Dormont Council Will Appeal Civil Service Commission Decision on Ross

Dormont voted to formally appeal the Civil Service Commission’s decision regarding the demotion of former police Chief Phil Ross.

Borough Council voted 4-3 during its Tuesday night meeting to appeal the ruling with council members Joan Hodson, John Maggio and Eugene Barilla casting the dissenting votes.

 The three-member commission in July unanimously overturned the borough’s demotion of Ross for insubordination and ineffective management. The commission said the borough's evidence was "insufficient" and "not credible."

Before Tuesday night’s vote, several residents asked the council to stop the appeal because of the costs associated with the process.

“You have plenty of time to extend the olive branch so we don’t have to continue to throw away taxpayer money,” resident Jeff Fabus said.

Maggio said he regretted the situation and blamed everyone—including himself—for the situation. He said it was time to accept the commission’s ruling and move forward.

“Certainly, there was enough blame to go around,” he said. 

Also during the meeting… 

• The borough will advertise an ordinance addressing the dismissal of traffic tickets even though members on council have yet to see the finalized proposal. Hodson asked how they could vote to advertise an ordinance that they have yet to see. Councilman Drew Lehman said the ordinance will address who has the power to dismiss traffic tickets, but acknowledged it will not be finished until later this week.

• Council accepted the resignation of assistant borough manager Ian McMeans and agreed to advertise to solicit applications for the vacant position. Curiously, a job posting was placed on Craigslist on Aug. 30 despite the fact no final decision on the position had been made. Council did not say how long the borough will be accepting applications.

• A motion to ratify a settlement with police Sgt. Ralf Zawischa was tabled because Mayor Tom Lloyd never received a copy of the agreement.

• Council accepted the resignation of Lindsay Rethage from the recreation board and appointed Kristen Pauchnik to replace her.