Plan for regional police force expands
Fifth community joins effort in Mon Valley
A fifth community has been added to a plan to form a regional police force in the Mon Valley.
The plan — which would consist of the communities of Braddock, Whitaker, Rankin, North Braddock and East Pittsburgh — was discussed Monday night in East Pittsburgh, a borough that has been reeling from a spate of violence in recent weeks.
North Braddock Councilmen Chris Roland and Mike Breaston outlined the status of the consolidation proposal.
Four of the five communities — North Braddock, East Pittsburgh, Rankin and Whitaker — took the initial step toward consolidation in April by asking the state to perform a feasibility study.
Mr. Breaston said a regional police force would prove beneficial. “We need full- time officers who get involved in the community and who residents trust.”
The inclusion of East Pittsburgh in the proposal was welcomed by about 30 people who gathered in the parking lot of the East Pittsburgh Community Center to discuss public safety. Pennsylvania State Police have been patrolling the borough since its police force was disbanded Dec. 1.
In recent weeks, several incidents have occurred in the borough that have heightened residents’ concerns:
• Two teenagers were shot July 23 in the 500 block of Franklin
Street.
• A 22- year- old West Mifflin woman died June 29 after being stabbed multiple times on Bessemer Avenue.
• An inmate at Cambria County Prison confessed to killing a woman whose decomposing body was discovered June 17 in a house on Maple Street.
Monday’s gathering outside the East Pittsburgh Community Center was organized by Jonathan Reyes, a community activist who received the Democratic nomination for council in the May primary, and Lee Davis, who described himself as a concerned citizen. Originally from Braddock, Mr. Davis has lived in East Pittsburgh for about two years and was part of the first Woodland Hills graduating class in 1988.
“We have to get groups to work together,” Mr. Davis said of the community’s role. “If you see something, say something.”
Mr. Reyes reiterated that the community should play an active role. He said he finds no fault with state police. But logistics can prove problematic.
“It’s great that they’re here,” Mr. Reyes said. “But when they’re not, we have to have a plan in place.”
According to data from Allegheny County 911, East Pittsburgh police answered more than 2,900 calls in 2017 — or about eight a day — during its last full year of operation.
The high- profile shooting death of Antwon Rose II ultimately led to East Pittsburgh disbanding its police department.
On June 19, 2018, East Pittsburgh police Officer Michael Rosfeld shot 17year- old Antwon as he ran from a traffic stop. The teen was unarmed.
The region was punctuated by protests after the shooting and after Mr. Rosfeld was acquitted by a jury in March 2019.
In the weeks after Antwon’s death, concern was raised about the borough police department’s policies relative to use of force.
The East Pittsburgh department had dwindled from nine officers before Antwon’s death to five before the department was disbanded.
State police have reached out to the community. Last month, 17 people graduated from the PSP Experience, a five- week program designed to educate citizens about law enforcement and tactics.