Braddock Borough Mayor Breaks Council Tie, Votes In Favor Of Forming Regional Police Dept. Commission
NORTH BRADDOCK (KDKA) -- A regional Mon Valley police department could be one step closer after a vote by the Braddock Borough Council Tuesday night.
If it's approved, the regional police department would consist of four boroughs -- Braddock, North Braddock, Rankin and East Pittsburgh. The East Pittsburgh department was disbanded back in 2018 after the shooting of Antwon Rose.
Mayor Chardae Jones, of Braddock, says she thinks a regional department would be good for economic and safety reasons.
The Braddock Council voted 3-3 on whether to form a commission to begin the process of a creating a regional police department. The tie-breaking vote, in favor of a commission, was made by Mayor Jones.
"This gives us a fighting chance to come out as a safer community and a financial stability," Jones told KDKA's Lisa Washington.
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Jones says Braddock Borough doesn't have any full-time police officers, but they do have about 10 part-time officers, some of whom also work for other police departments.
"Sometimes they leave one department and go to another department after working these long shifts and that's not safe," Jones said.
A proposal for the regional department would have a chief, a sergeant, a detective and 12 full-time officers, among others.
Jones said, "This regional policing would make everyone in the regional department have the same code of ethics the same code of conduct and follow the same results, because right now, officers are not bound by the first same set of rules."
Both Rankin and East Pittsburgh have already agreed to a commission. North Braddock's borough will vote next week.
