Mother granted immediate parole for concealing child

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WILKES-BARRE — A mother told a Luzerne County judge Tuesday she “overreacted” when she took her daughter, 6, from the parking lot of SkyZone in violation of a court-order in November.

Courtney Morgan Simoncavage, 25, of Plymouth, was charged by Pittston Township police with taking her biological daughter and fleeing in a vehicle allegedly driven by Matthew Thomas Gill, 42, of Easton, on Nov. 4, according to court records.

At the time, Simoncavage was court-ordered not to have any unsupervised contact with the child, who was with other family members at SkyZone.

Police located Simoncavage at the Wilkes-Barre Lodge Motel on Kidder Street, Wilkes-Barre, where she was found hiding in a bathtub behind a shower curtain, court records say.

The girl was recovered unharmed when Gill arrived at the Pittston Township Police Department.

“I’m sorry for how things went,” Simoncavage said during her sentencing hearing before Judge Joseph F. Sklarosky Jr. on charges of interference with custody of a child and concealment of whereabouts of a child. Simoncavage pled guilty to the charges March 7.

“This was an unfortunate incident; my client did not use good judgement,” said Attorney William I. Abraham, who represented Simoncavage.

Sklarosky sentenced Simoncavage to three months to two years in jail but was granted immediate parole upon being awarded 123 days of pre-sentencing credit for time served. Simoncavage was also sentenced to two years probation.

Gill pleaded not guilty Tuesday to concealment of whereabouts of a child through his attorney, Nathan Hartman. Gill’s trial is scheduled for September.

Jhaquil Armoni Moore, 28, of Scranton, who was allegedly inside the motel room when Simoncavage was arrested, is facing a charge of interference with custody of a child. His trial is scheduled for September.