D.A.: Litigious Bucks man faked disabilities

James George Douris once told a Bucks County Court judge that his physical disabilities prevented him from retrieving court papers left on his front door, authorities say.

Now, he'll have to explain how he managed to use his leaf blower while standing on the roof.

In charges announced Wednesday, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office said Douris, 59, of Upper Makefield Township, lied in court under oath about his disabilities, evidently to help his case.

In fact, authorities said, Douris - an unemployed veteran who in May testified that he had trouble walking, writing, and holding a glass of water - has been spotted during the last several years performing a variety of physical tasks, from blowing leaves, to standing on a ladder and painting his house, and unloading his wheelchair from his SUV before a court hearing.

Douris' alleged disabilities earned him international attention in 2010, after Commonwealth Court rejected his argument that food stamps should be awarded to his service dog, which Douris said pulled him in his wheelchair.

"This is a mistake on the part of the court," Douris told the Associated Press at the time.

The charges announced Wednesday by District Attorney David Heckler stem from more recent court appearances. Douris was charged with two counts each of perjury and false swearing, and one of tampering or fabricating false evidence.

In November 2011, authorities said, Douris submitted invoices from a nonexistent company as evidence in a trial to try to show that a tree service he hired had caused at least $5,000 in damages.

In a separate case in May, authorities said, Douris testified that his ailments left him unable to retrieve court papers delivered to his front door.

In their affidavit of probable cause, police listed more than a dozen instances over two years in which Douris allegedly performed a variety of physical activities out of his wheelchair. Beyond the leaf-blowing, house-painting, and wheelchair-carrying, authorities spotted him sealing his driveway and running as a child chased him around a backyard play set, they said.

Officials said that many of these incidents were captured in photographs, which were distributed Wednesday.

Heckler said Douris, who has filed nearly 30 combined lawsuits and appeals in the federal court system, "has been running around doing preposterous things for years and years."

After a 2009 rainstorm, for example, authorities said Douris secured an insurance claim of nearly $200,000 for damage to his home. One of his claims was for $50,000 to cover the loss of a "service cat" that he said reminded him when he needed to take medications, according to authorities.

A few years earlier, in 2004, Douris filed a federal lawsuit saying he was unable to apply for a job with Bucks County because the bathroom facilities in the courthouse lacked bidets and other features necessary to accommodate his disabilities.

Douris, who was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon, could not be reached for comment. He was released on $200,000 unsecured bail, authorities said. It was not immediately known whether he had an attorney.