LISBON - Columbiana County Municipal Court Judge Mark Frost will determine whether the Humane Society of Columbiana County has the authority to investigate animal abuse claims and file criminal charges.

The issue is at the center of a motion filed by Don Vos, who was found guilty of cruelty of animals but is now claiming the humane society, as it is currently incorporated, lacked the legal authority to charge him in the first place.

Vos is no stranger to controversy, having served as the leader of the former county militia organization during its heyday in the 1990s. Over the years, Vos has represented himself in court on other matters and acted as his own attorney during Friday's hearing, where he laid out his legal reasoning for why he should be allowed to withdraw his plea and have the charges against him dropped.

The controversy dates back to earlier this year, when Vos, 55, Hazel Run Road, Hammondsville, was charged with animal abuse because his two horses were not being taken care of properly. In April, he pleaded no contest to the charges, was found guilty and fined $100, ordered to pay $334 to the humane society, and prohibited from owning or possessing domestic animals.

Two weeks later, Vos filed a motion asking for permission to withdraw his plea and the charges against him be dismissed. The crux of his argument is the humane society was incorporated under the wrong section of Ohio law. Therefore, any actions it took were illegal.

According to documentation Vos provided, the organization was incorporated as a non-profit group in 2001 under the name of the Salem Humane Society Inc., operating as the county Humane Society. The problem, as Vos sees it, is the group should have incorporated under the state law specifically created for county humane societies if the organization wanted the law-enforcement powers that go with being a county humane society.

"They are not a county humane society. They are a non-profit corporation," he said.

Failure to incorporate under the correct section of law means the organization had no authority to have someone come on his property, let alone bring any charges, Vos said.

"Since they were not within the Ohio Revised Code, they have no powers to arrest anyone ... They are not a legitimate county humane society," he said. "What about the other people in this county who have been persecuted by this organization?"

Vos' interpretation of the law was disputed by attorney Jeff Holland, representing the humane society. Holland has represented county humane societies around Ohio and all have incorporated under the same section of law as the local group.

Holland also argued even if Vos is correct, all of the information was available to him prior to when he decided to plead no contest to the charges, and therefore, no grounds exists to grant his request to withdraw his plea.

Vos said the only reason he allowed the humane officer on his property in the first place is because she showed up in a vehicle with the same black-and-gold colors and markings of a county sheriff's cruiser, which led him to conclude they were a legitimate humane officer. He said the person also flashed a badge.

Vos later spoke with county Sheriff Ray Stone about the matter. Stone, who just took over last September, was unaware his predecessor gave the organization permission to use the office's markings on its vehicle and allowed a previous humane officer to be deputized. Stone responded by advising the organization to remove all signs that might lead the public to believe they are affiliated with the sheriff's office.

Vos said he only went ahead with the plea after being assured by an assistant county prosecutor that the organization had incorporated under the section of law that applies to humane societies. It was only afterwards that Vos decided to check for himself and discovered the humane society was registered under the wrong section of law.

Judge Frost is giving both sides until July 13 to submit follow-up written arguments, after which he will make a decision.