
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 25, 1990                   TAG: 9004250275
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B4   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NORFOLK                                LENGTH: Medium

JUDGE'S DEFENSE: CLERK MADE CHANGE

The jury in the trial of Norfolk General District Judge Joseph H. Campbell got two explanations Tuesday - either a traffic ticket was altered to help a friend, or the change was caused by a clerk's misunderstanding.

Campbell, 61, is accused of ordering the alteration of a traffic summons issued to then-Virginia Beach Commonwealth's Attorney Paul A. Sciortino. Computer records of the ticket also were altered.

"Judge Campbell is not denying that the changes occurred, but that they came out of a pure misunderstanding by clerks and not that Judge Campbell said, `Change that,' " said Wayne Lustig, the judge's attorney.

Campbell faces two counts of altering public records and one count of malfeasance in office.

Special prosecutor William Dolan III told the jury that Sciortino, in the midst of a heated re-election campaign, had a traffic accident March 20, 1989, in downtown Norfolk. The ticket had his correct name and set the court date for April 12.

Four days later, Sciortino and his attorney met with Campbell in his chambers, where Sciortino pleaded guilty to making an illegal left turn and paid a $30 fine plus court costs. Dolan said that minutes after Sciortino left, Campbell had a deputy clerk change the spelling of Sciortino's name to Schortinoe and switched his first and middle name on computer records.

A copy of the summons also was altered to conform to the new spelling.

"Those records are public records. . . . People can look at them, including reporters. What happened is clear," Dolan said.

Once the matter became public, Sciortino withdrew from the race.

by CNB