Could Pittsburgh become “the next Ferguson?” Acting Pittsburgh police Chief Cameron McLay said he thinks it could. And he is working as hard as he can to make sure it doesn’t.
“I’ve asked command staff who they know in the community, who are the leaders who can help calm things if an incident like that happens in their zone. We need those relationships, that trust, so we can hit pause long enough for emotions to shut down and let the investigative process take its course,” he said. “And if the (grand jury announcement on Ferguson) comes when we think it might, it will coincide with Light Up Night here. With thousands of people already on the streets, it could be bad. So we are prepared for the worst but we’re trying to be proactive on this.”
That was just one of the brutally honest responses McLay gave to an audience of more than 100 people who met to ask him questions during a Community Conversation at Pentecostal Temple Church in East Liberty Nov. 17. Following introductions by sponsors Black Political Empowerment Project Chair Tim Stevens and Urban League of Pittsburgh President and CEO Esther Bush, KDKA-TV news reporter Lynn Hayes-Freeland wasted no time reading questions submitted by the audience.
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