New York girl, father charged in crash that killed 3 Council Rock students

Posted: Wednesday, December 17, 2014

The day before a 15-year-old girl lost control of her dad’s SUV and crashed it, killing three Northampton boys, her dad let her drive the 2001 Chevy Suburban from their suburban New York City home to their vacation home in the Pocono Mountains, according to court documents.

Then, a couple of hours before the Aug. 30 fatal accident, Michael Ware allegedly waved goodbye to his daughter Julia and her 15-year-old friend as Julia allegedly drove the same SUV to pick up four 15-year-old boys to go to a nearby barbecue restaurant.

The 53-year-old New York man even asked the girls to bring him back a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich, according to court documents filed Wednesday. The documents charge Ware with involuntary manslaughter, endangering the welfare of children, false reports and other offenses in the fatal Labor Day weekend accident.

Ware’s daughter Julia, who turns 16 Saturday, was also charged Wednesday in connection with the accident. Her case was filed in juvenile court and the DA didn’t release her name or what charges that she faces. Calkins Media obtained Julia Ware’s name through the Pennsylvania Right to Know law.

“This was a horrific tragedy, and unfortunately, one that could have so easily been prevented,” Wayne County District Attorney Janine Edwards said in a press release. “The law must be followed in order to prevent such a tragedy in the future.”

The Courier Times was unsuccessful Wednesday in reaching Michael Ware for comment at his home in Scarsdale, New York, an upscale suburb north of New York City.

Shamus Digney, Cullen Keffer (center) Ryan Lesher

The arrests follow more than three months of waiting for the families of Cullen Keffer, Shamus Digney, Ryan Lesher and Ryan Keim, the Council Rock High School South students riding in the SUV when it went out of control and flipped. The crash killed Cullen, Shamus and Ryan Lesher, and seriously injured Ryan Keim.

Edward Lesher said Wednesday he believes Julia Ware should be charged as an adult.

“She knew what she was doing. She wasn’t taking this seriously,” Lesher said, adding that even he doesn’t know what offenses Julia Ware is charged with because the charges were filed in the juvenile system.

The Courier Times was unsuccessful in reaching the Keffer and Digney families for comment Wednesday.

Michael Ware, who’s free on $100,000 unsecured bail, allegedly lied to Pennsylvania State Police who were investigating the accident about not giving his daughter permission to drive the SUV. A subsequent police investigation found Ware had given his daughter permission to drive the day of the accident and other times, according to the Wayne County DA’s office.

Witnesses who were interviewed after the accident told Pennsylvania State Police troopers that they saw a dark SUV speeding down a hill in the 3000 block of Goosepond Road, near St. Mary Church Road, before hearing a loud crash. The accident scene is near the resort community of Wallenpaupak Lake Estates, where both the Ware and Lesher families have vacation homes. Edward Lesher was staying with the four boys at the home for the Labor Day weekend.

Marie Drobnicki, who lives on Goosepond Road, told investigators she was in her backyard and heard boys’ voices yelling “slow down” before she saw the SUV and then heard a “horrible sound of a vehicle rolling over,” according to a probable cause affidavit.

Ryan Keim told police Julia was “flying” and he and his friends told her to “slow down,” court documents stated.

Rebecca Kelly, 15, of Westchester County, New York, who was also in the vehicle, told police she and Julia went to Dunkin’ Donuts around 9:30 a.m. and then returned to the Ware house, before going to Lesher’s home to pick up the boys and drive to the restaurant.

On the return trip, as the SUV rounded a turn, the front passenger side tire went off the road and onto the grass, then the car flipped and landed on the driver’s side, Rebecca told police. She, Julia and Ryan Keim were able to climb out of the car.

Michael Ware appeared at the accident scene shortly afterward and told state police he was in the house cleaning when his daughter took the SUV without his knowledge, according to court documents. He told police he let her drive the vehicle on private roads in the resort under his supervision.

Initially, Julia Ware backed up her father’s story, telling authorities she took the vehicle without his permission to a nearby barbeque restaurant on Goosepond Road, the affidavit said.

“I was driving too fast; arrest me,” Julia told police, then put her hands out in front of her body “as if waiting to be handcuffed,” according to court documents.

The hospital where Julia Ware was treated for moderate injuries didn’t draw blood from her for “medical purposes,” according to the affidavit. Ware wasn’t talking on her cellphone at the time of the accident, according to phone records that police obtained. No text message data was retrieved.

Two months after the accident, an attorney representing Rebecca Kelly notified state police that his client had told him that Michael Ware let Julia drive the SUV to Pennsylvania once they were outside New York City, according to the affidavit. Rebecca also claims Michael Ware walked Julia and her to the car before they left for the barbeque restaurant the day of the accident.

Then last month, Julia Ware — through her attorney — submitted a written statement that indicated she had her father’s permission to drive the Suburban to Dunkin’ Donuts and then the barbeque restaurant.

“They asked if they could go to the BBQ Pit and (Michael Ware) stated again, it was OK and asked her to bring him back a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich,” according to the affidavit.

Investigators later found the sandwich in the damaged Suburban, but said at the time they didn’t believe it held any “evidentiary value,” the affidavit said.

Julie Ware also now claims when her dad showed up at the accident scene, she overheard him tell police he didn’t know Julia took the car so “she and Rebecca thought they were supposed to say they had the car without permission so as not to get him in trouble,” court documents allege.

While Julia Ware is charged as a juvenile, if she is adjudicated — the equivalent of found guilty in adult court — more information about her involvement may become publicly available. Pennsylvania law allows limited release of information, including names and charges, if a juvenile is 14 or older and charged with an offense that would be graded as a felony in adult court.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Lower Makefield contractor guilty of ripping off homeowners

Posted: Friday, December 12, 2014

A Bucks County jury Friday found a Lower Makefield contractor guilty of bilking 14 homeowners out of more than $2.5 million in one of the largest home improvement-related fraud cases in recent memory.

The jury of four men and eight women deliberated for roughly eight hours over two days before finding John Succi, 59, guilty on all 27 felony counts, including home improvement fraud, theft by deception and deceptive business practices.

Bucks County Judge Diane Gibbons deferred sentencing for Succi, but immediately revoked his bail. Succi, who had been free after posting 10 percent of $100,000, was handcuffed and taken into custody.

John Succi

In revoking his bail, Gibbons noted that Succi — who had appeared late several times during his weeklong trial — faced an “extensive and lengthy” state prison sentence.

She added that Succi’s victims — some who claimed that he had ripped them off as far back as 2005 — have waited long enough for an ending to the case. One pair of victims was a couple over the age of 60, which enhances the criminal penalties.

“They will wait no longer for justice,” Gibbons said, adding the 13-page verdict sheet was the longest she had prepared in her career.

Each “guilty” verdict brought more and more tears to Warminster resident Jeff Goldstein, who was among the more than a dozen victims in the audience Friday.

“What I had to deal with, I’m so relieved at this point,” said Goldstein, who hired Succi in 2005 for a home renovation project and helped investigators build their case. “I’m happy that is what brought tears to my eyes — that relief.”

For nearly a decade, authorities said Succi signed contracts to build additions, renovate homes and construct a few new buildings. But several homeowners testified during the trial that they ended up paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to Succi, who delivered nothing but empty promises and shells of buildings. Between the money paid to Succi and the cost of fixing his shoddy work, those victims are out about $2.5 million, authorities said.

After signing contracts in many of the cases, Succi would call back — sometimes within a week — and start asking for more money, according to testimony. The homeowners said they would repeatedly give in to his requests until they either stopped paying or contacted a lawyer. If they stopped paying, Succi contacted a lawyer, according to court records. And when things went badly for Succi financially, he would file for bankruptcy, according to police.

He also changed the name of his company several times. Bucks County Detective Eric Landamia, who investigated the case, said Succi had four registered names for his contracting business, but a total of nine different incarnations of the name would show up on the contracts, business cards and letterhead he would use.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Jury: Philly man guilty of 2nd-degree murder in 2006 shooting death

Posted: Friday, December 12, 2014 

A Bucks County jury Friday found a Philadelphia man guilty of second-degree murder in the 2006 death of a Bristol Township man, a murder that remained unsolved until two years ago.

In its decision — following four hours of deliberations — the jury of nine men and three women declined to find Ckaron Handy, 27, guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Kevin Battista in a drug-deal-turned-robbery gone bad.

The jury also found Handy guilty of two counts of robbery and possession of a weapon.

Bucks County Judge Wallace Bateman Jr. deferred sentencing 60 days for Handy, who faces life in prison, prosecutor Christopher Rees said following the verdict in the five-day trial.

Ckaron Handy

“While we believe justice was served in this case, it’s not a cause for celebration,” Rees added.

Family and friends of Battista, 30, a father of two, wept after the verdicts were announced.

Deputy District Attorney Antonetta Stancu, who prosecuted with Rees, credited Bristol Township Detective Timothy Fuhrmann with bringing the case to fruition.

“He stuck with it for years and never gave up,” she said.

Authorities described the unsolved murder as an “extraordinarily” tough and long case to build against Handy. The case took eight years to get to trial.

Bristol Township police said that while Handy, a convicted drug dealer, was an early suspect in Battista’s murder, they didn’t have enough evidence — or witnesses — to connect him to the crime. The Bucks County District Attorney’s Office then took the case before a grand jury in 2009 and three years later, Handy was charged with murder and related charges.

As he was led out of the court room, Handy mouthed the word “appeal” to his mother in the audience. His attorneys Michael Goodwin and Charles Jonas confirmed afterward they will appeal.

Goodwin called the verdict a disappointment.

“It just seemed with all the profound flaws in their witnesses testimony they gave, I wouldn’t have been surprised at a not guilty verdict,” Goodwin said.

Witness credibility figured prominently in both the defense and prosecution’s closing arguments.

Goodwin’s lone defense witness Fuhrmann testified that he interviewed one-time key witness Kyle Page who provided information that Handy shot Battista.

Before a Bucks County grand jury in 2009 and again at a preliminary hearing last year, Page, who is Handy’s first cousin, claimed under oath that he stood 2 feet from Battista in December 2006 when he was killed and saw the .22 caliber revolver Handy used.

On Monday — the first day of jury selection — Page was formally charged with three counts of felony perjury after authorities learned in October that he was in Bucks County prison the day that Battista was murdered, something Fuhrmann also confirmed on the witness stand.

When prosecutor Stanscu asked Fuhrmann why the court hadn’t heard from Page during the trial, the detective’s response was blunt.

“Kyle Page is a liar.”

Page’s name came up again during closing arguments with Goodwin impressing on the jury that the three witnesses who testified that Handy was the shooter lied about Page being present during the crime.

Bristol Township police allege that Handy shot Battista, described as a recreational cocaine user, when he tried to buy $60 worth of the drug while looking for his longtime girlfriend in the Bloomsdale-Fleetwing section of Bristol Township, a one-time notorious drug market.

Goodwin emphasized that two of three witnesses who testified against Handy were convicted killers, and all three were admitted drug dealers who he described as “benefit seekers.” He also pointed out that none of the three testified seeing Handy shoot Battista, only that Handy was at Battista’s truck before the shooting.

Ckaron Handy (L) Kevin Battisa 

Two witnesses also testified they didn’t recall seeing the third witness at the murder scene. A police report also put a fourth man, another drug dealer, in a fur-hooded jacket that witnesses testified the murderer wore, and Handy wearing a faux fur coat, Goodwin said.

The witness inconsistencies along with the questionable character of the witnesses, and Page’s arrest on perjury charges, Goodwin argued, provided enough reasonable doubt that someone else could have committed the murder.

But in his closing, Rees countered that the evidence — including witness testimony — showed clear proof that Handy was the murderer. He said witness Tiffany Calvanese, who was with Battista in the truck, provided a description of the shooter that matched Handy. Forensic evidence showed the angle of the bullet wound could only be caused by a left-handed shooter at least 6 feet tall, Rees added.

“Over three $20 bills, the defendant killed this man,” Rees said.

The witness testimony was consistent, he added. None claimed to see Handy pull the trigger, but each saw Handy at Battista’s truck moments before the shooting. All three testified the truck was in the same place. Two witnesses later alleged that Handy told them he killed Battista, Rees said.

Rees also argued if prosecutors secured the witnesses’ version of events with promises of favors in pending legal cases against them at the time, then why wouldn’t they take the additional step of saying they saw Handy shoot Battista?

Witness James Williams, who told police he took the .22 caliber murder weapon from Handy the night of the murder, admitted on the stand that he later used the same gun to kill Eric Doggett months later.

“The fact he admits to that underscores his credibility,” Rees said.

On the witness stand, Rees said, Williams testified that he still believes that Kyle Page was with Handy the night of the murder.

“He stuck to his story,” Rees added. “Consistency is credibility.”

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Witness in Bristol Twp. murder trial charged with perjury

Posted: Monday, December 8, 2014

Kyle Page testified last year that he stood 2 feet away from Kevin Battista when the 30-year-old Bristol Township father of two was shot and killed in December 2006.

The shooter, he testified, was his first cousin, Ckaron Handy, with whom he was selling cocaine that night. He saw the .22 caliber revolver that Handy used on Battista during a drug deal that turned into a botched robbery, he testified at Handy’s preliminary hearing on murder and related charges on Jan. 23, 2013.

Page reportedly told the same story in 2009 when he appeared before a Bucks County grand jury investigating Battista’s murder, which occurred in the Fleetwing section of Bristol Township.

Kyle Page

But authorities recently learned that Page, one of their star witnesses, couldn’t have seen the murder. He was in jail at the time, police said.

On Monday — the same day jury selection began in Handy’s murder trial — Page, 29, of Bristol Township, was charged with three felony counts of perjury. He was arraigned before District Judge Joanne Kline — who also had heard his 2013 testimony — and was sent to Bucks County prison in lieu of 10 percent of $25,000 bail.

Bristol Township police allege that Page lied three times under oath: twice before a grand jury in 2009 when he testified that he was an eyewitness to the murder and named Handy as the killer, and again during the 2013 preliminary hearing.

Page admitted last month to lying about being a witness to murder, police said, after Bucks County prison officials confirmed that he was in custody at the Doylestown Township jail on the day of the murder.

Page, who has a long criminal history going back to 2004, has since written two letters to Bucks County deputy district attorney Chris Rees, who is prosecuting Handy, apologizing for lying and attempting “to explain why he has lied in the investigation into Kevin Battista’s murder,” according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Bucks County Prosecutor Christopher Rees declined to comment Monday on how the perjury charge might effect the trial or what Page told him in the letters.

Bristol Township police allege that Handy, now 26, of Philadelphia, shot Battista, described as a recreational cocaine user, when he tried to buy $60 worth of the drug while looking for his longtime girlfriend.

The case has taken eight years to get to trial.

Ckaron Handy (L) and Kevin  Battista

Bristol Township police said that while Handy, a convicted drug dealer, was an early suspect in Battista’s murder, they didn’t have enough evidence — or witnesses — to connect him to the crime. Witnesses had refused to come forward, police said.

The Bucks County District Attorney’s Office then took the case before a grand jury in 2009, and three years later Handy was charged with murder and related charges.

Handy is already serving a seven-year sentence in federal prison for a 2012 conviction of a federal firearms charge for possessing a semi-automatic handgun in 2011 in Bristol Township. At the time, Handy was a convicted felon and prohibited from possessing a firearm.

Handy also was arrested on a drug charge less than a year after Battista’s death and served time in state prison until his 2011 release.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Ohio man, 3 Bucks residents charged in drug delivery ring

Posted: Friday, December 19, 2014

An Ohio man faces additional drug delivery and corrupt organization charges, along with three Bucks County residents, in connection with what police said appears to be a trafficking operation.

The arrests follow an investigation initiated after Thomas Weaver, 49, of Northwood, Ohio, was arrested and charged with felony drug delivery last month after authorities say he picked up a package with seven pounds of marijuana that was delivered to a Langhorne home.

Langhorne police and Bucks County detectives set up surveillance of a home in the 100 block of National Avenue on Nov. 20 after the U.S. Postal Inspection Service alerted authorities that the package was scheduled to be delivered there. Postal inspectors said the package was shipped from California and the sender’s name on the return address was false, according to court documents.

Authorities arrested Weaver after he was seen picking up the package and bringing it into the home, according to police. Weaver denied any involvement in the drug shipment, saying he stopped at the home where the package was delivered to check his GPS device, according to court documents.

Police obtained a search warrant for the National Avenue home and found the package — marked “Return to Sender” — on the enclosed front porch, the affidavit said. They also found marijuana and hashish, digital scales and packaging materials they said are associated with drugs in the home.

After Weaver was arrested, Bucks County detectives spoke with the homeowner, Carol Silcox, 58, and with Harry Schmitz, 53, a Silcox friend who stays at the home. Both admitted they were aware of the drug trafficking and claimed a third man — Harold “Joe” Osborne Jr., 46, of Upper Southampton — was behind it, according to court documents.

Silcox told detectives Osborne asked last year if he could use her home to have packages delivered. She agreed and said five to six shipments were made to her National Avenue home, and Osborne paid her $300 to $500 for each, a probable cause affidavit said. She admitting knowing a package for Osborne was scheduled for delivery to her home on Nov. 20, court documents said.

A few months ago, Osborne introduced Silcox to Thomas Weaver, who said he’d pick up the packages from his temporary residence in Holland, according to authorities.

Schmitz said Osborne also would leave marijuana at the National Avenue home for him or let him buy discounted pot because of the package-delivery deal.

Authorities went to the Holland home and saw a Jeep with an Ohio license plate parked near the driveway; the vehicle was registered to Weaver. Neighbors told police the couple who lived there had been gone for months, but that they had seen Weaver living in the house and maintaining the property, according to court documents.

Police executed a search warrant on the Holland home and found evidence of marijuana trafficking, including marijuana, hashish, packaging materials, money, and other equipment associated with drug delivery. The hashish confiscated was similar to the drugs found in the National Avenue home, they said. The drug materials in the Holland home appeared similar to what was found in the National Avenue package, police said.

District Judge Daniel Baranoski notified Weaver in a letter Friday that his criminal complaint has been amended to include additional charges, including felony drug delivery, corrupt organizations, and related offenses. He remains incarcerated in Bucks County prison in lieu of 10 percent of $75,000 bail

Silcox and Schmitz were arraigned before Baranoski Friday on charges of felony drug delivery, conspiracy, corrupt organizations and criminal use of a communication facility. They were both released on $2,500 unsecured bail. An arrest warrant has been issued for Osborne for the same charges as Silcox and Schmitz, according to court officials.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

2 women in their 60s accused of trafficking marijuana through Falls

Posted: Monday, December 22, 2014

A 65-year-old Oregon woman claims she was selling healing crystals. A 63-year-old Falls woman said that she sold quilts.

But Bucks County detectives say both businesses were fronts for a bi-coastal marijuana trafficking business the women operated since 2012, according to court documents.

On Monday, the alleged marijuana supplier — Joan D’Arcy, of Portland, Oregon — was arraigned on felony drug delivery charges before District Judge Jan Vislosky. She was sent to Bucks County prison in lieu of 10 percent of $950,000 bail.

County detectives started investigating D’Arcy, who also goes by the name Joan Darcy, after speaking with a source in April who claimed Deborah Page was using her quilting business as a front to have packages of marijuana shipped to a Falls post office box, according to authorities. The source also allegedly told detectives that at least once in 2013 Page provided marijuana that she kept in a Falls storage locker.

Page was eventually arrested on felony drug delivery charges in July and released on $100,000 unsecured bail. She is awaiting a preliminary hearing scheduled for next month.

In May, a U.S. postal inspector was notified that a package from Portland was shipped to Page, who subsequently picked it up and then drove to the Lincoln Highway storage center where the marijuana was stored, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

A second package addressed to Page’s quilting store arrived at the Falls post office box later in May, court records show. U.S. postal authorities arranged for a trained drug-sniffing dog to check the package, and the dog responded positive to the presence of narcotics, the documents said.

In June, county detectives executed a search warrant at Page’s storage unit and her Berwyn Road home in Falls. More than 16 pounds of marijuana, $22,000 and a record of distribution and locations were seized, the affidavit said.

Two days later, on June 28, another shipment for Page arrived at the Morrisville post office box from Oregon. Bucks County detectives set up surveillance and saw an unidentified male pick up the box, they said. Shortly after, he was stopped by police and the box seized.

The box was addressed to Page’s quilting business and the sender was “Healing Waters and Sacred Spaces” in Portland. Six bags of marijuana, one marked “Lemon Diesel,” were inside the box, court records show. Police also confiscated from the man an empty box addressed to “Healing Waters,” a key to the storage center in Falls and one to Page’s P.O. Box, $2,800 and an envelope addressed to Page’s quilting business, authorities said.

The man allegedly admitted to selling marijuana for Page since he was in 10th- or 11th-grade at Pennsbury High School. He told authorities Page recently went on vacation and gave him the key to pick up a delivery containing marijuana from her source in Portland named Joan, detectives said.

The man said he received a text message from D’Arcy and was told by authorities to respond that he picked up the package and would be sending her $3,800 as payment, court documents said. Authorities provided the man with a fake tracking number to give to D’Arcy.

Over the next 23 days, Bucks County Detective Timothy Carroll communicated with D’Arcy on the man’s cellphone about sending money to her for the marijuana. He was told to send money in a parcel addressed to Healing Waters and Sacred Spaces at a Portland address, police said.

Carroll provided D’Arcy with two phony tracking numbers for the money owed for the marijuana. He also gave her a phone number used by the USPS and the U.S. postal inspector.

In July, U.S. postal inspectors in Portland visited D’Arcy at her Healing Waters business address. She declined to talk and requested her lawyer, court records show.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Bucks military, lawmakers: Restrict access to military combat honors

Posted: Monday, December 8, 2014

The story of a Philadelphia man pretending to be a highly decorated U.S. Army Ranger is a familiar one to Anthony Anderson.

The South Carolina Army veteran runs Guardians of Valor, a group dedicated to exposing individuals who falsely claim military service and unauthorized medals or other awards, so called “Stolen Valor.” The group was the first to post on YouTube the now infamous video shot by Northampton Army veteran Sgt. Ryan Berk of his Nov. 28 confrontation with Sean Yetman at the Oxford Valley Mall in Middletown. It has since amassed more than 3 million views and countless re-postings across social media.

The organization operates a website on which people can report suspected imposters; it includes a “Hall of Shame,” which features photos and news accounts of 48 confirmed military imposters or embellishers.

“I’ve been doing this for five years now, and it’s only gotten worse,” Anderson said.

Sean Yetman

The reason is simple, according to Anderson and other veteran and military supporters. Impersonating a military member — even a highly decorated one — is easy. It’s even easier than getting a Bucks County veteran discount card.

Anderson believes that a stronger federal law is needed, one that carries the same penalties as impersonating a police officer.

“I believe that it is something that will never stop; the military is always selling surplus,” he said. “Strengthening the Stolen Valor Law is the only thing that’s going to curtail it.”

Sean Schafer, policy director for state Sen. Tommy Tomlinson, R-6, Bensalem, and Dan Fraley, Bucks County’s director of Veterans Affairs, agree. They plan to do something about it, too.

Schafer pointed out that civilians may treat perceived military members differently based on their appearance. He is investigating possible legislation to restrict sales of military honors to civilians in Pennsylvania.

“If we forbid stolen valor, why do we allow people to sell stolen valor?” Schafer added.

Currently there are no regulations on the sale of military items such as the 30 or so military ribbons, badges and awards, including those awarded for valor. That means authentic military uniforms, badges, medals and other military accessories including Purple Hearts and Silver Stars are sold in surplus Army/Navy stores and online. Good replica awards are enough to fool most civilians, military officials said.

Falsely claiming to be a member of the military is not illegal, but it’s against federal law for an individual to fraudulently portray him or herself as a recipient of any of 11 specified military decorations or medals with the intent to obtain money, property or other “tangible” benefit.

Fraley has an idea that he believes dovetails with the federal Stolen Valor Act — restrict access to the military honors covered in the law to military members.

Fraley’s idea would require veterans or military members to show proof of their military service and decorations and honors earned, such as a Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, generally referred to as a DD214 or other form of military identification.

Bucks County does that for its veterans discount ID card. Veterans who want to get the card, which can be used in many businesses, submit a copy of their DD214 as verification of their military service, Fraley said.

To address the problem with online sales, Fraley proposes banning the online sales of all 11 awards listed in the Stolen Valor Act of 2013. Right now, it’s illegal to buy only a Medal of Honor online or elsewhere. The honors named in the law include a Combat Infantrymen Badge, which Yetmen claimed he earned three times, as well as the Purple Heart, Distinguished Service Cross and various combat awards.

“All you are doing is expanding the ban. No one is going to go broke not selling those items online if they’re a legitimate business,” Fraley said. “It would marry into the law. It really makes sense and cures the problem.”

Middletown police and a U.S. Army investigator are reviewing all available mall store video footage to determine if Yetman committed a crime, such as requesting a military discount, while wearing the uniform. As of Friday, Middletown Chief Joseph Bartorilla said there was no update on the investigation findings.

Military sources have confirmed there is no record of Yetman — who claimed to earn three Combat Infantrymen Badges, a rare accomplishment — serving in the U.S. Army in any capacity or undergoing Ranger training at Fort Benning, Georgia.

No official numbers exist, but Anderson estimated that he investigates reports of about 20 cases a week of alleged Stolen Valor incidents ranging from civilians trying to pass themselves off as military members or veterans to actual soldiers embellishing their honors.

Last month, a 23-year-old man was charged in western Pennsylvania with impersonating a public servant and disorderly conduct after he showed up unannounced at a middle school claiming he was a military veteran who wanted to talk to kids about Veterans Day, according to published reports. Jonathan Campbell told school officials he served in the Army, but he was wearing a U.S. Air Force uniform, they said. He was denied access and escorted off the property. Officials said there is no record of him serving in the military.

In October, a Democratic congressional candidate in California apologized and admitted he wore a U.S. Navy SEAL Trident for a year without ever earning it, according to published reports. The award is among the most coveted in the U.S. military, and may be worn only by those officers and enlisted men who have completed training.

Under Pennsylvania law, it is a summary offense to wear a uniform, decoration insignia or other distinctive emblems of any branch of the U.S. armed forces to obtain aid, profit or while soliciting contributions or subscriptions. It is also a summary offense to, without authority, knowingly wear, exhibit, display or use any military or veteran insignia.

Also, it is a third-degree misdemeanor in the state if a person, without authority, purchases, sells, offers for sale or accepts as a “pledge or pawn,” any medal, insignia or decoration granted for service in the armed forces.

What is unclear is how the 2012 U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down part of the original Stolen Valor law impacts enforcement of the state laws, said Schafer, from Tomlinson’s office. The high court ruling found that merely impersonating a military member was protected under the First Amendment Right to Free Speech and Freedom of Expression.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Man at center of Stolen Valor case once impersonated dead cop

Posted: Wednesday, December 3, 2014

A Philadelphia man apparently likes dressing up in uniforms.

Last week, he was wearing Army fatigues at the Oxford Valley Mall in Middletown when he was confronted by an Army veteran who suspected that the man never served in the military. The veteran of Afghanistan who lives in Northampton posted the video of the confrontation on YouTube and it has since generated more than 2.8 million views and incensed military families nationwide.

Back in 2003, his uniform of choice was a police coat.

The now 30-year-old Sean Yetman was arrested while wearing the coat of a Philadelphia officer who died in the line of duty. He pleaded guilty in Bucks County Court in May of that year to impersonating a public servant, a second-degree misdemeanor. He was sentenced to three months of probation for that crime along with a summary offense of driving with a suspended or revoked license, according to online court records.

Yetman was arrested after being stopped on North Main Street in Doylestown during a routine traffic safety checkpoint while wearing the coat and displaying a Philadelphia police badge, according to court records obtained by Calkins Media. Both items belonged to the late Robert Hays, who was killed in the line of duty in 1995, the Philadelphia Police Department confirmed.

He told the Doylestown officers that he worked out of the city’s 26th District in Fishtown, but then added that he was in the police academy and working in the 26th as a drive-along, court documents show. The police coat, he said, belonged to his uncle.

He was unable to produce a valid driver’s license or any other identification to verify that he was a Philadelphia police officer, Doylestown officers said. They found out that Yetman had a Pennsylvania Identification Card, which came back showing the man’s driver’s license had been suspended, officers said.

Doylestown police later spoke with Hays’ widow, who said that she had given her son one of her husband’s coats and badges after his death. She also said her son knew Yetman through his girlfriend, according to the court records.

“She said she did not know how Yetman had come into possession of the jacket and the badge,” police said.

A woman who answered the door of Yetman’s house on Saturday claimed that Yetman had a military background but declined to provide details. She said the family had no comment on the issue. Phone numbers listed under Yetman’s name have been disconnected and his Facebook account was taken down Saturday.

According to a story in the “Army Times,” Yetman’s fiancee said in an email that “the blow-back to Yetman and his family has been vicious.”

The newspaper reported that the woman said Yetman has lost his job.

“We are now hearing death threats. All of this has us concerned for our children and their safety,” she wrote, according to the Army Times. “He is a good man with a very big heart and this backlash has spiraled him into a deep depression.”

In the YouTube video that went viral and was shot on Black Friday, Yetman tells veteran Ryan Berk, who was a sergeant while serving in Afghanistan, that he is a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army Rangers and claims he recently returned from Fort Lewis, Washington, which is the base for the 75th Ranger Regiment, 2nd Battalion.

Yetman doesn’t appear in the U.S. Army’s database, according to retired Col. Richard Nurnberg, the executive director of the National Infantry Association at Fort Benning, Georgia. That means he is not active duty or recently retired. The database covers reservists as well as Army Rangers, an elite special operations unit.

Yetman’s name also was not found in any database of Army members who have undergone Ranger training at Fort Benning, according to Nurnberg.

He added that a misdemeanor conviction, such as impersonating a police officer, would not keep someone out of the Army.

During the 3-minute, 26-second video, Berk becomes furious with Yetman for wearing the uniform without ever having served. Berk suspected Yetman was not a soldier because elements of his uniform didn’t appear correct and he had trouble answering some basic military service questions, including how he received the three Combat Infantrymen Badges he wore, Berk added.

Berk, who was awarded a Purple Heart after he was wounded in Afghanistan, told Yetman that he would need to be in three different campaigns. Yetman responded that one badge was for service in Iraq and the others for different tours of Afghanistan.

But military authorities, including the National Infantry Association, confirmed that only one CIB would be awarded for service in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) and/or Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn).

Middletown police and a U.S. Army investigator are reviewing all available video footage to determine if a crime was committed by Yetman while wearing the uniform.

U.S. Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick, R-8, who represents Bucks County sent a letter to Philadelphia-area U.S. attorney Zane Memeger on Monday, notifying him that the video could “possibly” contain evidence of a federal crime under the Stolen Valor Act.

Civilian and military authorities are looking into whether Yetman sought or received military discounts while at the mall on Black Friday or if he violated a state law that forbids the unauthorized wearing of military decorations.

Falsely claiming to be a member of the military is not illegal, but under the Stolen Valor Act of 2013, it’s against federal law for an individual to fraudulently portray him or herself as a recipient of any of several specified military decorations or medals with the intent to obtain money, property or other “tangible” benefit.

Surplus military uniforms, fatigues and other items, including badges, are available for sale in Army Navy stores, and online. But Nurnberg said that if a military service member wants to give away a uniform, he or she must remove the “U.S. Army” identification badge above the left pocket. That identification marker appears on the uniform Yetman is wearing in the YouTube video, he added.

Under Pennsylvania law it is a summary offense to wear a uniform, decoration insignia or other distinctive emblems of any branch of the armed forces of the United States for the purpose of obtaining aid, profit or while soliciting contributions or subscriptions. It is also a summary offense to, without authority, knowingly wear, exhibit, display or use for any purpose any military or veteran insignia.

Also, it is a third-degree misdemeanor in the state if a person, without authority, purchases, sells, offers for sale or accepts as a “pledge or pawn,” any medal, insignia or decoration granted for service in the armed forces.

On Wednesday, Bucks County’s chief of prosecutions, Matt Weintraub, said that in order to pursue the misdemeanor offense involving military decorations, authorities would need to prove that Yetman purchased the CIB badges in Pennsylvania and without authority.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; email: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia

Police: Unclear if man claiming to be Army Ranger broke law

Posted: Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Middletown police and a U.S. Army investigator are reviewing all available video footage to determine if a crime was committed by a man who claimed to be a U.S. Army Ranger when confronted by a veteran at the Oxford Valley Mall on Black Friday.

Sean Yetman

Middletown police Chief Joseph Bartorilla on Tuesday said that the investigation is looking into whether the man sought or received military discounts while at the mall in Middletown that day or if he violated a state law that forbids the unauthorized wearing of military decorations.

At this point jurisdiction over the case has not yet been determined, but the investigation is being handled on multiple fronts, Bartorilla said.

So far, the investigation findings haven’t pinpointed if the man sought a military discount at a shoe store, before being confronted by a local Army veteran, Sgt. Ryan Berk, who suspected the man was not a soldier.

Falsely claiming to be a member of the military is not illegal, but under the Stolen Valor Act of 2013, it’s against federal law for an individual to fraudulently portray him or herself as a recipient of any of several specified military decorations or medals with the intent to obtain money, property or other “tangible” benefit.

Similarly under Pennsylvania law, it’s a summary offense to falsely wear a military or police uniform or other insignia for purposes of obtaining a profit, soliciting business or fundraising. It is a third-degree misdemeanor to purchase, sell, offer for sale, accept, pledge or pawn — without authorization — any medal, insignia or decoration for service in the Armed Forces, Bartorilla said.

Berk, 26, of Northampton, who served in the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne Division in Afghanistan in 2010-11, captured his confrontation with the man in a video posted on YouTube, which has generated more than 2.1 million views as of Tuesday evening.

The viral video prompted U.S. Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick, R-8, who lives in Middletown, to send a letter to Philadelphia-area U.S. attorney Zane Memeger on Monday, notifying him that the video could “possibly” contain evidence of a federal crime.

In the video, the alleged fake Army Ranger is wearing three military badges awarded for combat service.

The executive director of the National Infantry Association, retired Col. Richard Nurnberg, on Tuesday said that the alleged Ranger’s name does not appear in the U.S. Army’s database, meaning he is not active duty or recently retired.

Nurnberg said he is also checking to see if the man serves in the Army Rangers, an elite military special forces unit.

“Looking at him, I’m sure he’s not,” he added.

The newspaper is withholding the identity of the man who claimed to be a Ranger because he has not been charged with a crime. The newspaper also was unsuccessful in reaching him for comment after several attempts.

A woman who answered the door of the man’s house on Saturday claimed the man had a military background but declined to provide details. She said the family had no comment on the issue.

Berk, who is studying criminal justice at Temple University, said he noticed the man‘s Army fatigues while he was shopping in a shoe store. But when he got a closer look, Berk said, he noticed “little things” that were off about the man’s appearance — the shoelaces on his boots weren’t right, an American flag patch was in the wrong spot on his sleeve, and he was missing a combat patch.

They are things that most civilians wouldn’t pick up on but that no military veteran would get wrong, Berk said.

What inspired him to confront the man, Berk said, was a 20-minute conversation he overheard during which the alleged soldier told a small boy about his military experiences. Berk received a Purple Heart after he was hit in the face and head with shrapnel while in Afghanistan in 2010.

After the man left the store, Berk turned on his smartphone camera and called him over, claiming his son admired guys in the Army. Berk did not identify himself as an Army veteran until almost at the end of the video, which is 3 minutes, 26 seconds long.

In the video, the alleged Ranger claimed to be a staff sergeant with the 75th U.S. Army Rangers Regiment, 2nd Battalion. He also claimed to have recently returned to the area from Fort Lewis in Washington State, which is where the regiment is stationed.

But the man had trouble answering some basic military service questions including how he received the three Combat Infantrymen Badges he wore, Berk added.

When Berk responded that he would need to be in three different campaigns, the man said that one badge was for service in Iraq and the others for different tours of Afghanistan.

Nurnberg, of the National Infantry Association, confirmed that only one CIB would be awarded for service in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom) and/or Iraq (Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn).

The National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning, Georgia, which tracks Army service personnel with three CIBs, lists only 324 who received the three and the alleged Army Ranger is not on the list. There are four periods for which an award of the badge can be made: World War II, Korea, Vietnam and other Cold War era actions through March 1995 and the War on Terror 2001-present, according to the Army.

“The only three-time earners would have had to serve in World War II, Korea and Vietnam, because nobody who earned one in Korea would have still been active for the desert wars,” Nurnberg added.

Jo Ciavaglia: 215-949-4181; mail: jciavaglia@calkins.com; Twitter: @jociavaglia