By Kyle Lawson

Published: Saturday, February 16, 2013, 12:01 a.m.
Updated: Saturday, February 16, 2013

Monroeville officials plan to hire 10 police officers this year as up to nine officers retire between now and May, the municipality's interim manager said.

Two patrol officers and two lieutenants retired this week, and three to five more officers plan to retire by the end of May.

Two specialized positions were temporarily eliminated to shift staff to patrol, interim police Chief Steve Pascarella said.

The retirements this week will leave the department with about 44 officers.

Monroeville Council last week approved revisions to the Civil Service Commission ordinance to speed hiring. The revisions would allow officers applying for promotions to forgo psychological examinations.

Mayor Greg Erosenko had not signed the ordinance as of Friday. If he vetoes the vote, council could try to override the veto in March.

In June, the Monroeville Civil Service Commission provided former police Chief Doug Cole and former Manager Jeff Silka with a list of potential new patrol officers, but it was not until October that two new officers were hired, interim municipal Manager Lynette McKinney said.

“That whole process seemed like it had continual procrastination,” Council member Diane Allison said on Friday.

Cole could not be reached for comment, but earlier this month he said that four of the six candidates provided in June either failed the final round of examinations or opted for other agencies.

McKinney recently demoted former Chief Cole and designated Pascarella as interim chief.

“The hiring process and promotion and training of supervisors has been delayed to the point of great concern,” Pascarella said.

Kyle Lawson is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-856-7400,ext. 8755, or klawson@tribweb.com.

1. Investigation of Monroeville emergency system to wrap up this month
2. Candidates from Murrysville, Delmont, Export vie for nominations
3. Monroeville Council nominations up for grabs
4. 8 candidates vying for 4 seats on Gateway School Board
5. Founding president helps celebrate 40 years of Aglow in Monroeville
6. Monroeville officials hastily end meeting during public comments period

There are currently no comments for this story.
Subscribe today! Click here for our subscription offers.