In a statement to the court prior to Long Feather earrings sentencing, Mr. Ciavarella attacked the prosecution and Mr. Zubrod in particular, arguing they had sullied his reputation with "kids-for-cash" allegations, but failed to prove that he had taken money for incarcerating juveniles.
Mr. Ciavarella told Judge Kosik he agreed to plead guilty to fraud and tax charges in the case in 2009 based on the understanding that he would not admit to taking kickbacks or bribes for jailing juveniles.
"After my plea was presented to you for your consideration and acceptance or rejection, Attorney Zubrod made a statement to the press and uttered three words that changed the whole tenor of this case," Mr. Ciavarella told Judge Kosik. "As we all know those words were 'kids for cash.'
"Those three words made me the personification of evil. They wholesale feather earrings made me the Antichrist and the devil."
In subsequent public statements, Mr. Ciavarella denied portions of the government's case, leading Judge Kosik to reject the plea agreement, which would have sent Mr. Ciavarella and a co-defendant, former Judge Michael T. Conahan, to prison for about seven years.
Mr. Ciavarella said the "kids-for-cash" allegation drove him to fight the charges and demand a trial.
"I am about to lose the physical presence of my family, a loss which is almost unbearable to shoulder," Mr. Ciavarella told the court. "But I will never lose my will to fight against individuals who say I took cash to put children in placement when I never did."
During Mr. Ciavarella's trial in February, the government offered no peacock feather earrings testimony from juvenile offenders who appeared in his court, concentrating on payments Mr. Ciavarella and Mr. Conahan received from Robert K. Mericle and Robert J. Powell, the builder and co-owner of the detention centers.
Prosecutors said their case did not involve allegations that the two judges received specific payments for placing individual juveniles in specific detention centers. Rather, it focused on the overall scheme, which corrupted the entire juvenile court system.
"The defendant argues he didn't sell juveniles retail and we agree with that," Mr. Zubrod told the court Thursday. "He was selling them wholesale."
The state Supreme Court has vacated 4,000 to 5,000 cases handled by Mr. Ciavarella, finding he jailed juveniles on minor charges after cursory hearings, failed to fully inform them of their right to counsel and set court policies that swelled the number of detentions.
The prosecution maintained those juveniles should still be considered victims in the federal case, even if most of them were not placed in the two centers co-owned by Mr. Powell.
"I don't think Ciavarella or Conahan themselves really feather hair earring personally cared where the juveniles went as long as they could use their power to place the juveniles as leverage or control over Mericle and Powell," U.S. Attorney Peter J. Smith said after Thursday's sentencing.
The sheer number of victims, coupled with other factors in Mr. Ciavarella's case, inflated his sentencing score under federal guidelines, making him eligible for a life sentence.
Mr. Ciavarella was accompanied to court Thursday by his wife Cindy, two daughters and about 20 other relatives and supporters. They declined comment Thursday as marshals escorted them to a courthouse exit.
It could not be determined Thursday where Mr. Ciavarella was being held.
In addition to the prison sentence, Mr. Ciavarella was ordered to pay $1.17 million in restitution to the state and the IRS, but testimony at his trial indicated he is heavily in debt and would probably be unable to pay.
Defense attorney Al Flora Jr. said Mr. Ciavarella will appeal his conviction on most of the counts against him, but not on tax charges to which he admitted guilt during his trial.
Under Judge Kosik's sentence, Mr. Ciavarella is to serve a 20-year sentence on racketeering and conspiracy charges that will be the subject of appeal, followed by a five-year sentence on a tax conspiracy charge, followed by a three-year sentence for filing false tax returns.
