Pittsburgh City Council postpones vote on appointing Christopher Ragland as chief of police
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Pittsburgh City Council has pushed back its vote to appoint Mayor Ed Gainey's police chief nominee.
The city council has decided to interview Acting Chief Christopher Ragland for the job first. They are also considering holding a public hearing and potentially a town hall so residents can let them know what they're looking for in a new chief before interviewing Ragland.
Who is Christopher Ragland, acting chief of police?
About two weeks ago, KDKA-TV's lead investigator Andy Sheehan learned that Mayor Gainey was planning to nominate Christopher Ragland, who has been serving in that position for the past three months in an acting capacity.
The 31-year career officer has been the acting chief since former Pittsburgh Police Chief Larry Scirotto unexpectedly announced his retirement in November.
As Ragland has served as acting chief, he was given a 90-day authorization to serve in that role, but the 90 days are coming to an end and that means he either has to be named full-time chief, extend the 90-day authorization, or someone else had to be nominated.
KDKA-TV learned that no other internal candidates had emerged and Gainey's administration decided against conducting a nationwide search.
Ragland has served as commander of three separate zones in the city and shares the mayor's belief in police-community relations.
Why does Pittsburgh need a new police chief?
In November, the then-chief of police, Larry Scirotto unexpectedly retired after his decision to continue officiating college basketball games.
When Scirotto was named chief in 2023, it was believed he would no longer officiate college basketball games. Mayor Gainey and Scirotto had an understanding but Scirotto said he was prepared to take a pay cut or even step down if the city didn't allow him to continue officiating.
In late October 2024, he announced his retirement in a letter.
"I informed Mayor Gainey and Director Schmidt of my intention to retire as Chief of Police, with my last day being November 1st," the letter read. "After 25 years of dedicated service to the Bureau, this decision is rooted in pride, duty, and a deep commitment to our organization and the community we serve. This choice is made by me alone, in the best interest of my officers and the department."
Meanwhile, at the time, Pittsburgh City Council President Daniel Lavelle expressed confidence in Ragland's ability to lead the department.
"I know Chief Ragland rather well. I certainly think he can step into the job. And then we need to determine whether or not that is a permanent position or if we need to do the search," Lavelle said.
