School Bus Firm Suspends Constable Charged with Shaking Down Amish

AJ Myers and Sons has suspended a part-time bus driver charged with bilking Amish families living in Mercer and Lawrence counties out of thousands of dollars by claiming he was investigating damage to an Amish schoolhouse in Mercer County.

Kurt Scheidemantle, manager for the Myers school bus terminal in Harmony, said Glenn Young Jr. was pulled Wednesday from his usual morning route transporting students living within the to St. Alphonsus Catholic School in Pine Township.

Although the students do not attend Seneca Valley, the district is responsible for their transportation because they live within Seneca Valley's borders. Young will not be paid during the suspension, Scheidemantle said. 

Young, 63, of New Brighton, was elected as a New Sewickley constable in Beaver County in 2009. He is charged with official oppression, impersonating a public servant and theft in the Amish-school incident. Scheidemantle said he did not know how long Young had been working for the bus company.

An ex-New Sewickley police officer, Young approached Amish community leaders in October 2011 and led them to believe he was conducting an investigation into a Springfield Township, Mercer County schoolhouse that Amish youth damaged during a social event, state police said. The damage included broken windows and overturned desks.

Young identified the Amish who were at the gathering and began conducting traffic stops where he would search the youths’ buggies for contraband, police said.

Young also approached the families of the youths and threatened them with jail time if they didn’t pay fines for damage to the building. In total, Young collected $2,450 in bogus fines from Amish leaders, police said.

Damage to the school was estimated at $92, which later was donated to the school by an Amish resident.

Scheidemantle said Young was suspended from driving with AJ Myers until a trial concludes. At that time, Myers representatives would sit down with Seneca Valley officials to discuss the next move, he said.

Seneca Valley contracts its bus service with AJ Myers. The company also provides bussing for the Mars Area, Franklin Regional, Armstrong and Woodland Hills school district. Scheidemantle said he became aware of the situation with Young after reading newspaper reports of the constable’s arrest. 

Young is scheduled to appear Sept. 18 before Lawrence County District Judge Scott A. McGrath in New Castle for a preliminary hearing.

This isn’t the first time Young has gotten in trouble with the law.

According to the Beaver County Times, Young was pressured to resign from the New Sewickley Township police department in 2004 after being accused of insubordination, conduct unbecoming an officer and violating department policies.

That same year, he filed reports about two attempted child luring incidents in Mars, The Times reports. The Butler County district attorney later said the incidents never occurred, and Young, who ran for a seat as a township supervisor in 2005, said the dispute was politically motivated, according to The Times.

Young also is a familiar face to many in the area through his "Knight Rider" program. Inspired by the 1980s television series, the nonprofit is dedicated to keeping kids safe.

In April 2011, he for a fundraising event. Dressed in a costume that resembled a state trooper uniform, Young brought with him was his “K.I.D” car, a miniature version of the K.I.T.T car driving by David Hasselhoff in the Knight Rider series.

Proceeds from the basketball “shoot out” at the store, which closed last year, benefited Young’s program.