Town on own against Amish
MORRISTOWN — The town's appeal for help in prosecuting the Amish had fallen on deaf ears by Friday, while the defense found the backing of a heavy hitter.
Town officials said they've fielded no offers of help since sending a letter March 17 to newspapers across the state with hopes that public pressure would convince state legislators and the Department of State to provide financial and technical support in dealing with 10 pending trials.
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty weighed in by accusing the town of discriminatory enforcement. The international law firm includes Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, and former U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr on its board of advisers. It intervened at the request of the St. Lawrence County assistant public defender assigned to the case.
"I needed to reach out to people who know about this," said Steven G. Ballan. "It's just extremely difficult to reinvent the wheel. I reached out to where there was expertise in the area."
The nonprofit faxed a five-page letter that echoes many of the points Mr. Ballan has argued in the past six months, among them that the town is selectively enforcing the law against the Amish to effectively force them from the community even though the municipality stands no loss if the conservative religious group is left alone.
Ten members of the faith's strict Swartzentruber sect have been charged since 2006 with building or moving homes without a permit. The citations center on Amish refusal to install smoke detectors or get building plans approved by a state-certified engineer and allow the town code enforcement officer to inspect homes. The Amish say the requirements violate their religious tenet to avoid modernization.
Trials will be expensive. The town was billed $4,262.50 by attorney Andrew W. Silver for all legal services from late December to the end of January. The bulk of that is for work on the Amish cases, town officials said. The town budgeted $8,000 for 2008 legal fees.
Town councilors say they must enforce codes because turning a blind eye to the Amish will create unfair enforcement. Building codes are set by state law but enforced by towns, villages and cities.
Deputy Town Supervisor W. Howard Warren said Friday that he was not frustrated by the lack of response. The town has time, he said.
"The whole thing has taken a long time — no point in hurrying anything," he said.
Town Judge James T. Phillips Jr. is considering motions to dismiss the charges.
