Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Story of the day: The city's Bureau of Police appears to be in full melt-down mode. The FBI has apparently subpoenaed documents relating to the handling of money from "secondary employment" -- jobs officers take on the side. Unnamed veteran supervisors are spilling over the side to the Post-Gazette, calling the situation "heartbreaking." And anymore it seems like everybody in the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police is looking to make a few bucks on the side. The latest, from WTAE: A Pittsburgh police officer is selling memorabilia online using the city logo and Pittsburgh police insignia -- an apparent violation of the city's ethics code. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's spokeswoman tells WTAE that her boss is seeking "a clear-cut policy regarding police officers who work secondary jobs." But you know, weren't we supposed to have come up with that the first time around?
Also, you might have heard President Obama gave a State of the Union address last night. Full transcript here, in case you missed it: Text of the GOP response from Marco Rubio is here, though sadly it doesn't include the "(pause, take drink of water)" stage instruction that was perhaps the speech's biggest highlight. You can find reactions from state lawmakers here: Check out the way Rep. Tim Murphy manages to make it all about him.
City Councilor Ricky Burgess is offering a high-tech proposal to reduce gun violence: "a gunshot detection system" that will pinpoint the location of a firearm discharge, and relay that information to police. Burgess is also hoping to make police procedures available to the public. It's an idea worth discussing, but given everything going on over in the cop shop, maybe the first order of business ought to be making sure it's available to the police.
Here's a shocker: Those friendly folks at Range Resources have apparently called off a legal truce with some local communities with strict drilling rules. Just weeks after assuring officials in Cecil Township that they wanted to be friends, the drilling company's friendly lawyers have now sent a friendly heads-up that they intend to sue the government. Your Range Resources ... your legal quagmire.
Speaking of friendly letters, the federal government has put Gov. Tom Corbett on notice that the state's handling of jobless claims is so bollixed up -- with lengthy delays and hurdles in the application process -- that the Department of Labor may sanction the state.