Pittsburgh City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved Jason Lando as police chief and Sheldon Williams as public safety director.
The pair have been serving in their roles in an acting capacity since Mayor Corey O’Connor took office last month.
A Squirrel Hill native and veteran of Pittsburgh’s police force, Lando spent the last five years serving as police chief in Frederick, Md.
While there he was accused of using anonymous numbers to send harassing messages to a former subordinate. An investigation in Maryland found “no violations of criminal law” but linked Lando to an account that sent the messages to former police corporal Daniel Sullivan. Sullivan has questioned whether Lando is fit to serve as Pittsburgh’s chief.
“I’m just glad that’s behind me, and I’m looking forward to moving on because there’s a lot of work to do,” Lando told reporters Wednesday.
Williams was among the first officials O’Connor tapped as he assembled his administration.
Williams launched his career as a Pittsburgh paramedic before serving 18 years in the Army Reserves and Air Force National Guard.
He worked as a member of the Pittsburgh police SWAT team and bomb squad, spent a decade as a pastor at Allegheny Center Alliance Church and in 2022 started teaching at the University of Pittsburgh’s Emergency Medicine program.
“I find you both highly qualified,” Councilman Anthony Coghill, D-Beechview, told the duo during a public interview last week.
The public safety director will make just over $169,000 this year, and the chief’s salary is about $180,000, according to the 2026 budget.
Improved morale
After Wednesday’s vote, Coghill said he was glad Lando “owned up to” the text message controversy in Frederick.
Coghill discussed the matter privately with Lando last week prior to council questioning the nominee under oath and told TribLive, “I know he regrets it. He knows it was bad judgment.”
Lando has refused to answer questions from TribLive about his role in the matter, including whether he sent the messages.
“I do regret my mistake,” Lando said at last week’s council meeting. “I can also assure you it will not happen again.”
Coghill, who chairs council’s public safety committee, said he was confident in Lando, in part because the rank-and-file officers he had spoken with said they were, too.
“I feel like the morale is better, and he’s here to stay,” Coghill said, adding that he wants to see Lando focus on recruiting and retaining more officers until the bureau’s numbers reach 900.
Lando told reporters Wednesday that he would like to see the bureau eventually reach that size but acknowledged it would take time. The force currently has about 760 officers, he said.
Priority list
Councilman Bob Charland, D-South Side, said he wants to ensure Lando fosters positive relationships with the community.
“My prime concern is how the chief interacts with the community, how our officers engage with the community and how the public safety officials are engaging with the officers,” he said.
Charland said Lando toured the bustling East Carson Street corridor — a South Side area that has struggled with crime and a negative public image — to better understand how nighttime entertainment district patrols handle the scene.
At last week’s interview, Lando and Williams vowed not to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Other priorities they outlined include improving recruitment and retention, offering more robust officer wellness programs and strengthening relationships between police officers and the communities they serve.
Lando reiterated Wednesday that stopping violent crime would be the bureau’s top priority.
“We always want to be laser-focused on the violent crime” and crimes that impact residents’ quality of life, he said.
The chief also said he wants to explore ways to shorten the amount of time it takes to become a police officer and ensure existing officers don’t leave to join other police forces, something that often depletes Pittsburgh’s ranks.
“We have a great training program. Our officers do phenomenal work,” he said. “But I don’t want us to be a breeding ground for other departments.”
Lando said he wants to see police stations open overnight after staffing shortages forced police zones to shutter during late-night hours. But he pitched the idea of putting civilians in those positions rather than sworn officers.
Tim Stevens, who founded the Black Political Empowerment Project, last week told council members he felt Lando would be a “great police chief.”
He recalled Lando’s leadership when the chief served as Zone 5 commander in the city’s East End before leaving his hometown to head Frederick’s police force.
“I found him to be one of the most community-oriented officers with whom I’ve ever worked,” Stevens said.