Arnold City Council has asked the governor and state Senate to remove the town’s mayor after a series of controversial Facebook posts, including one in which she said people protesting the fatal police shooting of Antwon Rose II should be hit with water cannons.
In a letter dated July 13 and obtained Tuesday by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, council members asked the Senate to remove Mayor Karen Peconi after “racially discriminatory posts about former President Obama, Muslims and the Confederate flag.” Council members wrote that the posts raise questions about Ms. Peconi’s ability to govern without prejudice.
Here is the Arnold Council Members Letter to State Senators obtained by Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Scribd:
“As a result of her comments, the mayor has lost the confidence of the citizens to lead this city in a meaningful manner,” council members wrote.
The letter includes attached screenshots of racist and anti-Muslim posts on Ms. Peconi’s Facebook page.
It was sent to Senate President Joe Scarnati, R-Jefferson, Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Centre, Democratic Leader Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, and Jim Brewster, D-McKeesport. Gov. Tom Wolf was copied.
The letter specifically asks that the Senate appoint a special committee to investigate and address council’s complaints and recommend that the governor remove Ms. Peconi from office.
Ms. Peconi drew criticism last month after sharing a video on her Facebook page of water cannons blasting protesters elsewhere, along with comments that said “we need one of these” and “bring the hoses” regarding protests following the June 19 fatal shooting of Antwon, 17, in East Pittsburgh by East Pittsburgh police Officer Michael Rosfeld.
Officer Rosfeld has been charged with homicide.
“We understand that these remarks may be protected speech under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. However, we believe that these remarks crossed the line of protected speech,” the letter states. “The words are a call to action to harm citizens and should not be taken lightly by the Legislature. She is the mayor of a city and at the time had a wide following on her Facebook page.”
Ms. Peconi’s Facebook page has since been deleted, according to the letter.
Arnold’s council last week passed a motion, 4-0, to send the letter requesting that Harrisburg intervene. Ms. Peconi has refused to step down amid calls for her resignation.
Councilman Phillip McKinley said last week that he decided to pursue the letter after learning of a similar situation in a York County borough in 2016. The West York borough council asked the governor and Senate to remove its mayor after he posted racist images depicting the Obama family on Facebook. West York’s then-mayor, Charles Wasko, later resigned.
Ms. Peconi could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday afternoon.
Matt McKinney: mmckinney@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1944, or on Twitter @mmckinne17.
First Published: July 17, 2018, 8:10 p.m.
