Real horror in Pennsylvania; A Review of "Honest Man: The Life of R. Budd Dwyer"

One such tale of real life horror took place here in Pennsylvania in the late 1980s. It involved a politician who had been accused of a crime and these accusations caused this man to make a drastic decision that would have a major impact on himself, his family, the state of Pennsylvania and human beings all acrosss the globe. There was horror in the claims made against a man known for being above reproach, and there was horror in the actions that this man was driven to take.

 

Back in the early 1980s, a reporter brought pertinent information regarding then Governor of Pennsylvania Dick Thornburgh's misappropriation of state funds to the attention of Pennsylvania state Treasurer R. Budd Dwyer. 

 

Dwyer was informed that Thornburgh was billing the state for luxurious chauffer-driven transportation services rendered to his (Thornburgh's) wife and children. Dwyer, a man known for always doing the right thing, refused to allow the state to be made to pay for services that were not related to the governor's duty.

 

The treasurer's act of forcing the Thornburgh's to pay their own bills, rather then to allow the taxpayers of the state of Pennsylvania to be forced to foot the bill, would be the first domino to fall,  which would start a proverbial Rube Goldberg of events that would culminate in the very public suicide of Robert "Budd" Dwyer.

 

Honest Man: The Life of R. Budd Dwyer is a feature-length documentary directed by James Dirschberger, written by Dirschberger & Adam Wroblewski, and produced by Dirschberger & Matt Levie. 

 

The film's synopsis:

 

 

That synopsis was provided by the filmmakers. As a reviewer, I could not begin to write my own description of the film that'd do it any more justice than what you've just read above. This film is perhaps the most emotionally poignant documentary that I've ever seen. 

 

Going into the film, I was thoroughly convinced of the guilt of Mr. Dwyer. I can still recall that day back in 1987, just a few weeks after my sixteenth birthday. I remember watching the events of Dwyer's January 22nd press conference where he was expected to resign from his position as state treasurer, but instead chose to pull out a large gun, stick it in his mouth, and pull the trigger, committing suicide before television cameras. And before my young and very impressionable eyes. I could not even begin to imagine that someone who was truly innocent of a crime would choose to take their own life rather than to continue to try to refute the claims and charges made against him.  I also could not help but to feel that, regardless of what his personal reasons were for his actions, that they were the actions of a selfish man.

 

During the early '80s, employees of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania overpaid millions of dollars in FICA taxes. Therefor, the state solicited bids from accounting firms to determine refunds for employees. 

 

According to attorney William Smith, whose testimony ultimately convicted Dwyer, John Torquato, Jr., son of refuted mob boss John Torquato, Sr., sent his attorney, Smith himself, to Dwyer's office to pay Budd a visit. The purpose of this visit was to suggest the possibilty of a bribe. Smith claims he told Budd that Torquato would be willing to make a major donation to Dwyer's campaign if Torquato's  Computer Technology Associates was to be awared the FICA repayment accounting contract. Smith claims that Dwyer shocked him by replying that such an offer sounded pretty good. He also states, in the film,  that no monies ever actually exchanged hands between his client and Dwyer. Did Dwyer actually seem interested in the thought of the bribe? Or did Smith fabricate this in an attempt to try to take some of the responsibility off of his own shoulders, and conscience? It's hard to say, but after learning of how honest of a man Dwyer was, it's hard to believe.

 

Federal agents would later raid the offices of Torquato, seizing his computer, which they found to contain a detailed layout of Torquato's plan to bribe Dwyer. No proof that any bribery ever actually took place, only a personal electronic note from Torquato, basically to himself, explaining how he planned to go about the bribery. This note alone would be enough to satisfy state attorney James West, leading him to indict Dwyer, bringing bribery changes against him. 

 

Think about that for a moment. If I  took a piece of paper, and on it I wrote a note to myself, stating that I was planning on bribing my neighbor, Joe, that note would, according to West's logic, be enough to have the state bring bribery charges against my poor neighbor, even though Joe was totally unaware of my plan to bribe him.  Does that sound right to you? Because it sure sounds ridiculous to me! And further more, why would Torquato have saved such a incriminating note on his hard drive? Unless, of course, he wanted it to be found. 

 

Other anomalies in this case which are brought to light in the film include the fact that Dwyer's trial was given a change of venue, at the request of the state, taking the trial from Harrisburg to Williamsport, where local folk, unaware of the actual inner workings of government politics, would serve as the jury. The case was very complex and technical and Dwyer believed that West needed an unsophisticated and uneducated jury pool, which he seemingly got in Williamsport but would not have been able to get back in Harrisburg. Demographics had indicated that the Williamsport Federal Jury Pool was the most uneducated in the state at the time. A jury of his (Dwyer's)  peers? Not exactly. Also, the presiding judge, Judge Malcolm Muir, who was thought of as a hanging judge, allowed William Smith's testimony, where he essentially admitted that he would say or do anything to protect his family, to stand despite the fact that such a comment from Smith made it fairly clear that he had been threatened to lie under oath. (In the film, Smith claims that Torquato had told him that if he didn't say what was expected of him in court, he'd come home to find his (Smith's) son floating in the pool.)

 

Also in the film, one colleague of Dwyer's remarks how he recalls Thornburgh making a threat against Dwyer, to the tune of "I'm going to get the son of a bitch.", in response to Dwyer's refusing to allow the state to cover Thornburgh's family's expenses. That comment, or threat, which is what it was, offers up motive for Thronburgh to set the treasurer up in the bribery scandal. After seeing this film, it is possible for the viewer to conclude that Thornburgh could have been behind Torquato's attempted bribery of Dwyer. 

 

Whereas I once was totally certain that Dwyer was guilty, I am now positive that he was railroaded and was, in all actuality, an innocent man. 

 

However, a pair of questions still, at this point, remain unanswered. 

 

Why would an innocent man choose to kill himself? And why would he do so live on television?

 

After seeing this film, I find that both of these are fairly easily answered. I'll first address the question of why he'd kill himself on television.

 

I believe that Budd chose such a public forum in which to kill himself with hopes that by committing such a extreme act, that people would begin to question why he would have done so. And in doing so, hopefully they would learn more about the man behind the suicide, which would eventual lead them to the conclusion that he was not guilty of the crimes for which he had been accused. 

Now to answer the question of why would he choose to kill himself at all.

 

After being convicted, a question arose. Once he was sentenced, would Budd lose his pension? Before becoming a politician, he worked as a school teacher. School teachers, upon retiring, receive a state pension. If, as a result of his conviction and sentencing,  Budd would lose his pension, the pension from his time as a teacher would possibly be lost as well.  

 

Inquiries were made with regard to the pension situation, but no one seemed to be able to assure Budd that he would at least be able to retain his teacher's pension. Without the pension to rely on, and with Budd in prison for a very long time, Budd's wife Joanna and their two children would possibly find themselves in a very bad place, financially. 

 

Budd, obvioiusly, couldn't allow his famly to suffer for something that they had absolutely no part in whatsoever. By committing suicide prior to his being sentenced, Budd's pension would not be lost, and therefor his family would not find themselves strapped for money without Budd around.

 

Now of course, this was not the most rational way of thinking, but it's important to remember that Budd was a very honest man, therefor he was not used to having to react to the unknown. Budd lead a very calculated life. He lived his life right, doing the right thing at all times, which included helping people whenever and however he possibly could. He had never before found himself in a position where he was in any kind of legal trouble. 

 

Criminals are well versed in knowing how to react and respond to trouble, but a man who never finds himself in any kind of trouble would have no prior experience at dealing with legal issues. 

 

Budd was a novice and so when he found himself face to face with a huge legal problem, his gut response was to make sure, no matter what happened to him, that his family would be taken care of. His irrational and panicked mind told him that if he died before having his pension taken away, his family would not have to worry about finances. What he didn't consider is that without him in their life, his family would hurt emotionally, which is far worse than hurting financially. But that's the level-headed reality of it, and sadly, Budd was no longer capable of thinking rationally. 

 

Another thing that Budd, in his irrational state of mind, had failed to consider is the effect that seeing a man commit suicide live on television would have on those innocent viewers at home watching the press conference, and/or their evening news. With the unscrupulous way of thinking of the media, who would gladly forego humanity and respect for human life in exchange for being recognized for their sensationalistic stories, photographs and videos, it was guaranteed that the media would exploit the plight of R. Budd Dwyer for their own personal and financial gain. Some would later claim that they chose to air the footage of Dwyer's suicide, leading directly up to the point just as he pulled the trigger, as a means of demonstrating, to anyone considering suicide, the finality of their actions. In reality, as is mentioned in this film, that is a bunch of bullshit. They chose to air the footage with the hope that, "their courage in broadcasting a suicide, would lead them to be nominated, and possibly win, an award in journalism. Budd's theory that, by committing suicide in front of the media, it would bring attention to his having been framed ended up being all for naught, as the only reason the media cared about Budd, and his situation, was for their own personal, and selfish, reasons. 

 

As much as I now understand why Budd did what he truly felt had to be done, I cannot say that he should be completely forgiven for his actions. I did shed more than a few tears while watching this film, some were for Budd's family and friends, and some were shed for Budd himself, but I also remained steadfast in my original opinion that what Budd did was, in a way, very selfish. He wanted the world to know of his innocence, and he wanted to make certain that his family would be taken care of in his absence, but he was selfish for not taking into consideration that his actions could, and surely would, hav a long term emotional and mental impact on those innocent viewers watching the news from the comfort of their homes. Even back then at age 16, I was a huge fan of horror movies, but nothing I had seen in any movie at the time would prepare me, mentally or emotionally, for what I was about to see on that fateful day in January of 1987. 

 

Budd, I am so sorry that you were railroaded, your good name bismirched, and I am also so sorry for your family and friends who were robbed of their father, husband, brother, son and friend by a corrupt system. However, it is you who should be sorry for the emotional trauma that your actions had on those of us who watched you take your own life. I understand why, and I feel sorry  for the fact that you felt you had no other option other than that of suicide, but I do not forgive you for your choice to do it in front of television cameras.  An honest man who chose to enter into a life of politics is a story that had little, to no, chance of having a happy ending but I hope, where ever you are now, Budd, that you have found peace.

 

As I mentioned earlier, I began watching this film one hundred percent positive that R. Budd Dwyer was your typical corrupt politician, one who was guilty of the bribery charges levied against him. Seventy five minutes later, as the closing credits rolled, I had just gone through a plethora of emotions, starting with disgust toward Mr. Dwyer. Eventually that disgust would turn to compassion, caring, sympathy, sorrow and even a sense of love for my fellow man. I went from being sure that Budd was a guilty man to accepting the fact that Budd Dwyer was, obviously, an extraordinarily honest man whose trust in his fellow man, and his belief in always doing what was right, would lead to his being set up and then wrongfully convicted of a crime that he had nothing to do with. As a matter of fact, it was a crime that hadn't ever even ocurred. 

 

Perhaps had he not chosen the dark path in the end, Budd would have been able to have proven his innocence, but that was not to be. However, thanks to James Dirschberger, Matt Levie and Adam Wroblewski's work with Honest Man: The Life of R. Budd Dwyer, I believe that Mr. Dwyer has been totally vinicated and his good name, once again restored. 

 

I cannot imagine that anyone who sees this film could have any question of Budd's innocence. If you have any doubt in your mind as to whether or not R. Budd Dwyer was innocent of the charges that were brought against him, all you need to do is see this film and those doubts should be completely erased. Budd was indeed an Honest Man.

 

To purchase Honest Man: The Life of R. Budd Dwyer on DVD visit the following link: