Investigation Into Whether Pennsbury School Board Member Is Living In Myrtle Beach Ends

A Bucks County District Attorney’s office investigation into the primary residence of a Pennsbury School Board member has concluded.

Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler said Wednesday afternoon in a phone interview that an investigation by his office has determined Pennsbury School Board member Debbie DeBlasio is living in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. A statement to the media was released shortly after and contained a list of public information about DeBlasio’s residence.

The district attorney said he did not plan to pursue legal action against DeBlasio but would approve a quo warranto action brought against the Pennsbury School Board Region 3 member.

An online legal dictionary described a quo warranto action as a “legal proceeding during which an individual’s right to hold an office or governmental privilege is challenged.”

In early December, the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office began an investigation into whether DeBlasio was living full-time in Falls Township or Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The investigation began after her real estate job posted a profile with statements that sounded like she had moved down south. In an interview with LevittownNow.com, DeBlasio said she was still a Falls resident and was just “test driving” a move to South Carolina.

“Her secondary residence appeared to be in Falls Township,” Heckler said via phone Wednesday. “Ms. DeBlasio was less than forthcoming.”

DeBlasio when reached on the phone Wednesday evening said her Falls Township house is her primary address.

“I know where I live,”she said.

Former Pennsbury school director and Lower Makefield resident Simon Campbell sent a letter to Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler in December on the subject of DeBlasio’s place of residence.

“I respectfully ask that the law be enforced and Mrs. DeBlasio [be] removed from her position as Pennsbury School Director,” Campbell wrote in the letter received by Heckler.

Heckler assigned Larry King, a former Philadelphia Inquirer reporter and consultant for the district attorney, to investigate DeBlasio after the investigation was initiated.

Following a thorough search of public records, King discovered DeBlasio and her husband, Wayne, had listed their newly-constructed home in South Carolina as their primary residence in mortgage papers. King also discovered a second mortgage taken out on their Falls Township home on Olds Boulevard that the couple listed it as their “second home.” Further documents showed, DeBlasio’s husband filed to move his business to South Carolina and she had filed for her South Carolina real estate license. It was noted by King that DeBlasio wrote in paperwork that she was a “non-resident of the State of South Carolina.”

Below is the information laid out by Heckler:

DeBlasio told LevittownNow.com that she pays a non-resident fee in South Carolina and stated the Wayne Edward DeBlasio listed in the district attorney’s statement is her son who moved to South Carolina. Her husband’s name is also Wayne.

“How can you do an investigation if [the investigator] never contacted me? Not a phone call, a letter or anything,” she said.

Campbell said Wednesday evening that “the facts as investigated speak loud and clear.”

Below is the rest of Campbell’s statement:

My sense from reading the DA’s report is that our District Attorney suspects this to be the case but it would be a technical challenge to prove it in court which is why the DA is unwilling to commit resources to the endeavor; yet would approve someone else bringing a case. Ultimately it’s a joke that Mrs.Deblasio calls into government meetings from South Carolina. Maybe her constituents need to catch a flight to Myrtle Beach to book time seeing their local representative? The fact that Mrs. Deblasio admits to moving to South Carolina to escape the property taxes at Pennsbury while voting to raise them on her constituents is disturbing.

While DeBlasio has technically attended most of the school board’s meetings via telephone, which is legal, she has not physically been seated with the rest of the board at the majority of the meetings.

The state school board code states board members must live in their district and region in order to be able to serve.

Board solicitor Peter C. Amuso said last month the board could not take action on the matter at the time. He continued by stating the outcome was in the hands of Heckler.

“Relocating to Myrtle Beach was one of the best decisions I ever made,” DeBlasio wrote in a Realtor.com profile.

On her personal Facebook profile, DeBlasio states she lives in Fairless Hills.

“We were living in what we thought was our ‘dream house’ when we built it, but as we got more into our 50’s, we realized that paying $600 a month in property taxes would be a nightmare on a fixed income,” she wrote in her Realtor.com profile.

DeBlasio said in December taxes are among several reasons she is considering moving south.

DeBlasio also serves as a chairperson for the Township of Falls Authority (TOFA). According to meeting minutes for early 2014, she attended the reorganization meeting in person and attended later meetings via Skype and telephone.

Several years back, DeBlasio’s husband was involved in a similar issue when he was representing Region 2 in Pennsbury when he actually was living in Region 3. The issue was settled before a judge.

DeBlasio, who came into office in December 2013, said she plans to attend Thursday night’s Pennsbury School Board meeting in person and does not intend to resign.

Click here to read the district attorney’s multi-page press release about the matter.