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Issue 19 — Thursday, December 12, 2013
DA Battles On Two Fronts
To End Vet’s
Treatment Furlough
By Chris Jones

MILFORD — The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania pursued legal remedies on two fronts to end a medical furlough for an Army veteran who pleaded guilty in Pike County Court to numerous DUI-related offenses, some involving personal injury and property damage.

On Wednesday, a hearing was scheduled at the Pa. Superior Court on an appeal filed by Pike County District Attorney Raymond Tonkin of Judge Joseph Kameen’s decision to grant Timothy Flaherty, 31, a furlough from a one-year-and-90-days to five-year prison sentence to attend an addiction treatment center.

Tonkin contends that state law requires that a maximum sentence be less than five years for someone to be eligible for furlough. Also, a hearing on Tonkin’s motion to review the court order granting the furlough has been scheduled for 11 a.m. Dec. 19 in Pike County Court in Milford.

The DA’s office contends that Flaherty was never granted a Purple Heart for being injured when his vehicle was struck by an explosive device in Afghanistan in 2005, as stated in the Pike Court’s response to the Superior Court and at Flaherty’s sentencing hearing.

Tonkin submitted a copy of Flaherty’s military record, (DD-214) absent any mention of either the awarding or eligibility for a Purple Heart. Delaware Township Supervisor Tom Ryan, a fellow Army veteran who organized a fund-raiser for Flaherty’s defense, said it sometimes takes years for such service medals to be authorized.

The furlough review motion also states that Flaherty’s DD-214 fails to document any service in Afghanistan in 2005. Also in dispute are whether Flaherty received an honorable discharge from the Army and whether he is a victim of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Ryan provided a certificate of honorable discharge dated August 2004, when Flaherty was a sergeant in the regular army, but his 2009 DD-214, when he was separated as a private, recommends discharge for numerous infractions including AWOL, testing positive for cocaine and being drunk on duty.

A psychologist hired by the Army to evaluate Flaherty in July 2009 said, “Although Pvt. Flaherty reports distress from his combat experiences, all criteria for PTSD were not met.”

But Ryan provided a copy of a Dept. of Veterans Affairs rating decision dated April, 2012 that awarded Flaherty disability compensation for “PTSD and cognitive dysfunction due to traumatic brain injury, service connected, Gulf War incurred.”
Ryan characterized the DA office’s pursuit of a termination of Flaherty’s furlough as “persecution.”

 

 
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Access Limited To New State Forestland For Now
By T.A. Crerand

SWIFTWATER — Recent sale of the former Rock Hill Boy Scout Camp in Dingman Township adds 486 acres to the Delaware State Forest and opens it up for public recreation use and hunting. But, a DCNR spokesman cautions there is limited access for now because of existing unsafe structures to be demolished and other public health hazards. A ceremony is anticipated sometime next spring or summer to formally open the property to the public and introduce horse trails.

In an interview with Assistant District Forester Tim Balch last week, he said Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) colleagues in Harrisburg published a news release about the land acquisition but the property is “not ready for the public to go play.”

The tract is located about five miles southeast of I-84 and Lords Valley along Route 739 and Five Mile Meadow Road. Balch described it as mostly bounded by state forestland but also the Conashaugh Lakes private community and a small portion of Game Lands 180. Jessica Grohmann, assistant planning director for the county, explained Pike County worked for several years on the acquisition project and served as the applicant with county preservation funding combined with DCNR funding. DCNR acquired the property the first week in October, according to Balch.

Mike Mrozinski, director of Community Planning at Shohola, confirmed that the large tract is now removed from the tax rolls in Pike County. The site had been a functioning scout camp with buildings and open latrines in the middle of the property. While left vacant, buildings were vandalized and there are broken glass hazards. One hazardous example given by Balch is the vacant caretaker house at the entrance to the property that has a door leading to a basement but no steps. An illegal dump site has been discovered since scouts discontinued use of the property.

Grohmann commented that a concrete mess hall with a commercial kitchen was vandalized and destroyed. She mentioned other structures are in pretty rough shape. Chris Wood, Dingman Township Code Enforcement officer, said test wells were done on the site when development was proposed and they likely still need to be filled-in or closed off.

Wood said DEP is doing a mitigation project to remove lead at the rifle range. Neighboring wells in the area should not be affected, he said. There is also an approximate half-acre borrow pit quarry used in the past for onsite purposes. It appears stone from that quarry was used to fortify roads on the property.

Altogether, there are 40 structures there that have already been inventoried and DCNR is waiting on funding so the structures can be razed. Signage will be posted on the buildings to keep people out and Balch said rangers will cite anyone found in any of the structures.

Balch also mentioned someone posted new signs that read no trespassing and private property there that he believes to be a hunter wanting to take advantage of hunting opportunities before the state’s acquisition of the land was announced to the general public. Rangers are in the process of removing those signs as well as old faded ones likely put there years ago... for complete story, get this week's issue.

New DV School Board Members
Sworn In; Lutfy Is President
By Lisa Mickles

WESTFALL — Pike County Prothonotary Denise Fitzpatrick swore in Delaware Valley School Board Directors Pam Lutfy, Sue Schor, John Fisher, and Jessica Becker for four-year terms with newly elected director Jack O’Leary for the two-year term to fulfill the unexpired term left by Diane French. Director Sue Casey was appointed as temporary President to take nominations from the board members as to who would be the new President and Vice President. Committee positions will be discussed at the next school board meeting on Dec. 19 at the Dingman Delaware Middle School.

The board unanimously voted last Thursday to have Lutfy continue as President, a position she held after former President Bill Greenlaw’s resigned several months ago. Director Zachary Pearce, the youngest board member, was unanimously voted in as the new Vice President. Lutfy said she was looking forward to the board working as a team to help the superintendent and administration move towards the future. She thanked the board for their confidence in electing her as President and believes they will work as a team since she doesn’t think any board member is more important than anyone else.

“The community is blessed with an eclectic amount of talent, experience, and knowledge on this board that is very diverse in their experiences and knowledge and together we are going to navigate as one team for so many exciting projects ahead.”

She said while there might be good times and bad times ahead of them, their main goal is to assist Superintendent John Bell and his staff “because we are going to navigate beyond what the school district has already achieved so that the district is not only the best in Pennsylvania, the United States but also in the world.”

Pearce said after graduating from Delaware Valley five and a half years ago it was an honor for him to have the confidence of the board to take on the new position. He said he cares about the school district and the community and while he is continuing his education in pursuing his master’s degree he looks forward to working with everyone. Pearce graduated almost two years ago from Bloomsburg University summa cum laude majoring in political science. He is the youngest director appointed in the history of Delaware Valley.

“We are going to have nine strong opinions but the end product is always better that way,” said Pearce... for complete story, get this week's issue.

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