Contractor Ed Ross stood, his hands clasped at belt level, before Common Pleas Judge Kevin Sasinoski.

As the judge last week read each of the 11 counts of theft by deception and 11 counts of failure to make required disposition of funds received against Mr. Ross, some of his victims seated in the courtroom nodded in approval. Mr. Ross pleaded no contest to the charges.

Among the victims was Ruth Raimondo, of Pittsburgh's Woods Run neighborhood, a retired dry cleaning company employee. In April 2007, she paid Mr. Ross $600 toward the cost of a new retaining wall. He built the wooden forms but didn't return to finish the work.

"The first thing he said when I hired him was that he would never cheat a senior citizen," Mrs. Raimondo said last week.

"Well, I'm 89 years old and he sure cheated me."

Jeff Brenneman, 60, of the Fineview neighborhood, a retired railroad employee, gave Mr. Ross a $3,500 down payment to remove an old retaining wall, build a new one and expand his patio. Mr. Ross tore down the wall and did the excavation work for the patio extension, but didn't return.

"The excavation became a frog pond," Mr. Brenneman said. "I called him and called him and called him. He had a well-practiced litany of excuses: His truck broke down, he hurt his foot, he injured his back, there was an illness in his family, his workers didn't show up, he was too busy with another job."

Mr. Brenneman said "a 20-year prison term might persuade him to change his ways. He really has to learn he can't do business that way. We had to hire another contractor, like the other victims did, to finish the work."

Esther Sawyer, a 71-year-old retired Bellevue police dispatcher, gave Mr. Ross a $400 down payment to do plaster work at her home. "He showed up once with a kid to drop off an almost empty bucket of joint compound. He never returned. He had an excuse every time I called him.

"I'm just so angry with him for what he has done to me and so many others. I want him to spend some time in jail so he can think about that."

In response to a series of questions from the judge, Mr. Ross said he understood the charges against him and pleaded no contest to them. The judge reminded him it was the equivalent of a guilty plea.

Assistant District Attorney William J. Becker prosecuted the case based on the investigative work of Detective Patricia Copanzzi, of the district attorney's office. Mr. Becker said Mr. Ross owed $34,000 in restitution.

Attorney Bernard Tully, who represents Mr. Ross, disputed that amount.

The judge told the attorneys to work out an agreement on the amount of restitution. He then ordered a pre-sentence report on Mr. Ross and ordered him to report for sentencing at 9 a.m. Oct. 22.

Mr. Ross faces up to seven years in prison and a maximum fine of $15,000 for each of the 22 charges against him.

He and his attorney declined comment.

Deputy Attorney General M. Susan Ruffner and Darlene Westfall, chief investigator of the Pittsburgh office of the state Consumer Protection Bureau, attended last week's proceedings.

They worked on a civil case Attorney General Tom Corbett filed against Mr. Ross in 2005. That case resulted in a consent agreement and court order issued by Common Pleas Judge Paul F. Lutty Jr. in 2007 in which Mr. Ross and his wife, Tamra, agreed to sell a house they own on Complete Street on the North Side and use the proceeds to help pay $65,194 in restitution to more than 20 victims. The couple continues to use the house as a rental property.

Mr. Ross also agreed to discontinue working as an independent contractor.

Judge Lutty said he Mr. Ross permitted to be a subcontractor -- or an employee -- "of a bona fide construction, home improvement or masonry company that is registered with the Pennsylvania Department of State."

Ms. Ruffner and Ms. Westfall are checking to see whether Mr. Ross has complied with that provision of the consent agreement and court order.

If you have a complaint about any contractor, contact the state Bureau of Consumer Protection at www.attorneygeneral.gov or 1-800-441-2555 and the Better Business Bureau at www.pittsburgh.bbb.org or 412-456-2700.