Richards, Pasonick begin serving prison sentences

Doug Richards, the former Luzerne County human resources director jailed for helping set up a dummy corporation to secure a county contract, began serving his sentence late last month at a federal medical center outside Boston.

Richards, 48, pleaded guilty in December 2010 and started serving the 15-month sentence April 25. He remained free while he appealed the sentence, claiming a federal judge gave him extra time because he was a “high-ranking official.” The U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the appeal in March.

Richards’ attorney, William Ruzzo, did not return a telephone message. Court records did not indicate whether Richards is being treated for a medical condition at the facility, which is located on the grounds of the decommissioned Fort Devens in Ayer and Shirley, Mass.

The Federal Medical Center Devens is an administrative facility housing male offenders requiring specialized or long-term medical or mental health care, according to the Bureau of Prisons. It also has a satellite camp housing minimum-security inmates.

Michael Pasonick, the engineer who bribed an unidentified school board member, is serving his 12-month sentence at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Pasonick, 70, reported to jail April 30, according to prison records.