Allegheny County police review board working to establish local trust

This browser does not support the video element.

PITTSBURGH — But to do so, it will first have to build trust with local municipalities, something some say may not be easy. Looking at the makeup of the board, three of the eight members are former law enforcement.

County Executive, Rich Fitzgerald’s appointees:

  • Stacey Hawthorne, a Pittsburgh resident and former Pittsburgh police detective
  • Coleman McDonough, a Bethel Park resident and former county police superintendent
  • Robert Meinert, Neville resident and former municipal and county police officer
  • Regina Ragin-Dykes, a Pittsburgh resident, pastor and vice president of the Pittsburgh NAACP

County Council’s appointees:

  • Lynn Banaszak, a Pittsburgh resident and the executive director at Carnegie Mellon University’s Digital Transformation & Innovation Center
  • Richard Garland, a South Park resident and head of the Violence Prevention Project at the University of Pittsburgh
  • Keith Murphy, a McKeesport resident and founder of the Healthy Village Learning Institute
  • J. Leavitt Pearl, a Pittsburgh resident and director at Carlow University’s Atkins Center for Ethics

“Three out of the county executives’ four appointments to the independent police review board were folks who were former law enforcement officers,” said Bethany Hallam, Allegheny County Council member-at-large.

Hallam said after a nearly two-year-long selection process, the public may have reservations about the board’s composition.

“They already have processes where the police, the police themselves the point of this bill was for it to be independent of the police,” Hallam said.

Of the four members selected by the County Executive, Rich Fitzgerald, we spoke with one – Reverend Regina Ragin-Dykes. While not law enforcement, her son was a former officer. She says that connection should not influence any decision from any board member.

“Being a part of something does not mean you side with it all the time,” Ragin-Dykes, said.

Ragin-Dykes said that it’s important to get to know the officers they will be reviewing and the communities they will serve to make unbiased decisions.

“You have to look at everything before you make a decision because someone’s life or safety may be in your hands,” Ragin-Dykes said.

While eight members of the board are appointed and can begin working, the county executive and council need to select and agree on the ninth and final member.

We want the public to buy in this board does not work without support from the public,” Hallam said.

There is no timeline for when the final member will be appointed.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

This browser does not support the video element.