Ruling extends fight over Versailles police department
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Versailles Mayor Emerson Fazekas may have won the battle to reinstate the borough's police department, but it's still unclear whether he'll win the war.
A July 20 court ruling declared that the mayor had the right to veto council actions that dissolved the police department. But whether former officers will be put back to work, and what will become of the contract that Versailles currently has for police protection, have yet to be determined.
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Council voted, 4-3, on Jan. 20 to furlough the three-member department and instead contract for one year with neighboring White Oak for police services. When the mayor vetoed the actions, Solicitor George Gobel said the actions were not subject to his veto because they were considered "administrative" and not "legislative."
According to borough code, mayors can veto only council actions that are considered legislative.
At midnight after the vote, White Oak began patrolling the borough, and shortly thereafter, Versailles sold its police car and locked the department office.
The mayor filed suit in February, and Common Pleas Judge David Wecht heard the case in March. The judge would not grant a request for a preliminary injunction that would have had the department reinstated while the case proceeded. But he ultimately ruled in the mayor's favor, declaring the actions in question to be "legislative."
The mayor said he was "as excited as a pig on ice" when he heard the news that Judge Wecht had ruled in his favor, but he is cautiously optimistic about what the ruling will mean.
"[We're] trying to figure out a way to get them back … what steps we have to take," he said.
"It's going to be legally complicated," said the mayor's attorney, Thomas Castello.
The judge's order addressed only the mayor's veto and did not mandate the reinstatement of the police department. But Mr. Castello said the order means the police "can demand to go back to work."
The mayor said thus far, none of the former police officers had taken legal action to be reinstated.
The attorney representing the borough, Brian Gabriel, said he expects borough council to appeal, which means the case could be drawn out for several more months.
Mr. Gobel, who turned the case over to Mr. Gabriel, had no comment.
Mr. Gabriel also pointed out that the contract with White Oak is for only one year, with an option for an extension, so the borough could bring back the department next year if it chooses.
First Published July 30, 2009 12:00 am
