A former Manor police officer whose preliminary hearing on burglary and other charges was postponed Monday was fired last month in light of his criminal case and other alleged infractions, according to the Westmoreland County borough’s mayor.
Justin R. Hall, 39, of Washington Township, Westmoreland County, was terminated at Manor’s Feb. 15 council meeting, Mayor Ed Malinoski said Monday.
Hall appeared Monday afternoon in Pittsburgh municipal court on charges that he broke into a UPMC building in Pittsburgh, impersonated a hospital system police officer and took credit cards and a key from an employee’s office. The hearing was postponed until April 24.
Hall served a six-week suspension for being out of the Manor area while on duty and disobeying the mayor’s orders, Malinoski said. An internal investigation is continuing concerning a different incident involving Hall that the mayor would not describe.
In the criminal case, a security camera captured Hall entering a UPMC building at 4601 Baum Blvd. in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood just before 2 p.m. Jan. 15, according to UPMC police.
A female UPMC employee, who police identified as Hall’s ex-girlfriend, reported to UPMC police that 14 credit cards and a key marked “157” were missing from her office.
Another UPMC employee told police she encountered a man who identified himself as a police officer and showed a “UPMC Police” badge while she was moving into her office Jan. 15. The office was closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Hall served as a UPMC police officer until July 2021, the complaint said.
UPMC police charged Hall in January with felony counts of burglary and criminal trespass, as well as theft by unlawful taking, impersonating a public servant and harassment.
On Monday, attorney Casey White, who represents Hall, declined to comment as he and his client walked out of the Pittsburgh Municipal Court building.
Hall was making more than $65,000 in base salary in Manor, with overtime bringing his pay to about $90,000, Malinoski said.
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which Malinoski said represents the borough police force, did not respond to requests for comment.
