A former Altoona man last week filed a federal civil rights complaint in Johnstown seeking release from the Blair County Prison where, he stated, he was being held on high bond for “minor traffic violations and a single misdemeanor offense.”

Robert David Ranger, 50, contended his $50,000 bond for his alleged offenses was “excessive,” and he argued in his federal complaint that Blair County officials are refusing to grant him a hearing.

He added, “Continued detention without a hearing is a constitutional suspension of habeas corpus,” and he emphasized that in his case federal intervention is appropriate.

Ranger noted that he initially sought court review of his case by a Blair County judge on Sept. 2 after spending more than four months in prison following his arrest on May 23 for traffic-related offenses.

The Blair County Court of Common Pleas has so far refused to give him a hearing on his request for release, which is why he now is seeking review at the federal level.

He argued in his complaint his Fourth Amendment rights have been violated because his arrest lacked probable cause.

His Fifth Amendment right to “due process” also has been violated, according to Ranger.

Ranger names as defendants in his complaint Blair County President Judge Wade A. Kagarise, District Attorney Pete Weeks, the Blair County Clerk of Courts Robin Patton and prison Warden Matthew Hale.

While Ranger’s federal lawsuit was filed on Feb. 9, the prison reported that Ranger is no longer an inmate there, noting he was sent recently to a State Correctional Institution.

The Pennsylvania Inmate Locator does not list what prison is now home for Ranger, but there is a notation in court records that he was sent to SCI Phoenix in Montgomery County.

In 2011, a Blair County judge sentenced Ranger to serve a term of 20 to 40 years for drug-related convictions, but the lengthy sentence was overturned by the Superior Court because his trial attorney filed a post-trial appeal.

In being resentenced after nine years in prison, Ranger and his appeals attorney were able to persuade Senior Judge Jolene B. Kopriva that Ranger was “a different person” and that his sentence should be cut in half.

His attorney argued that he initially received a 20- to 40-year sentence pursuant to Pennsylvania’s mandatory sentencing scheme, which the attorney argued was unconstitutional.

He was re-sentenced in 2019 to a 10-year minimum, although then-Assistant District Attorney Weeks, in an Altoona Mirror article, stated he was “extremely disappointed” with the much lighter sentence.

Weeks could not be reached for comment concerning Ranger’s federal lawsuit that stemmed from his arrest last May.

The charges he faces in Blair County include: driving an unregistered vehicle; his registration card allegedly was not signed; the misuse of a license plate; driving without a license; failure to carry a license; driving while his license was suspended; operating a vehicle without the required financial responsibility; speeding; and operating a vehicle without a valid inspection sticker for not having evidence of emission inspection.

The misdemeanor charge against Ranger is for obstructing the administration of law.

State court records show the case is awaiting “Call of the List” in the Court of Common Pleas.

Jury selection in his Blair County case was continued on Feb. 10.

First Assistant Public Defender Julia Burke has been assigned to represent Ranger, but, at the moment, Ranger is seeking to represent himself.