Current and former legislative aides and state and local officials testified how state Rep. Jeff Habay directed his staff to dig up dirt on his enemies and how he threatened to retaliate against those he perceived as disloyal.

	Keith Srakocic, Associated Press Rep. Jeffrey Habay

And at the end of a nearly six-hour preliminary hearing yesterday, District Judge Eugene Zielmanski ordered Habay held over for trial in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court on 21 charges, including seven felonies.

Habay's attorneys, John Elash and James Ecker, continued to characterize the prosecution of Habay as a product of citizens with "personal and professional vendettas."

"They're just people out to jerk around my client," Elash said after the hearing, referring to a comment by Commonwealth Court Judge Robert Simpson.

Simpson, during a hearing Wednesday in Harrisburg, told George Radich, the lead plaintiff in a case filed last year seeking an audit of Habay's campaign finance reports, that the issues Radich brought to court for the hearing were "ridiculously picky and petty."

"I think you're jerking him around on this," Simpson told Radich.

Habay, 38, a Shaler Republican, declined comment after the hearing, but spent most of the proceeding on the receiving end of a flurry of notes scribbled constantly by his wife, who sat behind him.

Zielmanski ordered Habay held for trial on felony charges that include conflict of interest for using his staff and office for his political campaign, theft of services, retaliation against witnesses, intimidation of witnesses, and solicitation to commit perjury. He also was held on lesser charges of filing false police reports, retaliation and harassment.

The first witness was John Contino, executive director of the state Ethics Commission, who testified that Habay was advised of the illegality of using staff members for political purposes at least two years before Habay directed his staff to conduct his personal political business.

Contino's office conducted a separate investigation beginning in November 2001, which led last year to the imposition of a $13,000 fine against Habay for violating state ethics laws.

Next up were Nick Havens, a former Habay aide now living in Nevada, and two current Habay aides, Melissa Farabaugh and Bruno Morelli.

The trio of aides testified about how Habay ordered them to go to county offices to dig up dirt on people Habay perceived as his enemies, including the attorney who acted as the hearing officer in his case before the Ethics Commission and some of the parties to the Commonwealth Court case.

The aides also testified how they conducted Habay's political campaign business while on the clock in their tax-funded jobs as members of Habay's staff for the state Republican Caucus. The aides testified they ran errands for campaign material and used office equipment to copy political documents.

The final charge lodged against Habay in April was for intimidation of a witness for comments he made to Morelli in Habay's Shaler legislative office the day of his March arraignment on the first 20 charges filed by prosecutors. Morelli testified he was told by Habay that he and his attorneys planned to see that Morelli and the other aides were all charged with felonies because they were untrustworthy and had talked to prosecutors.

Two of the aides were also involved in an incident in May 2004 in Indiana Township in which derogatory information about the family of township Manager Dan Anderson, a former legislator and Habay political opponent, was placed on the windshields of cars during a township community event.

Havens and Morelli testified they had placed the so-called "Anderson papers" on car windshields while trying not to be seen by spectators. Habay also had an armful of the derogatory documents, but he hid the top copy with a flier from a pizza shop in case anyone walked by, Morelli testified.

Radich and a handful of postal officials also testified about the mailing of an envelope to Habay's home last year that Habay later claimed contained a white powder. Prosecutors have charged Habay with filing a false report and blaming Radich for mailing the powder, which tests proved to be baking soda.

Radich acknowledged he mailed an envelope to Habay's home that contained an order from the judge in the Commonwealth Court case, but he denied there was anything in the envelope except paper. Habay called Shaler police the day after he received the mail and claimed he found white powder inside, which led to the involvement of federal postal inspectors.

That investigation alone cost taxpayers more than $5,000, Claus said.