The fate of a 630-watt FM radio station atop Mt. Hunsrick, serving Somerset County, Pa., is once again cloudy. Faced with a Hearing Designation Order that will put his continued ability to own the station in the hands of FCC Administrative Law Judge Jane Hinckley Halprin, Roger Wahl was all but expected to participate in a pre-hearing conference scheduled for Thursday (1/13).
That didn’t happen, and Hinckley isn’t pleased. As such, what the future holds for WQZS-FM 93.3 in Meyersdale, Pa., may come quicker than anticipated. And, it is likely not good for Wahl.
As RBR+TVBR reported in early December, the path to the January 13, 2022, status conference on the matter involving Wahl and WQZS was bumpy in and of itself. On December 1, a two-page Termination Order was released by Halprin’s office, based on the belief that Wahl had failed to file a timely written appearance in his Hearing Designation Order. Forty-eight hours later, Halprin rescinded the Order, putting his status in regard to his ability to run WQZS back to “pending.”
Still, Wahl’s chances of overcoming the lurid felony convictions that have attracted substantial regional press attention were slim. As a final opportunity to prove his worth as a licensee, he was asked to respond to an Order to Show Cause and Notice of Opportunity for Hearing. The goal: to determine whether Wahl is qualified to be and to remain a holder of WQZS’s license. Wahl was convicted of a felony and multiple misdemeanors under the Pennsylvania Crimes Code and charged with voyeurism and soliciting men to establish rape of a female.
On December 10, the January 13, 2022, date was established for a status conference. The parties were ordered to submit a proposed schedule of the case and other relevant materials in writing on or before Tuesday (1/11). The conference was to be conducted via an online platform accessible to all parties, and it was indicated that specific login instructions would be provided to the parties separately.
A week before the conference was to be held, a representative of the FCC’s Office of
Administrative Law Judges contacted Wahl at the e-mail address that he previously gave the agency to make preliminary arrangements for his participation in the online conference. Wahl did not respond.
Another employee in the ALJ office emailed Wahl on Monday (1/10). He responded, noting that he would be unable to attend the January 13 conference.
Why? He said his appearance would not be possible “due to a medical procedure.”
Halprin’s response was blunt, noting that Wahl was put on notice that the proceeding “is to be conducted in a formalized manner” and that “dates and deadlines established throughout this proceeding are not suggestions.”
While the Commission’s rules include procedures for requesting extensions of time if
circumstances warrant, a party who does not make such a request and simply ignores a deadline “is in significant danger of being held in default,” Halprin noted.
She didn’t stop there. Noting that Wahl received notice of the January 13 conference more than a month ago and didn’t respond in any way to the FCC until Monday, “[Wahl] has wasted the time of the Presiding Judge and her staff, the Enforcement Bureau, and the court reporting service that was engaged to prepare a transcript of the conference.”
With the pre-hearing conference cancelled, what’s next? Scheduling and discovery information obligations were annulled; a decision regarding the ongoing consideration of the hearing proceeding will be issued “at a later date.”
That said, it can’t be good for Wahl. Should Halprin rule that WQZS be deleted and Wahl be stripped of his license, the decision heads to the full Commission, which will then rule on the matter and seal Wahl’s fate. Until then, listeners may likely still hear him in morning drive on his station serving an area due east of Pittsburgh.
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With A License Loss Looming, A Pastor Fights For WQZS
