Two members of the McCandless police department have been under investigation and on paid administrative leave for two weeks, but municipal officials won’t say who is being investigated or why.
They also won’t say who’s in charge of the police department while the investigation is ongoing. The probe is expected to last until at least Nov. 21.
“I can’t give any particular information on this particular matter,” Gavin Robb, the municipality’s solicitor, said Friday. The investigation is a confidential personnel matter, he said.
Mr. Robb said he could not say who is now in charge of the police department because that’s part of the confidential matter. He refused to elaborate.
“There is an investigation being conducted,” McCandless Manager Toby Cordek said Friday. “It is a confidential personnel matter, and we can’t provide any additional information right now.”
He, too, declined to say who is running the police department.
Police Chief David R. DiSanti Sr. — who’d typically be in charge — could not be reached for comment Friday. A call to the police department’s main line was sent by a secretary to Lt. Don O’Connor, who did not return a request for comment.
Melissa Melewsky, media law counsel for the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association, said municipal officials should not keep all details of the probe secret.
“The public is entitled to know who is running their police department at all points in time and who is serving, both active duty and on suspension,” she said, adding that if a municipal council placed a police chief on leave, that action would have to have taken place at a public meeting.
“With subordinate officers, the chief can handle it administratively,” she said. “But when you’re dealing with a police chief, the council often gets involved, and it has to happen at a public meeting. They can have the discussion about what is going on behind closed doors, but the action has to happen publicly.”
Alternatively, the municipal manager could take action on his own without requiring a public vote, she said. Mr. Cordek would not say Friday who placed the suspended police members on leave.
McCandless Councilman Steven E. Mertz said the municipality hired an outside attorney to conduct the investigation into allegations that surfaced on Oct. 26. McCandless announced on Oct. 29 that the two police members had been placed on leave.
Chief DiSanti was hired as McCandless’ police chief in November 2016, according to a municipal announcement. He previously worked as a detective and sergeant on the McCandless force before becoming the chief of police in Oakmont.
Shelly Bradbury: 412-263-1999, sbradbury@post-gazette.com or follow @ShellyBradbury on Twitter.
First Published: November 9, 2018, 11:13 p.m.
