DA dismisses charges against Damascus supervisors

Complainant calls for resignation of the DA

By TOM KANE

DAMASCUS, PA - Wayne County District Attorney Michael Lehutsky dismissed charges of criminal behavior lodged against the three Damascus Township supervisors by Beach Lake resident Rolf Beck and a group of concerned citizens.

The supervisors sitting at the time were chairman Bill Gager and supervisors Jeff Dexter and Arthur Freiermuth.

Beck accused the supervisors of a number of violations of the bid laws by allowing the opening of sealed bids in private outside of the announced time, and purchasing a road surface material, called Penn-Suppress, without going through the bidding process.

In a letter to Beck dated April 3, Lehutsky stated that “the practice used by the Damascus Township of allowing a township official?in this instance the board’s secretary?to open sealed bids does not violate the laws regulating the public solicitation and acceptance of bids. This practice is part of the usual and expected duties of the secretary in preparing for the meeting.”

On the second accusation, the DA stated that there were some extenuating circumstances that led the board to go beyond the bidding process when it purchased materials as a member of a Council of Government (COG) or as a participant in a program called COSTAR, two cooperative purchasing programs used by municipalities.

“While it was unfortunate that confusion apparently existed about the township’s dealings with COG and COSTAR, it is important to note that the law presumes good faith on the part of the supervisors.”

“We feel that the district attorney did not conduct a full investigation and that he made excuses for the supervisors,” Beck said. “We feel that Mr. Lehutsky said, ‘Okay boys, I’m going to let you off this time, but don’t do it again.’”

Beck said that the law is clear that the opening of the bids must be done on a date, time and place announced when the bids were issued. “This procedure was not followed by the Damascus Township supervisors,” he said.

Beck called for Lehutsky’s resignation for not enforcing the regulations.