SPARTANSBURG, Pa. (AP) — The mayor of a small Pennsylvania town is standing by its volunteer fire company's re-election of a registered sex offender as its fire chief. 
 
 Chief Roger Gilbert Jr. was convicted in 2001 of sexual intercourse with a 4-year-old girl and is listed in the state's Megan's Law database, The (Corry) Journal reported Saturday . Court records show Gilbert is a felon who completed a five- to 10-year sentence for "involuntary deviate sexual intercourse." 
 
 Mayor Ann Louise Wagner says she and firefighters have been aware that Gilbert, an unpaid volunteer with the department since 2010, is a sex offender. He was just elected to his second term. 
 
 "I support the fire department and their decision to have him as chief," Wagner told the Journal. "The firemen have always elected their own officers and that's how it's always been done. We don't question their decisions." 
 
 The victim's mother told the newspaper that she doesn't believe he should be in a job where he could interact with children. 
 
 But Gilbert, now 43, told the Journal he has changed his life for the better since committing the crime in 2000 in the nearby city of Corry. 
 
 "That was 20 years ago," Gilbert said. "You know, the story you are telling kids is once you make mistake, you will be punished for the rest of your life. I've changed my life for the better. Every day I get up and try to do good." 
 
 State police said it is up to each individual community to decide whether to allow sex offenders who have completed their sentences to serve in an office at the local level. 
 
 About 300 people live in Spartansburg, which is about 40 miles (65 kilometers) southeast of Erie, Pennsylvania. 
 
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 This story has been corrected to say that Gilbert was convicted, not pleaded guilty. 
 
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 Information from: The Journal, http://www.corrypa.com/journal ||||| A registered sex offender has resigned after being elected to a second term as volunteer fire chief of his small Pennsylvania town. 
 
 Roger L. Gilbert Jr. had been a volunteer fireman in Spartansburg, Crawford County, since 2010, and was recently re-elected as the department's chief. As The Corry Journal pointed out, Gilbert is registered in Pennsylvania's Megan's Law database for a 2001 conviction of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse. 
 
 The victim was a 4-year-old girl, the newspaper reported, and Gilbert served a five- to- 10-year sentence. The victim's mother said Gilbert shouldn't be in a position where he can interact with children. 
 
 Gilbert was re-elected by other volunteer firefighters, not the public at-large, in Spartansburg, about 40 miles southeast of Erie. 
 
 Despite Gilbert's status as a felon, Mayor Ann Louise Wagner originally said she supported the department's decision to have him as chief, saying the town's officials will not interfere with how firemen elect their own officers. 
 
 Gilbert initially told the newspaper that the conviction was a long time ago and that he has changed for the better. 
 
 "You know, the story you are telling kids is once you make mistake, you will be punished for the rest of your life. I've changed my life for the better. Every day I get up and try to do good," he said. 
 
 Around the same time the story of Gilbert's re-election made national news, he stepped down from the post. According to the Associated Press, he quit Sunday, a day after the original report came out about his prior conviction. ||||| Leechburg Police Chief Michael Diebold, left, tries out his new prosthetic on Sept. 6, 2017, as certified prosthetists Peter Leimkuehler and Bob Dobson III look on. Diebold has since been accused of soliciting sex from a teenage girl online. (Andrew Russell/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review via AP) 
 
 Just six months ago, after Michael Diebold lost his left hand and part of his arm in a fireworks accident, he became a local celebrity. 
 
 The police chief of the small Pennsylvania town of Leechburg drew sympathy from community members, some of whom raised funds to help with Diebold’s medical expenses. A church hosted a fundraising dinner, while others sold T-shirts that said: “We Stand By Ours. #teamdiebold1565.” 
 
 Just 18 days after the accident, Diebold got married and about 200 people attended the ceremony. He smiled at his bride, who was dressed in an off-the-shoulder white dress, as she placed a wedding band on his right ring finger, and attendees raised their phones to catch the moment. 
 
 Diebold made the news again recently. This time, he wasn’t smiling — and it’s unlikely that anyone in the town of 2,000 was. 
 
 The 40-year-old has been accused of soliciting sex from a teenage girl online. He was arrested Friday on felony charges, including unlawful contact with a minor and criminal attempt to commit involuntary deviate sexual intercourse. Both are first-degree felonies. 
 
 [Ex-mayor charged in 4-year-old’s rape said girl was a willing participant, records say] 
 
 
 
 Michael Diebold. (Westmoreland County Prison) 
 
 “This case is particularly heinous because the perpetrator is a public official, sworn to serve and protect the community,” state Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a statement. “We have a zero tolerance for the sexual abuse of children and my office will prosecute any offender to the fullest extent of the law, no matter who they are.” 
 
 The arrest followed an investigation that involved an undercover officer who posed as a 14-year-old girl, authorities said. The investigation began after Diebold, using the username KuteCop4You, posted an ad on a social-media app, CBS affiliate KDKA reported, citing the criminal complaint. Authorities said he and the undercover agent talked multiple times, with Diebold sending inappropriate photos and asking to meet for sex. 
 
 Diebold was arrested after he showed up at the meeting location. He then admitted that he’d been posting personal ads online for several years and acknowledged talking about sex with the purported 14-year-old, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported, citing the complaint. 
 
 “Diebold admitted that he knew that sexual contact with a 14-year-[old] child was wrong and illegal and that his life was totally over,” the complaint said. 
 
 Leechburg Mayor Wayne Dobos said the allegations shocked many in the town, including him, who did not know that Diebold may have had a secret life. 
 
 “We’ve had enough notoriety in town, and something like this, we didn’t need at all,” Dobos told The Washington Post. 
 
 [Former Oklahoma state senator admits to child sex trafficking while in office] 
 
 Media coverage around Diebold began in June, when he was handling fireworks during an event, and one piece misfired and exploded on him, his mother, Karen Diebold, told the Post-Gazette. Diebold, who is also a fireworks business owner, lost nearly his entire left arm. 
 
 Controversy followed as Diebold tried to get back on duty months later. He told KDKA in December that he was ready to return to work. Doctors had cleared him and the state had recertified his firearms license, but town officials told him that he couldn’t go back just yet and placed him on paid leave. Diebold threatened to sue. 
 
 Dobos said the Leechburg Borough Council wanted Diebold back at the police department, which employs only three full-time officers, including the chief, and several part-time employees. But he said Diebold needed to first take a physical test to ensure he’s able to perform his duties. Lawyers representing Diebold and the town were finalizing what those tests would be when he was arrested, Dobos said. 
 
 Diebold, who’s in the Westmoreland County Jail on a $500,000 bond, is scheduled for a hearing on Jan. 16. Online court records show that he did not ask for a public defender but do not list an attorney for him. 
 
 Town officials have not figured out who will fill Diebold’s job. Dobos said the other two full-time officers have been sharing Diebold’s duties over the past months. 
 
 “This is a very, very rare instance,” Dobos said. “We got to play everything by ear.” 
 
 Read more: 
 
 A 4-year-old found beaten and abused said she thought her name was ‘Idiot,’ according to police 
 
 This mayor denied accusations he solicited sex from a 14-year-old girl. Then, he resigned. 
 
 Teacher accused of having sexual relations with student who allegedly tried to kill himself
– You'll find the name of Roger Gilbert listed as volunteer fire chief in the small Pennsylvania town of Spartansburg. In fact, the 43-year-old just got re-elected. The problem, though, is that you'll also find his name listed in the state's Megan's Law database for sex offenders, reports the Corry Journal. Back in 2001, Gilbert was convicted of "involuntary deviate sexual intercourse" with a 4-year-old girl and served a 5- to 10-year prison sentence. Gilbert says he's a changed man—"that was 20 years ago"—but his re-election is drawing plenty of attention after the story was picked up nationally by the AP. Spartansburg is about 40 miles southeast of Erie, notes PhillyVoice, which points out that Gilbert was elected twice to his post as chief by his fellow firefighters, not the public. (Only about 300 people live in the town.) "The firemen have always elected their own officers and that's how it's always been done," Mayor Ann Louise Wagner tells the Journal. "We don't question their decisions." (Gilbert might see a change in his passport the next time he renews.)