Mayor Luke Ravenstahl will not rescind promotions of three Pittsburgh policemen with domestic incidents in their backgrounds. The city probably would lose in court; no policy was violated and there are no convictions. But Mr. Ravenstahl, who obviously had not taken firm control of the department, must do so: &#149 Cmdr. George Trosky allegedly broke the nose of his wife. Charges were dropped, but he was demoted in 1997 and the two divorced in 1998. &#149 Lt. Charles Rodriguez allegedly struck his daughter in April but charges were dropped this week. &#149 Police went to the home of Sgt. Eugene Hlavac in March after reports of screaming. Ravenstahl had known about Mr. Trosky beforehand. He claims he was blind-sided by the other cases and gave Chief Nate Harper a talking-to. Appearances really matter for a police bureau that was under strict federal oversight until five years ago. The mayor is correct to hold up further promotions until a new policy is established. Yet Deputy Chief Paul Donaldson implored the public, especially protesting women’s groups, to “trust” the police. Pittsburgh-style “trust” led to Justice Department supervision of the police and put the city into ongoing state receivership. If Pittsburgh is backsliding, the mayor has to stop it.

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