5 vying to fill vacant district judge office serving Plum, Oakmont

Five people are running to fill the vacant district judge’s office serving Plum and Oakmont.

The candidates are Plum Councilman Mike Doyle; retired Plum police officers, Sgt. Matt Feldmeier and Patrolman Ryan Schneiderlochner; Melanie Pallone, an attorney and professor; and Margareth Sweeney, a deputy constable.

Three of the five — Feldmeier, Schneiderlochner and Sweeney — are cross-filed, so they will appear on the Democratic and Republican May 16 primary ballots. Doyle is running as a Republican, while Pallone is running as a Democrat.

Plum Democrats have endorsed Pallone, while Republicans have endorsed Doyle.

They are vying to replace Linda Zucco, who retired in 2021.

For 2023, the annual salary of a magisterial district judge is $106,254.

Doyle did not respond to requests for comment. An insurance agent, he was elected to Plum Council in 2005 and has been its president for 15 years.

Doyle was a Republican candidate for the 12th Congressional District in 2021, losing that race to Democrat Summer Lee. He previously lost bids for the state House to former state Rep. Joe Markosek in 2010 and 2012.

Feldmeier, Schneiderlochner and Sweeney are seeking elected office for the first time. Pallone is a member of the Riverview School Board; her seat is up for election this year and she is not seeking reelection.

Feldmeier, 59, lives in Plum’s Unity neighborhood. He was a sergeant when he retired from the borough’s police department in 2015 and previously served as acting chief.

Running for district judge is something Feldmeier, a registered Republican, has wanted to do since he retired, but he waited for Zucco to leave office. In preparation, he has completed certification training, which the state requires for magisterial district and arraignment court judges who are not members of the bar.

“If I would be successful in winning in November, I could be seated in January and hearing cases immediately,” Feldmeier said.

Feldmeier said his experience as a police chief and sergeant also are factors in his favor.

“The difference in being a sergeant and a chief versus a patrolman is a lot of times sergeants and chiefs have to make decisions that can impact things no matter what direction you’re going,” he said. “Sometimes when a patrol officer doesn’t know what to do, he’ll seek guidance from a sergeant. If a sergeant won’t make the call, he’ll ask the chief what to do. I’ve had to make those decisions. Some of them are split-second decisions you have to make, which sometimes a magistrate has to do.”

As an attorney, Pallone, 61, of Oakmont has worked as a prosecutor in Allegheny County and as a defense attorney. She has been a criminal justice professor for about 10 years, for the longest at the State University of New York.

“I’ve done just about every area of the law a magistrate is responsible for,” she said. “If going before the district court is the only time most citizens experience our legal system, I want them to be assured that the most experienced person is reviewing their case.”

Pallone noted she is the only attorney among the candidates and could step into the role right away.

“I have worked on both sides of the coin,” she said. “I do believe I am able not only to see the evidence on both sides and impartially decide cases, but I’m the only one who has ever had to take facts and apply the law to them.”

Schneiderlochner, 51, a registered Republican, lives in Plum’s Colonial Pointe. He retired April 8 from the Plum Police Department after serving 25 years.

Plum police charged Schneiderlochner with driving under the influence of alcohol Jan. 21. He declined to comment on the charge, for which he is scheduled for a preliminary hearing April 26.

Because he is from Plum and has served the community, Schneiderlochner said he is a good fit for the office.

“I want to continue to serve. I dedicated my life to public service,” he said. “Serving the community that I live in has been the greatest honor of my life. Raising a family in Plum has made my calling of being a police officer more than just a job. Community concerns didn’t stop when my shift ended.”

Schneiderlochner said he would pursue the training course should he move on to the November general election.

“I’m fair, I’m compassionate, and I’ve done this job for 29 years settling disputes on-scene and having the experience, the knowledge and the training,” he said.

“I have seen normal people at their worst and had to do my job by either making an arrest or offering resources to help them,” he said. “The magisterial district judge has more options available to help, more so than a police officer could do. I have better insight to seeing who the serious criminal offenders are versus people who made a mistake.”

Sweeney, 58, is a registered Democrat who was a chef before becoming a deputy constable. A U.S. citizen since 1989, Sweeney was born in Honduras, raised in Belize and has lived in Oakmont for more than 30 years.

“We have a lot of kids coming through the courts right now. I’d like to try to help them a little bit,” she said. “There are families with kids that need help. I feel like I could serve the community.”

Sweeney describes herself as fair-minded and open to hear everyone’s opinions and listen.

“I try to be very fair with everyone. It’s not ‘my way or the highway,’ ” she said. “I see the position as one of service. You’re able to serve the people and be of service to people, families and even helping the police officers along the way. They’re in a tough position.”