Brackenridge remains resilient 1 year after death of Chief Justin McIntire

Brackenridge isn’t the same. It’s still a sleepy, little river town. But there’s no longer a sense of “it can’t happen here.” Residents know it can — because it did a year ago.

On Jan. 2, police Chief Justin McIntire, 46, was gunned down in the streets he swore to protect. A two-day manhunt for Aaron Lamont Swan Jr. of Duquesne ended with a foot pursuit along Third Avenue, where Swan shot McIntire at close range not far from the chief’s childhood home.

“The chief’s memory has lived on with blue lights on porches, the thin blue line hanging from flagpoles, Support Our Police yard signs and stickers on vehicles,” said Amanda O’Connor, who is organizing a memorial service this week to mark one year since McIntire’s death.

Tarentum police Officer Jordan Schrecengost, 25, was shot in the leg by Swan during the chase. He spent weeks off duty while recovering but since has returned to the borough’s force.

Schrecengost does not talk publicly about the shooting. Nor does McIntire’s family.

One year later, the borough continues to carry the grief of that moment.

“It still seems surreal that something like that happened here,” Mayor Lindsay Fraser said. “Our character is stronger because we showed up to meet it.”

Fraser will speak during a public memorial service at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Brackenridge Memorial Park. She will remind residents that the borough has navigated a new course emboldened by resiliency and buoyed by changes.

O’Connor said she believes residents have grown more supportive of the borough and of each other during the past year.

“It’s a different story when it’s in your town, so close to home,” she said.

For Todd Pierce, the tragedy unfolded on his doorstep. He was in the driveway of his Morgan Street home when Swan ran toward him and demanded the keys to Pierce’s van.

Without time to think, Pierce resisted. He scuffled with Swan, who was holding a gun.

“I had to protect my family,” Pierce said. “It’s a moment I’ll never forget.”

It’s a decision that could have led to even more tragedy. Pierce ripped the gun from Swan, who then pulled out a second weapon and shot at Pierce and police who had closed in. One of the shots hit Schrecengost in the leg before Swan fled.

“The officer ran down the street yelling, ‘I’m hit,’ ” Pierce said.

The moment has remained with Pierce. He said he feels safe in his neighborhood, but he can’t shake the feeling that danger is lurking.

“Every time you hear a loud noise, you jump,” he said.

Police patrol the area, just like always, but neighbors appear to “keep an eye out” more, he said.

“There’s definitely more cameras you see on everyone’s porches,” Pierce said.

The effect has rippled through the neighboring communities, too, said Harrison police Chief Brian Turack.

“It is incredible to see the amount of people who have come out in support of emergency services,” Turack said. “I think that event served to ground us all and realize the sacrifices that our officers make every day.”

Real change

In the wake of McIntire’s death, there were tangible changes in addition to emotional adjustments.

The Brackenridge Police Department, with a roster of three officers, was unable to patrol the borough around the clock. It relied on help from state police until early this summer when the department consolidated with neighboring Tarentum.

“The chief had about 10 more years until his retirement, and we talked about regional policing at that point,” Fraser said. “It was eventually going to be necessary based on our small-town resources and our needs. The sharing of services is inevitable, and it’s important. But the timing of everything was a direct result of his death.”

Across Pennsylvania, five police officers were killed in the line of duty in 2023, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page website.

Just weeks after McIntire’s death, McKeesport Officer Sean Sluganski was fatally shot while dispatched for a mental health check on a resident. Other fatalities happened in Harrisburg and Philadelphia.

Pennsylvania is second in the country to Louisiana for the most law enforcement deaths this year.

“If one thing came out of this, I believe officers are reminded to be more cautious when they go out,” said former Springdale police Chief Joe Naviglia.

He was among the first to hire McIntire as a part-timer when McIntire graduated from the Allegheny County Police Academy in 1999.

Naviglia said the job has become more dangerous since he first walked the beat. But he believes community support, at least in the Alle-Kiski Valley, also has grown.

“You can feel it, being out in the public,” Naviglia said. “There is absolutely a huge support for police.”

Real training

The tragedy on Jan. 2 precipitated a series of mandatory trainings to help protect officers in future incidents such as shootings, fires or large-scale accidents, Turack said.

He partnered with the Allegheny Health Foundation in Harrison, which provided “Stop the Bleed” training and donated trauma kits with tourniquets, quick-clot gauze and other supplies for gunshot aid.

“That training was a direct result of what happened in January,” Turack said. “The training has the officers to the point where they can respond to traumatic chest wounds and fill the gap between a tragic incident occurring and EMS arriving.”

The large-scale response on Jan. 2 also spurred Turack to have his officers trained in National Incident Management Systems, a unified command for police, fire and EMS.

The workshops make sure everyone is on the same page as far as operations, planning and logistics.

“There were hundreds of emergency responders on that day, and it would have helped us to understand how other agencies respond,” he said. “This training will help for all future incidents, crashes, fires — anything that draws a critical response.”

Turack has met with police from Allegheny Valley Hospital and the Highlands School District to discuss active shooter response protocol and is seeking funding to bring the training to the Alle-Kiski Valley so all of the school district departments can be trained.

“We want everyone to have the same training to deal with someone who is armed and poses a threat,” Turack said.

A simulated training for EMS, fire and police is in the planning stages through Harrison’s emergency management coordinator, Mike Krzeminski.

“These kinds of incidents aren’t new here,” Turack said. “This is the third line of duty death in the last 12 years. Coming together and training together is important to keep us prepared for these types of situations.”

In the days following McIntire’s death, state Rep. Mandy Steele pushed through $20,000 in funding so Brackenridge, Harrison and Tarentum could implement a joint platform to quickly get news out to residents. The online app Savvy Citizen was launched to keep residents in the know with real-time updates.

“After the terrifying night that culminated in the tragic death of Chief McIntire, the municipalities knew they needed a way to relay important information to their residents quickly and efficiently,” Steele said. “It is a critical safety tool and will help strengthen the communities.”

Since its inception, Savvy Citizen has grown to about 5,800 users from the three municipalities.

This year saw a number of fundraisers and social events to benefit McIntire’s family. From t-shirt sales to concerts to spaghetti dinners, the community rallied to keep the chief’s memory alive.

Leslie Uncapher Zellers, a member of the Back the Blue Foundation, doesn’t expect that will change.

“We have an overwhelming response to any event we have,” she said. “People are so appreciative of what our first responders do for us, laying their lives on the line.”

Moving forward

Wednesday in the Highlands School District will be designated as Chief McIntire Day. Students and staff are invited to wear something blue in honor of the fallen chief.

Local police will greet students during arrival, and ABC Transit will deck out some buses with mementos honoring McIntire. A memorial plaque will be unveiled at 5 p.m. at the district’s community center. The plaque is a gift from the Class of 2023.

It’s “unfortunate that our community has experienced a number of incidents over the last 12 years,” Zellers said, referencing the deaths of Officer Derek Kotecki in Lower Burrell in 2011 and New Kensington Officer Brian Shaw in 2017.

“All these years later, the Kotecki Memorial Golf Outing continues to be sold out, and I fully expect another successful event for the Brian Shaw Ride next summer,” she said. “You wonder what about our community makes it so supportive, but I just think it’s a testament to the people who live in the A-K Valley.”