Guccini is candidate for county judge

Greentown - Steven R. Guccini, a lifelong resident of Greentown and Paupack, announced his candidacy for Pike County Judge this week. The state legislature approved a second judge for the county, effective in Jan. 2008 with the primary election being held in May 2007 and the general election in November. “I believe my many years as a prosecutor, as well as other positions I’ve held within Pike County, uniquely qualify me as the most experienced candidate to serve as Judge during this period of rapidly expanding growth,” says Guccini, who served as Pike County Assistant District Attorney for 12 years, during the 1980’s and 1990’s. Guccini’s record of public service includes extensive trial and appellate experience, and dedication to children and youth issues such as child abuse prevention, custody and divorce matters. As part of his duties with the district attorney’s office he initiated and led the Pike County Child Abuse Task Force, which is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of all child abuse cases in Pike County. Those cases required Guccini to work closely with the State Police and local law enforcement officers and to spend a great deal of time meeting with children and preparing them for court. He then tried the cases to juries and did all of the appeal work. Guccini has also prosecuted many other kinds of criminal cases. He was a member of the Pennsylvania District Attorney’s Association and a member of the Child Abuse Task Force for that organization. “The family law side of the court, which includes custody and divorce matters, has grown dramatically, along with all of the emotional and psychological issues those cases cause for children,” adds Guccini, who is a Pennsylvania Supreme Court Certified Custody Mediator and a member of the Association for Conflict Resolution. He has served for more than 10 years as a Court Appointed Custody Hearing Officer, Mediator and Divorce Master. Guccini’s commitment to Pike County is evident throughout his legal career and community volunteerism. In addition to his service with the District Attorney’s Office, he has served three years as Pike’s Assistant Public Defender, four years as Pike’s Assistant County Solicitor, primarily representing Children and Youth Services, three years as a Court Appointed Guardian Ad Litem for Children, and has also done work for several zoning hearing boards, including his current position as solicitor for the Delaware Township Zoning Hearing Board. He was also a lecturer for four years at Marywood University in Criminal Law and Procedure and for one year in State and Local Government. Guccini is a lector and eucharistic minister at St. Veronica’s Church, in Greentown, and a member of the Wallenpaupack Area Drug and Alcohol Task Force. He is a 1970 graduate of Wallenpaupack Area High School, a 1974 graduate of The Pennsylvania State University, and a 1979 graduate of the University of Miami School of Law where he received his Juris Doctorate. Guccini worked as an associate with William C. Gumble, Paupack, from 1979 to 1983, and has owned his own practice, based near Hawley, since 1984. He is the father of three children, Jeff, 28, a recent Penn State graduate; Sara, age 26, who graduated from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 2003 and then taught in the public schools in New Orleans for two years as part of the Teach for America program; and Jill, age 23, who graduated in May 2006 from Emerson College and resides in Brighton, Massachusetts.