not utterly ridiculous. The man pounded on my door at 11pm demanding me to move my vehicle so the plow could come down the street. Shook the house with the pounding and threatened he will give me a ticket if it wasn't moved in 5. Manager or police wannabe with anger management issues?

"He can go onto any of the property any time he chooses,” DiLucente said. “He’s not another employee. The buck stops with him.”I, as a taxpayer of Dormont disagree with this statement. Mr. Rizza YOU work for ME and honestly with all of the negative publicity, questionable behavior and unprofessionalism you have exhibited to ME, YOUR employer, well in the "real world" sir you would be on suspension with a possible eye to termination.

(contintued)I would like to cite an article from the Post-Gazette going back to when you were hired Mr. Rizza. http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09176/979694-55.stm?cmpid=localstate.xml
A quote from that article: "Police Chief Phil Ross said he believes Mr. Rizza's less-traditional experience has led to a refreshing, opened-minded approach to the job."He doesn't bring that familiar bureaucratic mindset to the table," he said. "He also brings a willingness to learn the inner working of our profession as well as allowing us to get to know him." Mr. Rizza has a bachelor's degree in finance from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a master's degree in management from Robert Morris University.
He said the years of running his company gave him substantial accounting and management experience.
He also previously worked as an accountant and auditor for Mellon Bank, and as an accountant for PNC Mortgage Corp."What happened to you since you were hired here Mr. Rizza? How is it that you have fostered the animosity and ill will that seems to swirl around you in your current position??

(Continued)Would your previous employers Mellon and PNC put up with your garnering such negative publicity for them while in their employ?? Would you yourself as an employer of your own company tolerate your behavior from one of your employees? I think not. From where I sit you seem very adept at making enemies from friends and disrupting what I thought was a well run organization. Enough of this childishness, enough of wasting boro time, money, energy and resources on your personal vendettas and agendas. Do us, your employers a favor and get out, resign. You obviously have lost sight of what the job of Boro Manager entails. Im sure the people of Dormont deserve better. I know I feel that way, as your employer. Im really tired of reading these stories of the complete lack of respect you show to the other employees of this boro. If I behaved this way on my job I know what it would get me..a quick ticket to the unemployment line.

I just want to slap my forehead and groan over all of this. What are we, twelve? It seems to me like both persons involved here need to remember that they are professionals, and what they say and do means far more than it would for a regular citizen. Both men need to take a step back, look at their actions from the outside, and seriously ask themselves if what they're doing (at any point in time!) is what looks best for the community.

Mr. Rizza has interferred with police business in the past. With that I trust him even less now. So why should he have access to areas with such sensitive information ? He is NOT a sworn in official he needs to remember that. Whatever he is paying in attorney fees is way too much and I don't want my tax dollars spent in such a manner. Mr. Rizza needs to go. Would a petition from the citizans get him out ? If so lets do it ! Leah I appreciate your comments, they were well researched......good job !

Mr. Dilucente why did your client park illegally in a space he asked to be reserved for Lifespan? Mr. Dilucente why would Mr. Rizza expect to have a ticket dismissed? Mr. Dilucente as an attorney I'm sure your aware of the sensitivity issues concerning police documents and evidence, in your opinion is it ok for Mr. Rizza or any other "non-sworn" citizen to have free access to these areas of the Police Station? Mr. Dilucente your client Mr. Rizza was not banned from the area, he was simply told to ask for permission to enter due to the sensitive nature of the area. What is wrong with this? What is so "utterly ridiculous" about this? As an attorney I'm sure if you were defending a criminal and any evidence or documents were tampered with inside the DPD station you would want to know who had access to this information right? What if DPD said "anyone who walks through the door can have access?" I bet as an attorney you would take serious issue with that?

Mr. Rizza may not be a bad guy, but he sure does need to learn that rules and laws apply to EVERYONE

To Ken, I feel your pain. That situation was totally uncalled for. You must live in his ex girlfriends street. He could of at least been nice to you when asking. He displays behavior of a spoiled brat that just thrives on bullying people ! Even the residents.....how sad....................get rid of Gino Dormont what are we waiting for ?

Other departments have similar rules for granting civilians access to police offices. Mt. Lebanon Police Lt. Aaron Lauth said only sworn officers, civilian police employees and a few municipal and fire department computer technicians can let themselves into the secured third floor of the Mt. Lebanon Public Safety Building. Any visitors, including municipal manager Steve Feller, are met at the entrance by police and accompanied to their destinations, Lauth said.

Read more: Dormont police citation disputed - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_741327.html#ixzz1OsUgbxVI

No wonder the boro is going down hill. There are a bunch of children in charge. Being boro manager doesn't give you the right to enter a secure police area. In addition, the manager admitted he parked in a reserved spot. It doesn't matter if it was for five minutes or five hours. He deserved the ticket just like any other Dormont resident would have deserved it. He should have used the proper channels to dispute the ticket instead of the apparent attempt to bully the officer into dropping the charge. If this is the type of leadership we have to look forward to then I guess it's time to move...

This is absolute insanity! Why would the rules that apply to everyone else NOT apply to the borough manager? “Even though Dormont’s small, this has larger consequences in that you could have a totalitarian state when police decide to make up rules as they go along,” he said. (DiLucente ) Guess what? Dormont already has a "totalitarian state", created by a manager who thinks he can do as he pleases and hide behind his position, with the full support of six of his friends on council. Parking in a space reserved for senior citizens and then barging into a restricted area of the police department unescorted to complain about it?! How much in legal fees will Rizza's latest escapade cost the taxpayers? And, the assistant manager (who just received a 15% raise!) oversteps the Mayor's authority and puts an officer on paid administrative leave for doing his job, when the borough is already short officers??? Guess who is footing the bill for Mr. DiLucente? The hardworking taxpayers of Dormont. We need to take back what's left of our community as quickly as possible. Get rid of this "manager" and the council members that allow this behavior to continue. Remember this when you vote in November.

Here we go with all the people commenting acting like they are smarter than pretty much everyone! I bet some of you have had tickets written off oh but that's ok, right? AGAIN 100% personal feelings involved here! Apparently the police have way too much time on there hands to be this petty or maybe they are all just sitting around protecting all that "sensetive documentation and evidence" I have a feeling I'll be waiting a long time to see the major drug ring or white collar crime they take down......

Lisa, read some above facts I have posted or the following quote:

Other departments have similar rules for granting civilians access to police offices. Mt. Lebanon Police Lt. Aaron Lauth said only sworn officers, civilian police employees and a few municipal and fire department computer technicians can let themselves into the secured third floor of the Mt. Lebanon Public Safety Building. Any visitors, including municipal manager Steve Feller, are met at the entrance by police and accompanied to their destinations, Lauth said.

I'm not dumb enough to think that there are not some personal feelings between both parties here, sure there are! But please don't be dumb enough to ignore facts! Mr. Rizza needs to be responsible for his actions! Do you condone his behavior? Is it ok to park (even for a short period) in a space reserved for senior citizens? Is it ok to barge into the Police Station and demand the ticket be taken back? Is this really the type of behavior we want from our borough manager? Would this be accepted anywhere else?

Bryan...just asking...did Gino Rizza..."barge into the Police Station and demand the ticket be taken back?" I haven't read that any where but thought you might know for sure. Did you hear that or did the police report that to you? because there is no mention of that in any article written in any papers or on the Patch so far (or maybe I missed it). It just says he paid the $15.00 ticket.

this town is getting so petty and nuts i cannot even handel it. all this over a parking ticket. why doesnt gino rizza get over it already and stop crying.

I live on Mattern. Last week I couldn't park on Mattern, or Montpelior. I parked instead on New Haven and got a ticket because it was their day for street sweeping and I didn't realize this. I also couldn't park on Hillsdale near our street that day either because they had street sweeping. Do I have the right to barge into the police station and demand my ticket be forgiven? Would it have been ok for me to park in the same place as our borough manager did, "just for a little bit" until I was able to move my car? No, I don't think so. For me though, I can't afford an attorney to dispute my ticket. Sure I could come and speak to the mayor, but that seems like a waste of my time and his. Instead I'm going to be an adult, learn from my mistake and pay the ticket.

Just for clarification, was the door locked or unlocked?

Did someone from LifeSpan actually call the police—Bryan this is one of the facts that you don’t mention. If not, then the credibility of everything after is suspect, because it was predicated on something meant to be provocative. It shouldn't seem surprising that it did provoke a question about the veracity of the ticket.

Also, the door leads to administrative areas; what is the door’s purpose if not to allow passage between the two rooms? People on this thread keep mentioning that he entered a secure police area; it doesn’t sound secure if it isn’t locked. Do we lock the cells? If administrative personnel are disallowed from entering then I question why this area wasn’t secure, why the door isn’t always locked.

I agree with Carolyn and Lisa: too much inflammatory verbiage is being used; few constructive thoughts are being exchanged. It just sounds like personal feelings are blurring reason and stoking animosity. All these posts: written in all CAPS or containing name-calling or exclamation points-can’t there be disagreement without reverting to this? It’s natural for most people to ignore these threads, commenters are likely to be those with the strongest opinions, but some of these are embarrassing to read.

Speaking of embarrassing: Dormont made the front page of the Post Gazette today. We’ve cracked this case wide open and have been recognized for our efforts.

First off its political and I would be willing to bet a political resolution will come of this, that being said. The police officer does not need a complaint to tag a vehicle for parking nd for an arrest. Please some of you and your theories about police functions are actually funny. Gino is a employee of Dormont and not a sworn police officer. He wa warned several times not to enter, first and foremost if the Attorney Generals Officer CRIA investigated Dormont and found these violations from Rizza to be true the same people would be complaining about the fines Dormont Boro would pay and its a waste of my tax dollars. Rizza knows better , how many warnings does one man get before action is taking. Im sure the police were tired of his political involvement in the police day to day operations when in fact the Dormont Mayor is totally in charge of the police department . As for Rizza Attorney he is getting paid to make this issue look like everyones at to get Gino, when in fact if Gino would have parked legally, not utilized access to the police department which he is not permitted, and not tried to take the police department from the Mayor in first place and he wouldn't have had issues I would think. You may think its petty for the police to cite Gino, but order and laws must be followed and maintained. Rizzo a political person tried and has used his political power to be the all commanding power in Dormont. Rizzo isnt allowed to just walk into the police department, FACT

UPDATE: Since nobody on here reported it, SGt. Burke placed back on active duty by Mayor after Council without approval placed him on leave.

Greg,

What is the CRIA?

Thanks

Does the Mayor have that power, and does the assistant manager? Guess the courts will decide who was right on this one...

Q Jack, fabrication is awful and the truth should be told. If he parked there illegally and the officer saw it and tagged its a violation. Problems occur when officers have to worry about political oppurtunities and consequences and fabricate or lie to make their decision look better, and yes suspension at very least if they lied possible termination if it could be proven. BTW I dont think Gino decided to run for office to walk thru doors, dont put words in my mouth. I state fact here and the facts are he isnt allowed, there are rules that need to be followed, obviously the great state of mount lebanon has rules for their manager to enter a police department as well as most professional departments theat care about the character of their mission

If anyone else, whose car was recognizable to members of the police department, had parked illegally in a spot designated for senior citizens and the police chose to ignore it, Mr. Rizza would be the first one to cite it as an example of them not doing their jobs. They can't win with him. Mr. Rizza is a paid employee of the borough and the same rules that apply to the rest of us actually do apply to him, as well.

Shouldn't Gino be put on administrative leave pending the outcome of this court case?

For all those who are interested in the fact checking, after talking with someone within the borough I found out the following:

1. The door is always locked.
2. Mr. Rizza along with other administrators does in fact have keys.
3. Every other administrator in the building who has a key is aware of the policy of not entering without permission. Most often a call is placed to the Police secretary ahead of time requesting access to this area.
4. Along with evidence and files the other area of concern is that a juvenile holding cell is in plain view of those who enter. There are many legal issues involving protection of juveniles.

Bryan,

Just asking.....can you find out what the protocal was for other managers? i.e. Warren Circonne, Russ McKibbon, etc. etc. Did any of them enter the police station using the back door? or go in announced with keys? as that would show life long protocal or at least some past protocal practices in that regard.

Did the assistant manager (or manager for that matter) have the authority to suspend a police officer? NO. Did the officer commit an offense warranting suspension? NO. The Mayor properly corrected something that should have never happened in the first place. FACTS.

From the Dormont Borough Code:
ARTICLE V
Removals, Suspensions and Reductions in Rank
§ 8-44. Grounds.
No person employed as police officer or fire apparatus operator shall be suspended, removed or
reduced in rank, except for the following reasons:
A. Physical or mental disability affecting his or her ability to keep in service.
B. Neglect or violation of any official duty.
C. Violation of any law of this commonwealth which provides that such a violation
constitutes a felony.
D. Inefficiency, neglect, intemperance, disobedience of orders or conduct unbecoming a
public servant.
E. Intoxication while on duty.
F. Participating in the conduct of any political or election campaign, otherwise than to
exercise his or her own right to suffrage.
§ 8-45. Removal prohibited for religious or other reasons.
A person so employed as a police officer or fire apparatus operator shall not be removed for

§ 8-49. Interim suspension of accused.
The Council may suspend any person against whom charges are made without pay pending the
determination of the charges against him or her.

Good thought, Just Mom. However, firing the Borough Manager for violating the Borough Code would be a better solution than giving him a paid summer vacation at the expense of the taxpayers.

That is a good point too Mary Beth. Also who is paying all of these legal fees? Id like to see some accountability of that as a taxpayer. Mr Rizza's fees should be paid out of his own pocket. I dont think we should have to foot the bill for this public temper tantrum. As Ive stated before, there are far too many other pertinent problems that need to be addressed in this community and finances are too tight in these times for such wastefulness.

Why is there still a door there if the only person ever authorized to use it has not been employed by either the police or the borough 3-4 borough managers ago? Hmmm..

I can now rest easier knowing that the police department in this town is doing such good police work. Must be proud. So correct me if I'm wrong (I know you will), he parked there in the afternoon long after the seniors arrive to Lifespan and there actually was a spot there for him to park? Is the spot for Lifespan people only even if most are already there or after Lifespan hours are over? What if you are just a senior citizen--are you allowed to park there or is there a special sticker or something you need to park there?

In the war of douchebaggery happening in this town, I think the police have won the douchebag award this week. I think we're sitting on a goldmine here, people. Forget getting along--let's get some reality shows here. We could have Dormont 911, The Dormont Shore or The Real Housewives of Dormont. Let's make some money off of this--it seriously just writes itself!

Just posing a question to all. What do you think would have happened if say another employee of Dormont, let's say the street department had parked in this space for "just a little bit" and Mr. Rizza asked the DPD to ticket him and an officer refused to do so? What if the officer said "Mr. Rizza it is the afternoon and the employee is only going to be there a few minutes." My guess is Mr. Rizza would have demanded some type of discipline for the officer. Rules and laws apply to everybody, all the time!

Seanpgh,

If this is true I agree that it is a waste of taxpayer money. Do you have facts to show to back this bold statement up?

Whatsay we all take off work and attend the hearing on 7/18? Could be great fun to watch Rizza explain away his crazy temper. BTW, he'd better be paying his attorney out of his own pocket. That, or perhaps the council people who support this maniac ought to be writing a check. Was he fighting the ticket and haranguing the police on boro time when he was supposed to be working?

No one is really addressing the deeper issues here. this strong arm behavior by ALL parties involved is not doing anything for the borough but cause it negative publicity! Granted I guess it's all in how you look at it but the story lines keep getting more rudiclous! When will this madness end??

I think the police are making a gutsy call by telling that maniac he has no business in the police dept office to argue over a personal matter. A ticket is a personal matter. I'd LOVE to read that police report.

Seanpgh:

I have been to council meetings spoke and asked questions. Unless it is about the pool or a "passive park" the members of council choose not to answer the questions of the citizens. I find it real hard to believe that this OT issue has been going on for some time and no other borough mgr addressed it.

You have to love this comedy of errors that these Keystone Cops under the guise of public servants provide your readers. And as each council becomes more ridiculous than the one before it, you can only wait with bated breath for the outcome of the general election in Nov 2011. I'm sure the last laugh hasn't been heard yet.

Mr. Smitty,
Your above analogy of the police & past, present & future councils is MORE than UNFAIR.
If you have never walked in any of their shoes, how can you make statements like that?

I really hope the residents of Dormont are paying close attention to the comments and theatrics of the leaders in charge so they canfinally have their say in the next election and make it their #1 priortiy to rid Dormont of all the trouble makers with "LITTLE MAN SYNDROME". Vote for people who do not have personal issues, agends and vendettas driving them but someone who actually cares about making Dormont a better place. To many of the people in charge obviously have serious issues and vendettas keeping them from doing what they were elected or hired to do. And because they all have "LITTLE MAN SYNDROME" they are to busy trying to prove that they are really the ones who rule Dormont. But eventually they will start infighting amongst themselves as soon as one thinks that one of their friends is getting more power than themselves. Can anyone state what good things these current leaders have done for Dormont since being elected or hired?? The next 2 elections will bring refreshing changes to Dormont. "CAN'T WAIT"