North Braddock police chief resigns, borough expected to join regional commission

NORTH BRADDOCK, Pa. — Policing in North Braddock is set for a major change.

Tuesday night, the North Braddock Borough Council accepted the resignation of Police Chief Issac Daniele, whose contract was not renewed by Council last month, and was set to expire June 30.

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Leaders appointed Officer Ryan Wooten to serve as acting chief.

This comes as the Borough works to establish the Eastern Regional Mon Valley Police Department along with East Pittsburgh and Rankin.

“You have officers working under the same model, the same best practices and their policy, and you’re not guessing on what you’re getting as a citizen when you call 911,” explained Gerald Simpson, who is a peer consultant with the PA Department of Community and Economic Development.

Simpson is a retired chief of a regional police force in Eastern Pennsylvania tasked with helping to guide the formation of this new regionalized department.

“In the commonwealth, this is the model that works right now. It’s hard for communities particularly that are struggling with some of the financial pieces to do this on this on their own,” Simpson said.

Residents brought their questions about this regionalization process to Tuesday’s meeting.

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Among their concerns is covering a lot of ground across three communities.

“What’s the timeframe for response for somebody in Rankin when the police department is in East Pittsburgh? Or what’s the response from East Pittsburgh for a resident here in North Braddock?” questioned Dennis Evans, from North Braddock.

According to Simpson, it’s still undecided where the new department will be housed.

He says the goal is to have the new police force up and running by Jan. 1, with 12 full-time and a few more part-time officers.

Once all three communities officially enter into an agreement, a regional commission will begin hiring new officers and a chief.

“While there are a lot of things to still figure out as it relates to that implementation phase, we’re well underway with a good timeline and a plan to start to tackle those projects,” Simpson said.

North Braddock is expected to officially approve joining the regional police commission next week.

Rankin and East Pittsburgh are expected to do the same within the next 30 days.

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