A veteran Pittsburgh police commander who lives outside the city was promoted Monday to the bureau’s second-highest post despite the home rule charter requiring non-unionized police to reside within the city.
During a promotion ceremony Monday afternoon, Cmdr. Lori McCartney was sworn in to the position of assistant chief.
Section 711 of Pittsburgh’s home rule charter states that “all city employees and officials, including police and fire bureau personnel, shall be domiciled in the city at the time.”
Property records show McCartney, who was promoted to commander in 2023, owns a home with her partner, former Pittsburgh police Cmdr. Reyne Kacsuta, in South Fayette. They purchased it in 2018 for about $375,000.
McCartney and Kacsuta have a homestead exemption on the property, according to Allegheny County real estate records. That means the home “is primarily used as the domicile of an owner who is a natural person,” the state Department of Community and Economic Development said online.
The O’Connor administration maintains that McCartney’s ability to live outside the city and serve as assistant chief does not violate the home rule charter.
“I’m only about 20 minutes away,” McCartney told TribLive after the brief promotion ceremony at the City-County Building.
She pointed out that it can take longer than that to make it from certain parts of the city to others.
“I will do my best to serve the citizens of Pittsburgh, support the chief, my fellow command staff members and the officers who work tirelessly on a daily basis to keep the city safe,” McCartney said in a brief speech during the event.
‘Absolutely ridiculous’
Residency requirements were waived for unionized Pittsburgh police officers a decade ago.
But the highest-ranking police officials — the chief, assistant chief and commanders — are not part of the union.
“It’s the administration’s position that after the legislature granted police officers the right to live outside of the city, that would need to apply to supervisors as well after promotion,” Molly Onufer, a spokeswoman for the mayor, told TribLive.
The O’Connor administration preemptively defended the move last week, saying police brass were released “many years ago” from residency requirements that apply to city employees but not unionized police officers.
“That is why this change was made for non-union commanders many years ago,” Onufer said. “We believe it also applies to the assistant chief position.”
Public Safety Director Sheldon Williams held to that logic on Monday.
“The door had already been opened before this administration,” Williams said.
The head of the union representing Pittsburgh police rank-and-file officers told TribLive the city’s characterization was “absolutely ridiculous.”
Multiple members of City Council said they were concerned about the precedent the move could set.
“I still believe the rules are the rules,” Councilwoman Kim Salinetro, D-West End, told TribLive last week. “So, if you have to live in the city as assistant chief, you have to live in the city. How is it good for morale to say the rules apply to this person but not to this other one?”
The mayor and Pittsburgh police Chief Jason Lando did not respond to multiple TribLive requests last week and Monday for an interview.
At the ceremony, Lando said, “Throughout her 33 year-career, Lori has consistently demonstrated the professionalism, integrity and vision that define exceptional leadership.”
FOP is unhappy
The Fraternal Order of Police, which represents most of the bureau’s rank-and-file officers, received an exemption from the residency requirement following a state Supreme Court case in 2017.
Residency requirements for city firefighters were waived following contract talks in 2022.
In April 2025, the union representing Pittsburgh Emergency Medical Services personnel filed a lawsuit challenging the residency requirement, which remains in place for paramedics and EMTs.
The anticipated move by Lando to appoint McCartney drew criticism from the Fraternal Order of Police Fort Pitt Lodge 1, the union representing rank-and-file officers.
Union president Robert Swartzwelder chastised the city, comparing its position on McCartney to its past stance on residency requirements for his members.
The police union had attempted to bargain for its officers to be exempted from the residency requirement, but when the union couldn’t reach a deal with the city, the case went to arbitration — and then to the courts.
“They came after my (union’s) residency requirements and they don’t even enforce their own?” Swartzwelder told TribLive Thursday.
“You’re going every which way to skirt the law,” Swartzwelder added.
Council members weigh in
City council members have aired concern about the precedent of appointing a non-city resident to a prominent Pittsburgh police leadership position.
Councilman Anthony Coghill, D-Beechview said last week “it doesn’t seem fair” to police commanders who live in Pittsburgh to promote someone who lives outside the city. Coghill said it sends a message that there’s not a qualified talent pool of commanders living in Pittsburgh to elevate one of them to the assistant chief position.
Coghill chairs council’s public safety committee.
“If I were one of (those commanders), I wouldn’t be too pleased,” Coghill said. “I could see how that doesn’t help morale. The rules are the rules. And I would hope the police chief would live up to those rules.”
Councilman Bob Charland took a more nuanced stance, weighing the need to grow the city’s talent pool against municipal desire for people working in Pittsburgh to call the city home.
“It would be my decision that our assistant chief live in the city — it’s my desire that all city employees live in our city,” Charland, D-South Side, said. “But it’s a practical versus philosophical argument.”
“It’s our job,” Charland added, “to build a city our employees want to live in and not something that’s an obstacle to employment.”
Julia Burdelski and Justin Vellucci are TribLive staff writers. Julia can be reached at jburdelski@triblive.com, Justin at jvellucci@triblive.com.