Pa. judge pleads guilty in bribe case

SCRANTON, Pa., July 23 (UPI) -- A former Pennsylvania judge pleaded guilty to a corruption charge for accepting bribes from the owner of two detention centers.

Michael Conahan, a former Luzerne County judge, pleaded guilty in Scranton to racketeering conspiracy, one of 48 counts he was indicted on last fall in connection with alleged payoffs from the owner of two juvenile detention facilities used by the county.

Conahan, 58, could be sentenced to 20 years in prison.

The plea comes as another ex-judge, Mark Ciavarella, 60, prepares for trial in the case.

The Times Leader newspaper in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., said Ciavarella and Conahan were accused of pocketing $2.8 million in the case.