Timothy L. Pesci (June 26, 1944 – September 28, 2016) was a Democratic member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

. He represented the 60th legislative district from 1989 to 2000.

Formative years

Born in

Freeport, Pennsylvania Freeport is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated along the Allegheny River in the southwestern corner of the county. The population was 1,736 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

on June 26, 1944, Pesci graduated from

Freeport Area Senior High School Freeport is a borough in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is situated along the Allegheny River in the southwestern corner of the county. The population was 1,736 at the 2020 census. Geography Freeport is located at (40.6743 ...

in 1962 and earned an A.S. degree in Business Management from

Butler County Community College Butler County Community College (BC3) is a public community college in Butler Township, Pennsylvania. It also offers courses in Cranberry Township, as well as in Lawrence, Mercer, and Jefferson counties. Over 100,000 students have attended ...

in 1972. He served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

from 1963 to 1966 during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

Public service career

Pesci served on the Freeport Borough Council in 1974 and 1975. He then served as controller for

Armstrong County, Pennsylvania Armstrong County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,558. The county seat is Kittanning. The county was organized on March 12, 1800, from parts of Allegheny, Westmoreland and Lycom ...

, from 1976 to 1989. He was first elected to the

in a special election on May 16, 1989, following the death of Henry Livengood. In the 2000 election, he was defeated for re-election by twenty-five-year-old Republican

Jeff Coleman Jeff Coleman (born July 4, 1975) is a former Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Background Coleman was born to a Filipino American family at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Whidbe ...

, in spite of the district being seventy percent Democratic.

Bill DeWeese H. William DeWeese (born April 18, 1950) is an American politician who is a former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. A member of the Democratic Party, DeWeese served as the 135th Speaker of the Pennsylvania House from 1993 to ...

, the House Democratic Leader, said that Pesci had run a "condescending" race against Coleman, calling his opponent "Jeffy" and describing Coleman's campaign volunteers as "the Children from the Corn," referring to the horror

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

. Following his defeat, Pesci was signed as a consultant to the Democratic Caucus with a six-month contract worth $30,000. When Pesci's request for an extension was not granted, he unleashed a "volley of four-letter oaths" against DeWeese, who terminated the contract early. In a surprising move, the House Republican Leader,

John Perzel John Michael Perzel (born January 7, 1950) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party. Perzel represented 172nd Legislative District (Northeast Philadelphia) in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1978 until 2010. F ...

, promptly hired Pesci for a three-week contract, which gave Pesci just enough seniority to qualify for a higher state pension.

Death

Pesci died on September 28, 2016, at his home, in Freeport, Pennsylvania.Former state Representative Tim Pesci dead at 72
/ref>

References

External links

* official PA House profile (archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Pesci, Timothy 1944 births 2016 deaths Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives People from Freeport, Pennsylvania 20th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly