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Allegheny County Council takes up police accountability bill, receives update on new jail wages

County Council

Proposed bill takes aim at officer anonymity amid immigration enforcement.

Officers, including federal agents, couldn't wear masks or hide badges on duty in Allegheny County under a proposed law. Introduced April 14, it would punish each violation with a fine up to $500 or up to 90 days in jail. Undercover officers and those wearing medical masks would be exempt. For now, council has referred it to the public safety committee.

Written by Amy Whipple

Allegheny County Council may increase accountability for law enforcement officers.

Council Member Dewitt Walton of the Hill District introduced legislation at the April 14 meeting that would bar local, state and federal law enforcement from wearing masks, obscuring their badges or otherwise concealing their identity while working in the county. It would also require law enforcement vehicles to be publicly identifiable.

Officers wearing medical-style masks for health reasons or protective tactical equipment as well as officers who are working undercover would be exempt from the legislation.

For each violation, officers will face either a fine up to $500 or imprisonment for up to 90 days. They may also face additional penalties such as payment of court costs. According to the legislation, officers would not be able to claim qualified immunity from civil liability if they are violating the statute.

The bill also aims to make it more difficult for people to impersonate officers, which has increased related to federal immigration enforcement. “The need for accountability is heightened when state actors are granted policing power by the people,” the legislation reads. 

Council referred the bill to the public safety committee. 

County Council

County jail inmates receive first paychecks after 200 years of unpaid work.

Until this month, Allegheny County Jail workers weren't paid at all. Now, they earn $5 a day, and those in educational programs earn $2 per class. A council member said 377 workers got their first payments in early April. Still, people doing custodial work on their own pod won't be paid until a second phase, which has no start date.

Written by Amy Whipple

As of this month, people incarcerated in the Allegheny County Jail (ACJ) will no longer be forced to work without pay.

“Folks in the Allegheny County Jail have been working full-time jobs, seven days a week, sometimes 12-15-hour days for zero cents an hour,” Council Member Bethany Hallam of Ross said at the April 14 county council meeting. Hallam, who is a member of the Jail Oversight Board, said 377 workers received their first payments the week prior.

At the April 2 oversight board meeting, Deputy Warden Connie Clark said people who work throughout the jail receive $5 per day. Those who participate in educational programs receive $2 per class and can attend multiple classes per day. (People may both work and attend classes as well.)

Clark said jobs fall under 12 categories, including custodial, culinary and biohazard mitigation. Not all workers are included in the first phase of the program. People who do custodial work on their own pod will not begin receiving payments until the second phase, which does not yet have a planned start date.  

As of April 23, there were approximately 1,860 people incarcerated at the jail, approximately 130 of which were serving a sentence, the other 1,730 were awaiting trial or sentencing. Only those serving a sentence can be forced to work; people who are being held pre-trial may choose to do so.