Suspended Fawn officer, attorney will not participate in hearing over his job

Fawn officials will continue a hearing for a suspended township police officer without the officer or his attorney participating, township Supervisor David Montanari said Monday.

The hearing for Keith Lazaron II is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday. It will be held in person at the township building at 3054 Howes Run Road and virtually on the online platform Zoom, according to a township notice.

Lazaron’s attorney, Craig Alexander, said neither he nor his client will be there.

“We all see where this is going, though, and it will have to be dealt with in court,” Alexander said.

Montanari said the hearing had been advertised.

“I’m assuming it’s going to take place,” he said.

Lazaron, 35, of Allegheny Township has been suspended without pay since June 1.

Chris Gabriel, an attorney representing Fawn, previously said police Chief Tim Mayberry recommended firing Lazaron for insubordination and for giving information to news reporters.

Lazaron claims he was suspended because he disobeyed Montanari’s demand that he cite one of Montanari’s neighbors for having an outdoor fire.

Montanari said the township is resuming the hearing after addressing concerns Alexander raised that resulted in the township cutting short the first attempt at a hearing on July 27.

Alexander had objected to Supervisor David Norris participating in the hearing by telephone from Florida on the basis that Norris could not hear everything that was being said. Alexander argued for the hearing to proceed with the four supervisors physically present, but the township opted to suspend it.

Alexander said he and his client will not participate in Tuesday’s hearing because the township is out of time to hold it. Alexander said he will ask the township to wait until a federal lawsuit Lazaron has filed against the township and several of its officials is resolved.

In the lawsuit, Alexander cites the Police Tenure Act, which required a hearing on the charges against Lazaron to be held within 10 days. In this case, the first hearing was held later by mutual agreement.

Asked whether the hearing could proceed without Lazaron and Alexander participating, Montanari said that was a legal question and referred it to Gabriel and township Solicitor Steve Yakopec Jr.

Gabriel and Yakopec did not respond to numerous requests for comment over several days.