Two Bellefonte police officers resign, placing additional strain on department. What we know
Two Bellefonte police officers have resigned since February — with at least one facing termination if he did not voluntarily leave — but the borough’s leaders have remained mum on the reasons for their departures.
Officer Jason Brower was slated to be potentially fired during the March 18 borough council meeting, but resigned hours beforehand. Officer Matthew Pollock resigned in February.
Borough Manager Ralph Stewart, council President Kent Bernier and Mayor Gene “Buddy” Johnson each declined to share context about the departures. Police Chief Shawn Weaver largely declined comment but, when asked if Brower’s resignation stemmed from something criminal in nature, he said it did not.
Neither of the officers’ resignation letters was made available to the CDT, which submitted two Right-to-Know requests for further information on the officers.
The reasons behind both departures are not publicly known. When asked if his office is investigating any allegations made against either officer, Centre County District Attorney Bernie Cantorna deferred to state police at Rockview. A message left Friday with a department spokesman was not immediately returned.
“We won’t comment on matters that are under investigation unless there is a public issue that needs to be addressed,” Cantorna wrote in a text to the CDT.
After meeting in executive session March 18 for about 15 minutes, council’s public acknowledgment of Brower’s departure lasted about 30 seconds. A personnel matter was also discussed in executive session Feb. 20, although no names are mentioned in the minutes of the public portion of the council meeting.
The departures of Brower and Pollock put strain on a department that began the year with 10 full-time officers. With longtime borough police officer Robert Igoe retiring from the department in January, that means 30% of the department has left the force since the New Year.
Whether additional officers leave the department remains to be seen. Council is scheduled to meet in executive session Monday to discuss more personnel matters; the borough’s agenda does not specify if the discussion relates to its police department.
Despite the upheaval, it does not appear the borough’s leaders are giving serious consideration to disbanding its police department in favor of state police coverage, which sometimes happens in smaller municipalities across the commonwealth.
Bernier, a former state trooper, said the borough is in the process of testing and hiring additional police officers. Johnson, meanwhile, said the department is “doing a very nice job of banding together and staying strong for our community.”
“I would be shocked if that happened. The Bellefonte Police Department is community-based and is integral to the community,” Johnson said when asked about the potential of dismantling the department. “They do a lot of good things for the great community of Bellefonte, so I would be shocked — and I can’t imagine there being no local police force to help support and protect the Bellefonte community.”
State law does not require municipalities to maintain a local police force. Bellefonte’s police department has a budget of $1.86 million for this year.
Council’s executive session is scheduled to begin 6:30 p.m. Monday. A work session is scheduled for 7 p.m., followed by a business meeting at 7:30 p.m.
CDT reporter Josh Moyer contributed to this story.
This story was originally published March 29, 2024 at 3:15 PM.