Leadership vacuum: Ragland withdraws as Pittsburgh police chief candidate, plans to retire

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is 0 for 2.

Christopher Ragland, the city’s acting chief for just over four months since his predecessor quit, announced Tuesday he is resigning, too.

More than that, Ragland withdrew his name from consideration to be permanent chief, a job the 30-year veteran had once coveted.

The surprise move plunges the leadership of Pittsburgh’s police force into turmoil for the second time during Gainey’s tenure. In late October, Larry Scirotto abruptly resigned as chief amid controversy.

Ragland addressed the media Tuesday afternoon during a press conference at police headquarters on the North Side, which was hastily arranged after news leaked of his pending departure.

He blamed “political football” for his decision, alluding vaguely to problems and pressures behind the scenes without providing details.

Ragland said he will use his accrued time and “officially retire” in July, according to an email, obtained by TribLive, which circulated to the bureau’s rank and file.

“Police work is a front-row seat to a life few ever get to see,” Ragland, 53, of Downtown, wrote. “It can be rewarding, exhilarating, heartbreaking and mundane, all within the same shift.”

Now it’s back to the drawing board for the Gainey administration, which is working to promote the mayor’s record ahead of a contested primary election in May. A topic sure to come up is why the mayor can’t keep a police chief.

Gainey’s top spokesperson, Cydney Cooper, told TribLive the mayor would not be available Tuesday for an interview.

The mayor, however, sent out a press release about Ragland.

“I receive the Chief’s news with regret. I felt he was the right man for the job and brought integrity and courage to a difficult position. I also respect his reasons for making his choice, and I believe it was a difficult decision for an officer who has given so much to our city,” Gainey said in a statement.

Gainey said Ragland is going to work in the private sector for a national firm.

Ragland called on the city to move “expeditiously” to approve a new chief.

‘It’s unsettling’

The news, coming less than two weeks after a press conference with Gainey at which Ragland affirmed his desire to be the city’s top cop, did not sit well with City Council members.

“It’s unsettling,” said Councilman Anthony Coghill, D-Beechview. “I wish we would not have lost our acting chief. It’s destabilizing.”

Ragland said Martin Devine, an assistant chief and 24-year veteran, will take over for him as the bureau’s acting chief, marking yet another whiplash-inducing move by Pittsburgh officials trying to stabilize the force’s top leadership.

Public Safety Director Lee Schmidt confirmed that Devine would take over by day’s end.

Ragland took over the 759-member force following the sudden departure of Scirotto, who resigned amid controversy over a secret deal with the mayor to allow him to resume moonlighting as an NCAA basketball referee.

On Feb. 7, Gainey tapped Ragland to take over. The mayor appeared to be pushing an expedited nomination process. But in recent weeks some City Council members and community activists called on the mayor’s office to slow things down.

Council moved to ensure that Ragland would answer questions under oath because they felt they had been burned by Scirotto. They were also working on a bill to mandate that Ragland appear at community forums in all six of the city’s police zones.

“As part of my confirmation process with City Council, we were planning to hold a series of public meetings which I was eager to partake in,” Ragland said Tuesday.

“However the process turned from what it should’ve been – which was an honest inquiry into my qualifications for the job – into a political football with endless delays and pressure for political dealmaking.”

On Feb. 20, during a tense news conference Downtown a day after a daylight shooting in the business district, a gruff Gainey sparred with the media, defended his selection of Ragland and accused members of council of having an agenda.

At one point, Gainey turned to Ragland.

“Ragland, you want this job?” Gainey asked.

“I do,” Ragland replied.

Moving forward

Ragland praised his officers and the selection of Devine to replace him.

“I think the police bureau is strong,” Ragland said. “I think Acting Chief Devine will do a fantastic job. He has the confidence (of) the organization. He has the confidence of Director Schmidt. And I’m sure he has the confidence of the mayor.”

Ragland addressed questions about possible friction between him and Gainey.

“The mayor’s office, the mayor himself, never made any requests of me other than to lead this bureau with integrity and honesty,” Ragland said.

He was also asked whether anyone had pressured him to make appointments to the command staff with which he disagreed. His answer was cryptic.

“There was certain things that came to light, certain requests, I don’t exactly want to get into them right now. At the end of the day you have to be willing to stand by your principles, stand by your morals, stand by your ethics,” Ragland said.

He did not elaborate.

Pittsburgh City Council members were digesting the latest news Tuesday and discussing how to move forward. Council President R. Daniel Lavelle said he learned of Ragland’s decision from a TV news report.

“I think it’s unfortunate,” Lavelle said. “I think it’s important that we have not just an acting chief but a full chief of police, hopefully sooner than later.”

Finding a permanent chief, which is becoming an unexpectedly complicated task, will likely not involve the type of national search used for Scirotto but not Ragland.

“I certainly would not expect a national search,” Lavelle said. “We haven’t budgeted for that. A national search would need a significant amount of resources.”

Councilman Bob Charland, D-South Side, echoed that sentiment.

“I lean against another national search, especially spending money on another national search, seeing what the last search got us,” Charland said.

Charland expressed faith in the zone commanders and rank-and-file officers to maintain safety, even as leadership is in limbo.

“However, not having a captain at the top of the ship is not a sustainable solution, and I hope that Mayor Gainey works even harder to find who is the next chief here,” Charland said.

Charland, a vocal critic of Gainey, criticized the mayor for the lack of a permanent chief after Scirotto’s departure amid controversy.

“Mayor Gainey is a great guy who cares a lot about the city and is trying his best, but this is another example of the mayor’s incompetence,” Charland said.

Seeking ‘still waters’

As the bureau struggles to retain and recruit staff, Charland said he worried this wouldn’t help the bureau.

“I feel for the rank-and-file officers who have told me they want continuity,” he said. “They want still waters. They don’t want to work in a turbulent workplace. Although I think Mayor Gainey’s trying his best, he’s provided another source of turbulence.”

Councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith, D-West End, said she was grateful for Ragland’s three decades of service to the bureau, including his recent stint as acting chief.

“I think the bureau is obviously in a challenging time,” she said. “But I also think this is a time where we can really reflect on what needs to happen with the bureau, what leadership should look like and how we want to engage the public.”

Kail-Smith said she wants to see the bureau promote a new chief from within its own ranks but did not specify who she considered top candidates.

“I think it should wait until after the general election, if not the swearing in for the next mayor, whoever that is,” she said.

Gainey, who is running for reelection, will face a Democratic primary challenger on May 20, Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor. Two Republican candidates will also duke it out in the primary.

Coghill said he was surprised and disappointed Ragland is leaving. He said Ragland had seemed receptive to his efforts to legislate a new public process that would require chiefs to engage in a series of community meetings throughout the city.

Like Kail-Smith, Coghill said he hopes to find an internal replacement.

Coghill also pitched the idea of looking to other local police forces – like the Allegheny County Police and Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office – which have many former Pittsburgh officers among their ranks.

“I think we have a lot of qualified, experienced men and women that can step in and fill these shoes,” Coghill said.