CLEARFIELD – Due to an injunction handed down by Clearfield County Judge Paul E. Cherry on Tuesday, Discovery House drug treatment facility will cease to operate in Pike Township, effective immediately.
Cherry heard from attorneys representing both Pike Township and Discovery House, as well as building inspector Brian Wruble from Guardian Inspection Services and David Piccoli II, president and CEO of Discovery House.
After a fire destroyed their main building in January 2006, Discovery House began operating out of an existing trailer and one that was moved onto the site after the fire. The existing trailer had a temporary occupancy permit and the newer trailer was operating under a verbal agreement of six months.
Kim Kesner, on behalf of Pike Township, presented to the court an order to vacate issued to Discovery House on July 27, 2006. Carleton Strouss, counsel for Discovery House, argued that, for various reasons, the order to vacate was not valid.
“Discovery House comes to you today with a straight face and tells you an order to vacate is not an order to vacate,” said Kesner to Cherry. “From last July, Discovery House has had no lawful basis for utilizing those trailers for treatment.”
One of Strouss’s arguments was that there would be harm to patients of Discovery House if treatment was interrupted. Strouss also brought up the fact that the facility will be changing locations to Lawrence Township in the future.
However, Piccoli, under oath, could not give an exact date as to when that might happen. He stated that they were close, but that he could not control what utility companies, contractors or weather might do.
Strouss argued that should an injunction be granted on behalf of Pike Township, a grace period be enacted to give the facility time to work with their patients to direct them elsewhere for treatment.
Cherry said he that the order to vacate was a valid order, and that an appeal made by the Discovery House on the order did not stay the order. Cherry said that he felt that Discovery House was making every effort to relocate, but that it was not enough.
After Cherry announced the injunction, he left the bench. Strouss asked him about a grace period. As he was leaving the courtroom the judge replied that there was no grace period mentioned in his order.
