Is the push to impeach Quincy Township's Kerry Bumbaugh just a political show?
Dwight Weidman  Columnist  For anyone who does not follow local news very closely, there has been a real mess developing in, of all places, Quincy Township, where a financial scandal has township government in turmoil. The Vice-President of the Supervisor Board, Kerry Bumbaugh, was arrested on 17 charges involving the theft of over $150,000 of township funds for his personal use. All but four of the charges are felonies. About two months after Bumbaughs arrest, former Township Water Department employee Travis Schooley was also arrested, for allegedly being involved in the same scheme. Schooley was charged with three felonies and one misdemeanor. Amid all this drama, the President of the Supervisor Board, Bob Gunder, has resigned, although according to the board meeting minutes, he is still engaged in a minor township function or two. It is important to note that Gunder has not been charged with any crimes. It all looks bad, awfully bad, for Bumbaugh and Schooley, who will both soon face formal arraignment. The PA Attorney Generals Office, who did the investigation with the cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, has laid out a very complete and damning case against the two which resulted in their indictment by a grand jury. One important aspect of this whole mess is that Supervisor Bumbaugh has refused to resign from the Township Board while his case is being adjudicated, and this has created an opening for some local politicians to jump into the fray. Paul Schemel, Representative of PAs 90th District, has introduced HR 117, which would kick off the impeachment process of Bumbaugh with the expressed purpose of removing him from office, even though he has not yet been convicted of a crime. The Pennsylvania House Judiciary Committee, under Chairman Rob Kauffman, passed Schemels resolution to start impeachment proceedings against Bumbaugh. HR 117 must go to the whole House of Representatives for approval before the House can begin an impeachment investigation. Following an investigation, the House can impeach Bumbaugh and send the impeachment to the State Senate, two-thirds of whom must vote in the affirmative to remove Bumbaugh from office. Keep in mind that all of this would take place during or more likely before Mr. Bumbaugh would have his day in court, which begs the question: Is any of this really necessary?, and even more importantly, what about the presumption of innocence for Kerry Bumbaugh?  Arrest:Attorney General, FBI charge Franklin County Township Supervisor with stealing $150,000  Impeachment inquiry:State lawmakers seek to impeach Quincy Township official charged with fraud, theft  Under our adversarial system of justice, Presumption of Innocence is the bedrock principle that an individual is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. Representative Schemel wants to throw the book at Bumbaugh before all the facts of the case come out. Sure, the grand jury report and indictment look very damning, but any lawyer will tell you that you can indict a ham sandwich, especially because the defense is practically non-existent during grand jury proceedings. A grand jury exists to come up with charges against an individual, period, and is not concerned with justice. Representative Schemel said, My concern is Mr. Bumbaugh remains in a position through which he could continue to misuse township resources. Id hope that he would resign, but if not, these impeachment proceedings are warranted, and Judiciary Committee Chair Rob Kauffman, said in light of the detailed grand jury report he is "gravely concerned" about Bumbaugh staying in office. Just as an aside, I find it particularly rich when two members of the Harrisburg swamp are suddenly so concerned with public resources being misused! Again, do not get me wrong. I am not defending Bumbaugh, Schooley, or anyone else who might be involved in any alleged scheme to defraud the taxpayers, but like anyone else, the defendants are entitled to their day in court with an opportunity to present evidence and defend themselves. In America, we are not supposed to hand out punishment based on accusations alone. Any legislative impeachment process would be a political sham that could prejudice the legal proceedings against the accused and should not go forward. Let the Justice system work. Politicians who feel electorally vulnerable should not usurp the role of the courts in order to distract from their own record of legislative failure. Dwight Weidman is a resident of Greene Township and is a graduate of Shepherd University. He is retired from the United States Department of Defense. His career included assignments In Europe, Asia and Central America. He has been in leadership roles for the Republican Party in two states, most recently serving two terms as Chairman of the Franklin County Republican Party. He has been involved in web publishing since 1996 and is publisher of The Franklin County Journal. He has been an Amateur Radio Operator since 1988, getting his first license in Germany. He is a past volunteer with both Navy and Army MARS, Military Auxiliary Radio Service, and is also an NRA-Certified Firearms Instructor.