By Justin Strawser
The Daily Item
WILLIAMSPORT — A Northumberland County inmate whose 2009 federal lawsuit against the lockup was tossed earlier this month blames Warden Bruce Kovach, records supervisor Mark Ferguson and the county prison board members for delays in his legal filings.
In a new federal lawsuit filed July 21 in the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Nathan Reigle, 38, imprisoned at the State Correctional Institution at Coal Township on new theft charges filed June 4, has named Kovach, Ferguson and the county prison board members Commissioners Stephen Bridy, Vinny Clausi and Rick Shoch, Sheriff Robert Wolfe, District Attorney Ann Targonski and Controller Christopher Grayson as defendants, claiming the collective group’s policy and procedures denied him the ability to do legal research, file appeals and meet deadlines.
Reigle pinpoints the violations between April 21 and July 16, but the federal judge tossed the case because Reigle had not made any filings in his federal lawsuit since August 2014.
Bridy, the prison board’s chairman, and Kovach withheld comment due to the issue being ongoing litigation.
The warden told him there was a paging system, but Reigle claimed it was ineffective because law library doesn’t produce material by request in the state prison where inmates are housed due to the county prison being ravaged by a fire on Jan. 14.
Reigle claims Ferguson denied him and other inmates rights under the Post Conviction Relief Act, which allows inmates to appeal their convictions. He says Ferguson failed to produce or send orders faxed between May 7 and July 15.
Kovach also denied inmates outside fresh air and exercise outside the cell, the inmate claimed.
Reigle said he wrote numerous grievances about the problems, but he was not relieved.
Reigle is seeking compensatory damages in the amount of $1,000 against each defendant, an injunction to eliminate the policies, procedures and practices that led to the lawsuit and any punitive damages the court finds appropriate.
Reigle, who is involved in several legal cases against the county, filed a federal lawsuit Sept. 2, 2009, for unspecified damages against the county prison and officials for allegedly denying him psychiatric, dental and general medical care. Reigle was in the lockup in 2007 for burglary-related charges.
U.S. District Judge Yvette Kane ordered the lawsuit closed due to multiple delays.
Reigle had not made any filings since August 2014, Kane said. He was released from prison in February and failed to inform the court of his new address or whereabouts.
Reigle’s repeated delays and failure to adequately respond to discovery requests have prejudiced the defendants by prolonging the litigation. He also established a history of dilatoriness through his repeated delays, Kane said.
Reigle was charged by Shamokin Patrolman Nathan Rhodes with three misdemeanor counts of theft from a motor vehicle, conspiracy to commit theft and loitering/prowling at night related to an incident in Shamokin. He has been in the state facility as a county inmate since May 7 due to violating his parole in light of the new charges.
He is scheduled for a pre-trial conference at 9:15 a.m. Aug. 14 in front of Judge Charles Saylor.
Reigle has been imprisoned as a county inmate in the state facility since May 7.