The head of the watchdog agency that investigates Pittsburgh’s police said Tuesday that Mayor Ed Gainey’s administration has lacked transparency when it comes to law enforcement.
“This administration has not been transparent, they have not been cooperative, they have not assisted this board in fulfilling your chartered mission, your mandate from the people,” said Beth Pittinger, executive director of the independent Citizen Police Review Board [CPRB], during a public meeting of the board’s members. “They have said that they are cooperative, they have said that they are transparent. They are not.”
The statement came as the board prepares to launch a formal investigation into a forceful June 10 arrest in the North Side, during which several officers pulled a disabled Black man out of a car, pinned him to the ground and carried him across the street.
Pittinger said during the board’s June meeting that the city had yet to provide the board with information sought about the arrest to determine whether to investigate. Ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, Pittinger told Public Source in an email that there was still no response and that she would recommend the board open an investigation “to allow staff time to issue a subpoena and go from there.”
Olga George, the mayor’s press secretary, responded to Pittinger’s claims late Wednesday, saying that the city is transparent with the CPRB and the statements “mischaracterized the city’s commitment to accountability.”
“If these requests are being sent to individuals who have not responded or failed to elevate the matter, we ask that she approach administration leadership directly to escalate her requests rather than routing them through the media …” George said. “Transparency is a shared responsibility, and communication must be directed appropriately to be effective.”
Department of Public Safety spokesperson Cara Cruz said in an email to Public Source Wednesday afternoon that neither the department nor the acting chief of police are aware of any requests for evidence from the CPRB, with which they communicate “regularly.”
Pittinger disputed Cruz’s statement, reading from emails between the CPRB investigator and an administrative assistant to a police higher-up. She said the investigator requested documents and video pertaining to the arrest on June 12, and just a day later, the assistant responded, saying “Confirmed. I will add it to the log.”
Gainey ran for office in 2021 in part on a platform of police accountability and transparency. His campaign website at the time included a pledge to strengthen the CPRB and give it more power to compel testimony from officers and “conduct thorough, independent investigations of police misconduct.”
Content warning: This story and video includes a violent arrest and language some may find objectionable. Earl William Brinson is pulled from a car on James Street by East Ohio Street by Pittsburgh Police officers on June 10, in East Allegheny. (Video by DS Fleegle/Pittsburgh’s Public Source)
Gainey’s only public comment on the arrest came in a June 13 Instagram video published by advocacy group 1Hood Power, during which he said he would not comment until after an internal investigation was complete.
George said the case remains under “active internal investigation.”
Board’s access to footage curtailed
Pittinger said Tuesday that the CPRB has had access to police body-worn camera footage in the past. Sometimes the bureau allowed CPRB investigators to view footage at police headquarters, and at other times police staff would view and answer questions about footage for an investigator.
That access stopped, Pittinger said, during Gainey’s tenure.
Pittinger said she and the CPRB’s solicitor have attempted to meet with the city solicitor to resolve communication issues, but city representatives have repeatedly postponed scheduled meetings, the most recent of which was slated for July 21.
Gainey lost the primary election in May and will give up his seat in January either to Democratic nominee Corey O’Connor or Republican nominee Tony Moreno.
Forceful North Side arrest prompts police review
Pittinger said in an interview that political changes routinely disrupt the board’s work because new administrations don’t want to be bound by agreements forged by past leadership.
“We have to be able to establish protocols that can be carried forward,” Pittinger said. “You’re starting from scratch every time.’
This story was updated to include comments received after publication.
Charlie Wolfson is the local government reporter for Pittsburgh’s Public Source. He can be reached at charlie@publicsource.org.
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