mesothelioma

by Scott Rapp / The Post-Standard

John Chick stands Tuesday on the front porch of his home in Auburn, where he is under home confinement after being released from federal prison

 

Auburn, NY -- John Chick, who was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for his role in Cayuga County's asbestos scandal, is back home. Chick, 67, was released from prison on May 21 to a halfway house in Syracuse and is serving the last week of his mandated home confinement. His 15-month sentence, which was reduced by two months for good behavior, ends on Friday.

"It's good to be back home," Chick, of 1 Dexter Ave., said Tuesday.

Chick, a former county employee, was the only person charged with a crime in the scandal. In January 2007, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the federal Clean Air Act.

He admitted in court to supervising the illegal removal of an asbestos-laden boiler in February 2006 from the county Board of Elections building in Auburn.

Chick served one year of his sentence at a federal minimum-security camp attached to Canaan Penitentiary, a maximum security prison in Waymart, Pa., about 20 miles east of Scranton.

He was also ordered to pay $108,000 in restitution for the costs the county incurred in cleaning up the asbestos. To date, he has repaid $450 from his prison earnings, according to county Treasurer James Orman.

Chick said he plans to resume working as a self-employed contractor and spoke about the difficulties of being incarcerated.

Here are portions of an interview conducted Tuesday with Chick:

What was the hardest part of being in prison?

"The biggest thing was being away from family and friends. That was the hardest part, especially around the holidays. ... You wouldn't know it was Christmas, there's no Christmas tree there."

What did you do while you were in prison?

"I was busy most days. I taught inmates (basic courses) in electrical work, plumbing, carpentry and the principles of concrete. I graduated 42 inmates, but I told them don't call me back for the reunion."

You were 66 when you were put in prison. What went through your head when you arrived at the prison?

"I looked around and said, 'What am I doing here?' I never dreamed I would be in a federal prison for taking out a boiler."

Do you realize now what you did was wrong?

"I paid the price, I admitted my mistake. I admitted I took it out, but as far as anyone getting sick over it, that never entered my mind because I had been doing this for years before I went to work for the county ... . I did my job the way I was told to do it."

Are you angry, bitter?

"I was at first, no doubt about it. I was hurt ... and I felt betrayed.... But the bitterness is gone. I've got my kids, my grandchildren, that's what I'm looking forward to. But the one thing the county can't give back is the year I lost."

--Scott Rapp can be reached at srapp@syracuse.com or 253-7316.