Highland Twp. Supervisor waives hearing on environmental crimes charges

November 23, 2012

Charles M. Vaughn Jr.

JOHNSONBURG – A Highland Township supervisor and sewage treatment plant operator for the James City Sewage Treatment Plant waived his preliminary hearing in District Court 59-3-02 Wednesday on charges that he violated environmental laws in allegedly falsifying environmental reports and discharging some 10 million gallons of raw sewage from the treatment plant into a nearby stream.
The investigation into Charles M. Vaughn Jr., 75, of James City, by agents from the Office of Attorney General was initiated after a referral from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) alleging Vaughn had falsified data on reports measuring the levels of pollutants being discharged from the James City sewage treatment plant and had illegally released 10 million gallons of waste water into an unnamed stream leading to Wolf Run spring from 2007 through 2010.