A Roanoke woman who lives in Old Southwest ran afoul of the city's Architectural Review Board when she replaced a front window with French doors to help her mother, who uses a wheelchair, to have easy access to the porch.

Thursday, Paula Anselmo lost her fight in Roanoke Circuit Court, as Judge William Broadhurst found her guilty of violating a zoning ordinance and fined her $200.

Though the judge suspended the fine, Anselmo's risk doesn't end there. Assistant Roanoke Commonwealth's Attorney Bill Braxton said that so long as the French doors remain in place, she can be charged again until she puts back the window that she had removed.

Anselmo's attorney, Neal Johnson, noted that the vinyl window Anselmo removed was in itself out of compliance with historic district zoning guidelines, and that the construction work revealed there had once been a door there in the first place. "That makes it all sort of silly," he said.

Anselmo lives in the 600 block of Mountain Avenue, which falls into the Old Southwest historic district. In recent years, some homeowners have complained that the review board's enforcement of historic district guidelines has become unreasonable.

Johnson made that argument Thursday, suggesting that the board denied Anselmo's request for a certificate of appropriateness solely to punish her for not seeking permission before she had the French doors installed.

Anselmo installed the doors in 2006 in anticipation that her elderly parents were going to move in with her. The modification was done to make it easier for them to go out onto the front porch.

On Aug. 31, 2006, the city notified her that she had violated a zoning ordinance. In October of that year, the review board denied her petition for a certificate of appropriateness on a vote of 5-0. The Roanoke City Council upheld the board's ruling 6-1.

She took her case to the Virginia Fair Housing Board, arguing that she was discriminated against for modifying her home to accommodate someone with a disability. But the housing board ruled against her, saying the change didn't comply with handicapped accessibility standards.

The criminal case against Anselmo went forward, and she was convicted in Roanoke General District Court. She immediately appealed her conviction to circuit court.

In August, Old Southwest resident Aubrey Hicks won his civil court case against the review board, when Broadhurst ordered the city to grant Hicks a certificate of appropriateness for work on his roof.

Broadhurst opined that the board had denied Hicks' certificate as punishment for not coming to them before he started the work.

But Thursday, when Johnson presented a similar argument, Broadhurst said he wasn't persuaded.

"Because it was a criminal prosecution, our burden was very heavy," Johnson said.

Broadhurst allowed Johnson to submit further arguments if he chooses. Thursday evening the attorney said he had not decided whether he would do so.