A 52-year-old Myerstown man is one bad phone call away from a state prison sentence.

As it is, Robert Glass, of 5 W. Washington Ave., will serve seven months to two years in Lebanon County prison for making thousands of harassing and lewd phone calls to women between August and December.

Glass pleaded guilty to stalking and harassment by communication charges.

Judge Bradford Charles fined him $850.

Assistant District Attorney Megan Ryland-Tanner said Glass made many of his calls late at night.

"I take full responsibility," Glass said, reading from a written statement. He said he has been receiving drug and alcohol counseling and is qualified for mental health counseling.

Charles commended police investigators for their work, noting that Glass used "temporary, portable, untraceable phones."

Then the judge turned his attention to the defendant.

"Mr. Glass, this isn't a disease," Charles said. "It's not like you have cancer. This is not sick in terms of a compulsion you cannot control. It's sick in terms of a choice you made to stalk and harass women."

Charles said he considered giving Glass a state prison sentence but chose a local sentence because he believes that local probation officers will keep Glass under closer supervision than he would receive if he served state time.

"You do this again and you come back or violate (parole), I'll throw your rear end in jail for as long as I can," Charles said.


"One more harassing phone call and you're going to do two years (in state prison)."

Glass had three prior cases for similar behavior, Charles noted.

North Londonderry Township police, in conjunction with Derry Township police in Dauphin County, investigated the most recent case and arrested Glass in early January.

The investigation began in August, when police from several jurisdictions began receiving reports of a man making harassing and lewd phone calls.

More than 30 women in Central Pennsylvania told police the man would make several consecutive calls and ask for females by name. If a female answered, the suspect would make lewd comments. Usually he would call back several times within 10 minutes.

A search warrant was served on Cingular Wireless to obtain phone numbers that were called. Police received an 846-page report showing that Glass made more than 17,000 calls within 108 days, starting Aug. 25 and ending Dec. 18 when a search warrant was served on Glass's home.