Westmoreland County prison board accepts warden's resignation, names interim leader

After about two and a half years leading the Westmoreland County Prison, Bryan Kline resigned as warden just as Monday’s prison board meeting was set to begin.

The last-minute move was approved by the board immediately after a brief executive session related to personnel at the start of the meeting. Board members also met four times last week, including twice on Friday, in executive sessions related to personnel matters, according to their agenda.

Kline said he resigned to work in academia and do research.

In a statement, Kline touted accomplishments he said improved life for those incarcerated, including increased mental health care, a medication-assisted treatment program for those with substance abuse disorder and additional access to tablets to help those inside work on transitional programs in advance of their release.

“I have enjoyed my time serving as the warden of the Westmoreland County Prison,” he said.

The resignation is effective Oct. 2. Kline said in his resignation email that he wanted to use five vacation days.

Appointed as his interim replacement was Steven Pelesky, who has served as the deputy warden of security, according to the jail’s website. He has worked at the jail for nearly 15 years, starting as a part-time corrections officer, and makes about $66,000 a year.

“I’m confident in the leadership that was appointed today,” said board member and county Commissioner Doug Chew.

Kline, 42, of Penn Township became warden in February 2021 after serving 11 years as clerk of courts, an elected position that oversaw all criminal court documents filed at the courthouse. He said then that he had a passion for the criminal justice field.

Kline earlier this year completed his doctorate degree from Saint Leo University in Florida in criminal justice with a specialization in homeland security. That earned him a $5,000 pay increase to $99,000 annually.

Prison board members consist of the three county commissioners, Sheriff James Albert, Judge Harry Smail, Controller Jeff Balzer and District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli, who had a scheduling conflict Monday and was represented by First Assistant District Attorney Chuck Washburn.

Commissioner and board member Ted Kopas, a Democrat, was not part of the group when Kline, a Republican, was hired.

“The real lesson is to never again hire a political friend to a position as important as a warden,” Kopas said.

A recent state inspection of the jail found seven deficiencies, including sanitary and maintenance issues in cells, keys and security access devices that were insufficiently inventoried and inmate restraints that were improperly tracked by staff, according to a report obtained by the Tribune-Review.

In an original agenda for Monday’s meeting, Kline was listed as the person who would provide the board with the monthly warden’s report. An amended version of the agenda, posted at 10:54 a.m. Sunday, had Kline’s name removed from it and an item added to consider any terminations.

The board approved the termination of records department manager Amy Huffer, whose salary was $38,000. She had worked in the department since February 2020 and previously worked in other county departments for about seven years.

Jeana Wynn, who has been handling Huffer’s duties for the past couple of months, was appointed as the interim manager of the department. She has been working there since September 2020 and makes about $34,000.

Several other hires and resignations were approved, all of which were included on the original version of the agenda. Chew declined to answer any questions regarding personnel matters.