Lance: To those who would portray Cecil Brookins as a ”victim.” Mr. Brookins, toting a gun, held Pittsburgh police at bay for several hours on the roof of a Homewood house Wednesday. He was shot five times by police after he opened fire and hit two officers. Brookins’ sisters allege police shot first and that it’s another case of a black man being shot by police. Eyewitness accounts contradict that claim; the usual, mandatory police review will follow. Can we expect an apology from Brookins’ sisters when what now seems to be the irrefutable is affirmed? Laurel: To Pittsburgh residents. The good people of the ‘Burg have denied the police union a referendum seeking to abolish the Police Review Board. The Fraternal Order of Police couldn’t get enough signatures (7,884 were needed) by Tuesday’s 5 p.m. deadline to force the ballot question. Seems to us that lack of signatures is speaking loud and clear. On the ‘watch list’: Jacqueline Morrow. Pittsburgh’s solicitor is none too pleased with a backlog of hundreds of complaints, some 5 years old, in the Office of Municipal Investigations. OMI oversees complaints against police. In fact, Ms. Morrow says that if the backlog isn’t erased by the end of the year, she’ll quit. Count on a friendly reminder from us on, say, Jan. 3, the first Friday of 2003. Laurel: To Jim Roddey. The Allegheny County executive has put local governments and school districts on notice: Cut your millage to prevent any windfalls (above the 5 percent ceiling, that is) from the reassessment or face legal action. And it’s not a threat, it’s a promise. To back up his warning, the ACE has assembled a team of eight private attorneys to take the cases free of charge. A heavy-handed government cudgel• Not at all. Try a watchdog, barking, reminding others to do what’s right and prepared to show a little tooth. Lance: To the mess that was AHERF. The Allegheny Health, Education and Research Foundation bankruptcy case has wound down. And the economic carnage left in its wake is stunning: Creditors will end up getting about 12 cents on the dollar. AHERF once was Pennsylvania’s largest nonprofit health chain. It sought Chapter 11 protection in July 1998, citing $1.4 billion of debt. Former CEO Sherif Abdelhak awaits trial on more than 700 charges of misusing foundation money. Laurel: To the Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council. The council last year helped 3,000 adults seeking better job prospects, general equivalency diplomas or simply to read. That’s an impressive number for the organization celebrating its 20th birthday. We wish the council even greater success in the years to come. R.I.P.: Chuckles the dolphin. The oldest Amazon River dolphin living in captivity died this week at the Pittsburgh Zoo & Aquarium. Kidney failure is suspected. Chuckles, in his mid-30s and who had a penchant for biting, was named for his smile in a public contest. Chuckles is survived by several generations of Pittsburghers who adored him.

---

Copyright ©2026— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)

---