Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf says county detectives have criminally charged Lebanon constable James M. Drahovsky, 70, with recklessly endangering another person after investigators concluded he left a loaded .40-caliber handgun in a magisterial district judge’s public restroom.
Pennsylvania constables provide services for the judiciary and lawyers, including serving legal papers and carrying out judicially-ordered evictions.
Charges filed by Chief County Detective Jonathan Hess allege that a member of the public visiting Magisterial District Judge Aurelis Figueroa’s office at 502 State Drive, Lebanon, discovered the Glock 27 in the unlocked restroom on Monday afternoon, Aug. 26.
Figueroa shares the building, which was open to the public at the the time, with fellow city MDJ Maria Dissinger. Drahovsky, who has been a constable for about 20 years, provides constable services to both judges.
Hess Graf said in a news release that “the restroom is in the lobby of the building and accessible to any member of the public. Staff need not unlock the restroom nor is it behind an otherwise private door. Drahovsky exited the restroom and left the building thereafter. Approximately an hour and a half later, a member of public entered the same restroom and discovered Drahovsky’s firearm. The citizen notified staff who called the Lebanon City Police.”
In his affidavit of probable cause detailing the allegations, Detective Hess said that another constable, Tammy Boyer, was in the building and secured the weapon before turning it over to Lebanon County sheriff’s deputies.
Hess also alleges that Drahovsky was caught on office surveillance video entering the restroom at 1:37 p.m., wearing a clearly visible handgun. He is seen exiting seven minutes later without a gun, and that “[a]t least ten civilians, including a child that appears to be under 10, visit[ed] the office and the public lobby portion that allows unrestricted access to the bathroom during the timeframe when Constable Drahovsky’s handgun was left unattended.”
According to Hess, a check of the gun’s serial number showed that it was registered to Drahovsky.
Monday’s incident is not the first time Drahovsky has been accused of misbehavior in the same MDJ offices. According to a published PennLive report, Drahovsky and another constable got into a loud altercation there in September 2012, leading to disorderly conduct charges against both. Drahovsky alleged that the other constable physically assaulted him, leading to an additional charge of harassment. No disposition of those charges was reported.
Upcoming court proceedings
Recklessly endangering another person is a second-degree misdemeanor under the Pennsylvania Crimes Code, punishable by up to two years in jail and a maximum $5,000 fine.
The charge against Drahovsky is filed before MDJ Dissinger, and a summons has been mailed to him, requiring his appearance for a preliminary arraignment, where bail will be set. An arrest warrant has not been issued.
As with all criminal defendants in all prosecutions, Drahovsky is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
A representative of Dissinger’s office told LebTown on Aug. 29 that Dissinger has disqualified herself from further proceedings in the case. A preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 10 at 8 a.m. before a magisterial district judge who has yet to be named.
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