SUNBURY - A convicted cocaine dealer in the Shamokin area was sentenced Monday afternoon to 15 1/4 to 35 years in state prison.
Northumberland County President Judge Robert B. Sacavage imposed the stiff sentence on Cornell B. Delvalle, 45, of Coal Township, who didn't seem phased by the judge's order that also requires him to pay approximately $1,000 in fines plus an assortment of costs.
Delvalle was found guilty Jan. 20 by a jury of 12 women of five counts each of possession with intent to deliver crack cocaine and delivery of crack cocaine, four counts of criminal use of a communications facility, and two counts of criminal conspiracy for allegedly delivering crack cocaine to informant Robert Santore, 49, of Ranshaw on Nov. 4, 2007, Nov. 24, 2007, Dec. 3, 2007 and Dec. 6, 2007 in the parking lot at McDonald's along Route 61, and Jan. 22, 2008, in the parking lot at Mt. Royal Mini-Mart at Ranshaw.
The defendant was found not guilty of one count of criminal use of a communication facility relating to the incident on Jan. 22, 2008.
His wife, Diane (Reichwein) Delvalle, 35, was found guilty of two counts of possession with intent to manufacture or deliver a controlled substance and criminal conspiracy relating to the incidents on Nov. 4, 2007, and Dec. 6, 2007. Mrs. Delvalle, who is free on $80,000 bail, is scheduled to be sentenced by Sacavage on May 14. She is represented by Attorney Michael Morrone of Williamsport.
All the charges were filed by Coal Township Detective Jeff Brennan, who was pleased with the sentence and hopes it sends a strong message to drug dealers throughout the area.
Delvalle smiled throughout the legal proceeding and exchanged friendly gestures with approximately 15 family members and friends, including his wife and mother, who came to support him. He strutted into the courtroom in his orange county prison shirt and pants, sneakers and a white sweatshirt with his feet shackled. As he entered, one family yelled to him that she loved him, to which he replied, "I love you too."
He also shared some laughs with his attorney, Michael Rudinski of Williamsport, as they waited for Sacavage to begin the legal proceeding.
Shortly after the judge called the court to order, he requested a recess that lasted 45 minutes to clarify the amount of cocaine involved in the drug transactions that weighed between 2.4 and 2.8 grams. Northumberland County Assistant District Attorney Michael Toomey, the prosecutor in the case, said because the cocaine weighed less than 3 grams, it lowered the gravity score for the offenses, which had to be taken into consideration before sentencing.
Both attorneys along with Northumberland County Adult Probation Officer Mark Weir attended the conference in the judge's chambers to discuss the weight of the cocaine.
After court resumed, Jerry Connelly, a minister who has met with Delvalle at the county prison since his incarceration in January, and Delvalle's mother, Elizabeth Delvalle, of New Jersey, testified on behalf of the defendant.
Connelly asked Sacavage for leniency in his sentence for the sake of Delvalle's children.
Delvalle's mother, who traveled to the sentencing with a group of family members and friends from New Jersey, also requested the judge to have mercy on her son. The defendant's mother, who used a cane to walk to the judge's bench to testify, then kissed her son before returning to her seat in the courtroom.
When asked by Sacavage if he had anything to say before sentencing, the defendant said he'd like to receive the same deal Santore got for cooperating with police and the district attorney's office as an informant.
Just as he did at the trial, Rudinski maintained that Santore should have been the one arrested for trafficking crack cocaine out of his garage in Ranshaw. He also asked the judge to have the sentences run concurrent rather than consecutive to each other.
Some sentences on the charges ran consecutive while others ran concurrent. Some of the charges merged with others for sentencing purposes.
Rudinski also requested the judge to grant his client credit for prison time (217 days) already served between September 2008 and February 2009, and Jan. 20, 2012, to the present. The judge granted Rudinski's request during sentencing.
Toomey said there was a drug epidemic in the area and said it was important to send a message to drug users to stay out of Northumberland County.
He said a pre-sentence investigation determined Delvalle's criminal record score to be a 5. Toomey noted the defendant had been arrested for three felonies (burglary, robbery and assault of a police officer) in New Jersey in the 1980s and 1990s.
Delvalle was found not guilty of a firearms offense in Northumberland County in 2005. He was convicted of a drug paraphernalia charge in 2007 in Northumberland County, but that conviction was overturned on an appeal to the Superior Court.
Before imposing sentence, Sacavage said, "The jury is the voice of the community and we must maintain the integrity of the jury system. Drugs are a scourge on society and they diminish the quality of life in a community."
Delvalle didn't display much emotion as Sacavage recited each of the sentences on the charges that total 15 1/4 to 35 years in state prison. Before leaving the courtroom, Delvalle smiled at his family members and friends before strutting back downstairs to a holding cell at the courthouse to await transport by deputy sheriffs to the county jail, where he has been held in lieu of $100,000 cash bail since his conviction.
Diane (Reichwein) Delvalle's daughter, Stormie Birster, was the most vocal person in the courtroom as the sentence was imposed. At one point, she could be heard yelling, "Wow." Birster also started crying and began calling everyone "scum bags" as she glanced at police and prosecutors in the courtroom.
Cornell Delvalle's mother added, "God will judge all of you."
Several other members of Delvalle's family claimed the sentence was too harsh.
Sheriff Chad Reiner, who employed tight security at the legal proceeding, said there were no disturbances inside or outside the courthouse at the conclusion of the sentencing.
Rudinski said he plans to appeal the sentence within 30 days to the Superior Court. "There are a lot of things open for appeal with this case," he said.
The longtime defense attorney stated, "Other than a murder case, this is the stiffest penalty imposed on a defendant that I can recall in my 29 years in the profession."
Rudinski's request for appeal bail for his client, which was opposed by Toomey, was denied by Sacavage.
Toomey commended Brennan and other police officers involved in the case.
Santore previously pleaded guilty to two counts of manufacturing with intent to deliver a controlled substance filed by Shamokin Cpl. Bryan Primerano. He also pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal conspiracy filed by Brennan.
Santore, who testified against Delvalle and his wife at their January trial, is scheduled to be sentenced by Sacavage on April 30. He is represented by Attorney Peter Campana of Williamsport.