Deputy had cocaine in system when responding to Garfield standoff, sheriff says

Allegheny County Sheriff Kevin M. Kraus said Tuesday that he fired a deputy who tested positive for cocaine just after responding to the six-hour standoff in Garfield that ended with the gunman’s death.

The deputy, a seven-year veteran who Kraus declined to name, was one of 13 officers tested by Concentra Medical on Aug. 23, the day of the standoff, Kraus said. A gunman identified as William Hardison Jr., 63, died in Garfield that day after exchanging thousands of rounds with police in a tense standoff.

“We have a strict, zero-tolerance, drug-free work policy,” Kraus told reporters at the Allegheny County Courthouse. “It’s a very unfortunate situation. It’s not easy to report.”

Tuesday was the deputy’s last day with the Sheriff’s Office, Kraus said. He will not be charged with a crime.

State police are continuing to investigate the Aug. 23 standoff, Kraus said. Kraus declined to comment on how this development might affect the investigation.

Kraus also could not confirm whether the deputy was under the influence of cocaine during the standoff. He said there was no evidence of the deputy acting strangely that day.

Kraus also said he didn’t “have any reason to believe” the fired deputy was the officer who fatally shot Hardison.

It is standard procedure that sheriff’s deputies are tested for drugs after reportable crashes and critical incidents such as the standoff, Kraus said.

“I hope (he) gets the assistance he needs and he gets back on the right track,” Kraus said.

The Allegheny County Sheriff’s Association, which represents deputies in the Sheriff’s Office, could not immediately be reached Tuesday afternoon.