Lewis County ATV Law

A judge has begrudgingly thrown out a five-year-old lawsuit seeking annulment of a 2009 law opening Lewis County roads to all-terrain vehicles, citing lack of legal standing.

The Johnston Newspaper group reports

Jefferson County Family Court Judge Peter Schwerzmann, (SWARZ man)  serving as an acting Supreme Court justice, in a five-page decision filed Friday in the Lewis County clerk’s office ruled that plaintiffs Bradford Pettit, a resident of Sweeney Road in the town of Greig, and Lonnie Kapfer, a resident of Lee Road in the town of Turin, do not have legal standing in the case. County legislators in 2011 amended the law to remove the plaintiffs’ roads from the county ATV system. However, that amended law never closed Lee Road, and that road remains part of the system, according to the online trail map. As such, ATV travel is still allowed past Mr. Kapfer’s house. The discrepancy appears to leave a path to appeal the ruling.  In his decision, Judge Schwerzmann did express some frustration at not being able to delve into the merits of the case.