(8/25) During the August 8 Liberty Township Board of Supervisors meeting, residents voiced their concerns over the latest news regarding the LeeEsta Shaffer investigation. Township Solicitor John Lisko announced that the District Attorney has refused to prosecute LeeEsta Shaffer. "In his opinion," stated Lisko "this is a civil matter. [Special Counsel] Mr. Zachary Mills presented the case in the best light that he was able to, but the District Attorney refused to prosecute."

Lisko continued on to state that any questions concerning this decision should be directed to the District Attorney’s office. Lisko closed his comments by informing residents that they may file charges personally, but he assured residents that the township is aggressively pursuing the claims with the two bonding companies. When asked what Supervisors would do about this decision and the Shaffer investigation as a whole, Supervisor John Bostek responded by stating "We can only say so much at these public meetings." Resident Cindy Arentz spoke up to inform Supervisors that she was going to launch a campaign to reach out to the District Attorney’s office. She, along with a few other residents in the township would spend the next few days attempting to contact the District Attorney to find answers. "If you aren’t going to do your job, I’ll do it for you," stated Arentz.

Later, in a phone conversation with District Attorney Brian Sinnett, it was discussed and emphasized that he has made no official decision not to file charges against Shaffer, nor did he refuse to prosecute Shaffer; he only made the decision not to file right now. In other words, it’s not an ultimate decision. Contradictory to what was stated by Lisko in the early August meeting, Sinnett stated that he has not "refused" the case and never told Mills or Lisko such. Sinnett noted that the statute of limitations is not yet expired and can be viewed, in this case, as an ongoing investigation. As described, cases involving theft can be viewed as ongoing in many cases. If the money stolen has not yet been returned, which in the case of Liberty Township it has not, then the case is still considered open.

Sinnett also clarified that he never once stated that this case was to be viewed as a civil matter, not a criminal matter, as was discussed by Solicitors and Supervisors to residents. As described by Sinnett, some cases, however, can be filed as criminal and civil at the same time, certainly; this case may be an example of just that.

At the end of the conversation Sinnett stated that he needs additional information in order to continue this investigation and potentially pursue charges against Shaffer; at the present time he does not have sufficient evidence to file criminal charges. The specific information needed from the township was not disclosed during the conversation.

A week later, during the August 21 Board of Supervisors workshop meeting, Supervisor John Bostek read a letter received by the District Attorney’s office stating that the investigation is still ongoing. Bostek noted that the discrepancies in information between the early August meeting and this meeting could "only be attributed to misunderstandings in communication." Lisko chimed in to thank citizens for launching the campaign to reach out to the Attorney in regards to the investigation status. "Sometimes citizens who vote hold more leverage than Supervisors," stated Lisko. Bostek ended this portion of the meeting by stating that at the township level, they are open to any questions the state police wish to ask.