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State officials have temporarily halted plans to open a group home for developmentally disabled sex offenders in Phelan, saying they could not guarantee residents' safety because of the strong outcry from angry neighbors.
Tuesday's decision came only hours after the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors voted to sue the state to stop the facility from opening in the tiny desert community.
The home, the first of its kind in California, has triggered protests by Phelan residents who say the sex offenders would pose a threat to their children and families.
"It's a flimsy, no-security facility," said Supervisor Bill Postmous, who represents the Phelan area. "It's not right and it won't be tolerated by this board."
Postmous said the county's lawsuit would charge that the state's Department of Developmental Services and the operator of the home -- Phoenix Programs Inc. of Concord -- are planning to open a "criminal detention facility" using a state law meant to establish group homes for the disabled. The lawsuit will be filed in the next two weeks.
The group home, located off a dirt road, was scheduled to open March 8 but has remained empty since residents began protesting and holding vigils to prevent the facility from opening.
One of the loudest protests took place Tuesday, when radio talk show hosts John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou from KFI-AM...