PA- Sex offender housing case is appealed

9-23-2008 Pennsylvania:

Armstrong contests Marietta zoning law ruling, goes to county court.

The controversy over sex offenders living in Marietta doesn't appear to be over yet.

Former state Rep. Tom Armstrong, a Marietta resident, confirms he has filed an appeal to Lancaster County Court seeking to overturn a borough ruling against him.

Armstrong had vowed to fight the latest ruling so he can continue to house three convicted sex offenders in his Marietta house, and he has now followed through on that promise.

His motion, filed Sept. 11, seeks to overturn a Marietta Zoning Hearing Board ruling from early August.

The zoning board had ruled that Armstrong's housing of the men in his house at 704 E. Market St. violated borough rules.

Earlier in the summer, Marietta's zoning officer, Mark Harman, issued Armstrong a cease-and-desist notice, ordering him to move the men from his home.

Armstrong appealed to the zoning board, which issued its decision after a lengthy meeting in early August.

In his appeal to county court, Armstrong says that Harman "failed to undertake reasonable investigation" before issuing the enforcement notice against him.

Armstrong also maintains that the borough's zoning law doesn't address differences between temporary or permanent residents, and he "disputes the conclusion that the three unrelated individuals" living in his house "do not constitute a family."

Armstrong attorney Jim Clymer, who filed the new six-page appeal, had argued in August that for nearly 20 years Armstrong has housed three or more veterans at one time without interference from the borough.

Borough attorney Shawn Long, who declined comment today on the appeal, had differed with Clymer's take on the issue.

Among other things, Long said at one public meeting, several Pennsylvania court decisions disallow similar boarding situations in residential areas for drug addicts, alcoholics and even abused children.

The men in Armstrong's house are listed on the Megan's Law Web site, which lists home addresses of the state's registered sex offenders.

All three men were still listed today as living at Armstrong's house.

The issue has drawn a strong reaction from many in Marietta.

There have been protests in front of Armstrong's house, and meetings on the subject have been heavily-attended.

One opponent called the men "individuals who don't reflect the community here."

But Armstrong strongly feels the effort to provide housing to the men is his Christian duty — saying they're "the lepers of our society" who everyone wants to cast out — and also that he has standards for the men he accepts.

"They have to prove they want to change," Armstrong said.

He moved the men into his house in early June, after they had left a halfway house in Conestoga Township.

It's not known when the appeal will be heard in county court. ..News Source.. by DAVID O’CONNOR, Staff