
By Kathleen Brady Shea, Managing Editor, The Times
Acting Superintendent Angelo Romaniello (front) listens during Tuesday night’s school board meeting. Behind him is attorney Robert J. Donatoni.
The District Attorney’s investigation into possible improprieties in the Coatesville Area School District will now receive the benefits of a grand jury, law-enforcement sources said Thursday.
Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan had no comment on the involvement of a grand jury, a process that is typically shrouded in secrecy. He acknowledged last month that a criminal probe had been underway before he ordered the seizure of cell phones and other records from the district after offensive, racially-charged text messages surfaced between former Superintendent Richard W. Como and former Athletic Director James Donato.
In copies of the texts obtained by The Times, Acting Superintendent Angelo Romaniello makes a disparaging comment about the weight of Acting Assistant Superintendent Teresa Powell, but he does not appear to engage in racist remarks. However, Powell, who brought the texts to public attention along with Abdallah Hawa, the district’s director of technology, contends otherwise, and they have urged his ouster.
Samuel C. Stretton, who represents Hawa and Powell, said his clients had both received subpoenas Wednesday and were ordered to appear with appropriate documentation before the grand jury in West Chester next week. Stretton said they also received a letter from Romaniello Wednesday night informing employees that no documentation should be removed from the school district.
“I told them [Powell and Hawa] to show the letter to the D.A. and let him sort this out,” Stretton said. “This is getting ridiculous.” Stretton said he was pleased that a grand jury was being used. “Maybe we can get to the bottom of this mess,” he said.
Robert J. Donatoni, a West Chester attorney who represents Romaniello and attended Tuesday night’s board meeting, would neither confirm nor deny that his client had received a subpoena. “I was engaged by Dr. Romaniello some time ago to advise and guide him on those matters that are outside of the scope of the school district’s solicitor,” Donatoni said. “Dr. Romaniello has always been willing to cooperate with the district attorney’s investigation and will continue to do so in the future.
Investigators typically employ the services of a grand jury because of its confidentiality and its ability to compel testimony and documents. Grand juries generally operate for a period of time and may investigate a variety of cases.
It is known that a grand jury was operating in Chester County in May when Hogan announced that the District Attorney’s Office was the second prosecutor’s office in the state to utilize a new indicting grand jury process for three Coatesville murder defendants. Instead of a preliminary hearing, the three men were indicted under a provision reinstated by Pennsylvania in late 2012 to prevent witness intimidation, Hogan said.
…and Sam Stretton is a well known attorney for criminal defense work.
I’m not sure but I don’t believe racial slurs are a criminal offense in Pennsylvania. It appears that the grand jury predates knowledge of text messages with alleged racial slurs. And that while the grand jury may now include those racially charged text messages, they are not the focus of the grand jury. And that possible criminal activity concerning the school district is one aspect of the grand jury. Is my assumption correct?
You are correct: Racial slurs are unconscionable but not illegal, and the D.A.’s probe definitely predates the texts. It is not as clear – but probably irrelevant in the long run – whether the grand jury’s involvement in investigating the district predated the texts.