Letter to Madison Courier Editor

The Madison Courier OUR VIEW editorial on April 18th, 2012,  stated “but we still don’t know why Armand was fired.” Editor's Note: Had your reporters accurately covered and reported on ALL of the contentious issues raised by the countless victims during these public meetings and verified that Mr. Armand was exposed as misrepresenting the truth in the first place, you would not have asked such a foolhardy question, unless for political reasons. 100 Percent Armand Contrary to the Madison Courier article by Seth Grundhoeffer on 4/18/2012, Sherry Chapo has not led the community movement to have Armand removed from office. This grassroots movement was formed by concerned citizens from all walks of life that joined forces to protect the tornado victims from a predatory health administrator, heavy-highhandedly exerting authority not specifically granted in the State Rules and County Health Codes. In the article, Mr. Armand called the decision to dismiss him “100 percent political” Exactly, what is political about a 7-member board comprised of 4-democrates and 3-republicans voting unanimously to dismiss their hired and not elected administrator for cause? Mr. Armand also claimed this old and tired defense in his prior felony Grand Jury indictment. Mr. Armand further stated “Everything we’ve done has improved (the health department) 100 percent” The fact that only 4 (formal) complaints have been acknowledged by Mr. Armand in almost 30-years of dedicated service to the ungrateful public is proof that his administration has not followed procedures mandated under the State Rules and County Health Ordinances. When a question or forbid a dispute arises, there simply is no record on record. If not for Commissioner, Tom Pietrykowski, the voice of reason and the people, the lack of a responsive appeals process, along with other blatant deficiencies, misrepresentations and downright lies perpetrated on the public by this health department administrator and his staff would never have been exposed to the media and forced to be addressed by the health board. The simple process of applying for a septic permit is overly complicated, burdensome, arbitrary and restricted to a small controlled pool of “approved installers” with an over-inflated price tag worthy of supporting a lucrative personal life style for someone. The health department has enabled this oppressive administrator to negatively impact the economic viability of Jefferson County for decades. As the rest of the nation slowly crawls to recovery, we have reached our day of reckoning. As of April 18th, only 2-septic permit applications are on record in our county for 2012. In comparison, 38 permits were issued in 2011. These numbers speak volumes. Jefferson County has earned the reputation of being a wonderful place to visit, put don’t even think about moving your family or business here. Mr. Armand has been justly dismissed, but the same flawed ordinances and staff trained and contaminated by the current administration remains unchanged. A replacement or interim administrator will be addressed by the Board of Health…

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Denial

Have you been DENIED a Septic Permit or an Installers Permit in Jefferson County? Were you provided a WRITTEN NOTICE from the Jefferson County Health Department (JCHD) of the reason for the denial? Did the Notice provide corrective actions required and the time period allowed to make any such corrections in writing? Did the Health Department make subjective changes that failed to cite governing State Rules or County Ordinances in writing? Were you informed in writing or given a copy of the County Health Ordinance pertaining to the installation of on-site septic systems, which included your right to appeal a denial, including instructions on the process and procedures required to file an appeal (or to report harassment or inappropriate behavior of the Health Department Administrator?) If the answer is NO to any of the above questions, then the Jefferson County Health Department is in violation of not only their own Ordinance, but the governing State Health rules and regulations. You are in fact, an aggrieved party with options. Jefferson County citizens are NOT being served, but exploited by the current Jefferson County Health Department. We must DEMAND accountability from our elected Commissioners and their appointed Board of Health. Immediate action is critical to halt further abuse and harassment of the citizens of Jefferson County at the hand of their hired administrator, Ralph Armand.Mr. Armand, in his official capacity as the administrator of the Jefferson County Health Dept. (JCHD) has been empowered to engaged in unfitting, hostile and harassing conduct with the very citizens and businesses he is hired to serve. For decades, he has strictly controlled a very short list of "approved installers”, making it virtually impossible for new installers to enter the market, resulting in substantially greater costs and limited choices when compared to surrounding counties. Arbitrary permit requirements and denials have been verbally mandated in violation of Indiana Statutes and County Ordinances. By threatening penalties or other coercive actions, such as the arbitrary and unsubstantiated requirement to install a much more expensive system or equipment, Armand and his administration further victimize the citizens for fear of retaliation because a building permit cannot be issued without the prerequisite septic permit. These corrupt business practices violate State and Federal Antitrust laws prohibiting both price-fixing by competitors and monopolization of a market. Aggrieved private individuals or organizations can sue for triple damages for antitrust violations and also recover attorney’s fees ). Denial and failure of our elected and appointed officials to act immediately to protect the citizens of Jefferson County amounts to condoning Mr. Armand's actions. To maintain the status quo unnecessarily exposes the tax payers of Jefferson County to the very real risk of prohibitively expensive litigation, lost commerce and faith and trust in our elected and appointed public officials. Only once you understand the limits imposed on our public servants, can you defend your rights and demand accountability. Jefferson County Code of Ordinances

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Frivolous

The Jefferson County Plan Commission filed this "frivolous complaint" against Sherry J Chapo and Jessie A Chapo on 6/14/2007. At issue is the personal home they legally built in 2003-2004 without a building permit. A private home built by and with their own hands almost 4 years prior and according to Indiana Code 36-7-8-3d (commonly referred as the “Log Cabin Rule“), a home that is exempt from local building ordinances and permit requirements. The Plan Commission failed to prosecute this case in any manner for 2-more years. In the end, the merits of this case were never heard. Finally, in 2009 on the Chapo’s motion the trial court dismissed this case with prejudice. But then in typical Jefferson County fashion, Judge Ted Todd denied their motion for costs and fees. The Appellate Court ruled on this case frivolous in a landmark ruling on 5-5-2010 and remanded it back to the trial court to ascertain the Chapo’s legal costs. An agreed judgment was executed on 9-28-2010 in the amount of $4,680 and finally paid more than 3 months later on 1/19/2011 through the trust account of the county attorney, Will Goering. What a great investment of our tax dollars!

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Public Records

In response the the Chapo’s request for production of documents, the County attempted to extort several hundred dollars in unwarranted copying fees. As a result, the Chapo’s filed a complaint with the Indiana Public Access Counselor on 12-10-2007 In an informal ruling 1-24-2008, the Counselor determined that the Plan Commission violated the Access to Public Records Act (APRA) by charging an excessive fee for copies of zoning ordinances. But that's ok, if the County uses these "unreasonable copying fees" to help settle thier long past due Court ordered settlement to the Chapo family already. [ssg-superb-slideshow=records=250=400=4000=600=0=YES]

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Log Cabin Rule

Here, we visit the elusive “Log Cabin Rule” which applies without limitation to all private homes – not just log cabins, and how it relates to local building/zoning ordinances. In 2003 our family legally built our personal home with our own hands without ever obtaining the alleged prerequisite building permit. Although our home site conformed to all septic system standards, zoning use, and minimum setback requirements at the time, our local health dept., building enforcement, and plan commission begged to differ. So in 2004, we shared our newly acquired knowledge by serving a timely Cease & Desist Notice, which fluently describes the “Log Cabin Rule to our well meaning but misinformed County officials. Dissemination of this particular Indiana Code to our Amish friends and other county citizens upset our questionable County Health Administrator, Mr. Ralph Armand so greatly that he pressured the county into filing a frivolous and unwarranted civil lawsuit against our family. This case was subsequently dismissed with prejudice and ruled frivolous by the Indiana Court of Appeals. Indiana Code Chapter 8, referred to as, IC 36-7-8 Titled “County Building Department and Building Standards” states in IC 36-7-8-1 “This chapter applies to all counties.” Indiana Code IC 36-7-8-3(d) states “An ordinance adopted under this section does not apply to private homes that are built by individuals and used for their own occupancy” (emphasis added.) The Indiana Court of Appeals addressed this issue twice, once in Robinson v. Monroe County, 658 N.E.2d 647, 652 (Ind. Ct. App. 1995) and again in Robinson v. Monroe, 60A04-9506-CV-225 (Ind. Ct. App. 1996). The Indiana Appeals Court (Majority Opinion) denied both, Monroe County and Indiana Fire Prevention and Building Safety Commission (Amicus Curiae)... “... In its early stages, this country’s frontier was moved westward by pioneers who moved onto land and built houses made from the materials at hand. Since then, home owning has become an essential facet of the “American dream”. It may be argued that ordinances such as those contemplated by Indiana Code IC 36-7-8-3, which establishes construction specifications and require permits and inspections for residential construction projects, interfere with the ability of some individuals to build their own home and thus to pursue the American dream. Building codes and ordinances may conceivably discourage or impede such individuals from building their own houses. A private individual building his own house may not possess the skills necessary to construct a building which complies with the technical specifications set out in the ordinances. In addition, an individual may not be able to afford to hire professionals or others to build a house. Therefore, exempting a person who wishes to build his own house from the requirements imposed pursuant to IC 36-7-8-3 of complying with construction specifications and obtaining permits allows that person to build a house even though he may not possess the skills or equipment to comply with technical specifications, and allows him to do so even if he…

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