Dormont appoints latest temporary top cop

Dormont Borough Council officially made its only healthy sergeant the 'officer in charge' of its police department early this morning, following the resignation of its acting chief and pending an appeal of an ousted chief`s demotion.

In a special meeting called three days before two new council members are to take office, four of the seven members met to ratify the appointment of Sgt. Ralf Zawischa as officer in charge of the department • a duty he has unofficially held since Acting Chief Richard Dwyer resigned Dec. 14.

Two other sergeants, who had been sworn in at the same time as Zawischa, are off duty with injuries. The borough`s Civil Service Commission ordered former chief Phil Ross be reinstated earlier this year, but council appealed and is still awaiting a ruling by the Court of Common Pleas.

The 4-0 vote, with councilmen Eugene Barilla, Drew Lehman and John Maggio absent, also encouraged Zawischa to continue some of the policies Dwyer implemented, such as keeping daily records and putting officers on foot patrol.

Mayor Tom Lloyd, who earlier this month had sought to appoint Ross as acting chief of police before being rebuffed by council, said Zawischa was the only name officials considered for the post of officer in charge.

Council had called the unusual early-morning meeting with only 24 hours` notice due to a looming legal deadline, said solicitor Deron Gabriel. Another vote this morning directed him to appeal a Dec. 5 decision by the zoning hearing board to give a #1 Cochran car dealership a variance on zoning regulations that limit the size of car lots and services within the borough. Council wants to overturn the zoning decision and hold Cochran to the regulations` limits.

Gabriel said the borough had a Jan. 5 deadline to file an appeal, and waiting until two new members of council took office Jan. 3 would not give him enough time to prepare the case.