By David Hurst
The Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, Pa.
SOMERSET, Pa. — A group of Somerset County Jail officers were saluted Tuesday for saving an inmate’s life in November.
Jail Warden Brian Pelesky and five corrections officers were applauded by Somerset County commissioners for “quick, decisive” actions rendering aid during a midnight shift in November.
Pelesky said a jail inmate alerted staff that night that a fellow inmate was suffering a medical episode.
Chief Corrections Officer Cody Pcola and officers Brandon Baker, Brady George, Adam Clawson and Julian Nycz responded to find the inmate conscious in his cell, but in need of medical care, Pelesky said.
Pelesky declined to discuss specifics about the medical issue to protect the inmate’s right to privacy.
But he, and Somerset County commissioners, credited the group for quickly evaluating and rendering aid to the inmate.
“Usually, when people think of a jail,” Pelesky said, “they think about negative (events). The way these officers responded ... shows the positive side.”
President Commissioner Brian Fochtman said it’s a shining example that “training” matters.
“Good training is so important because when incidents happen – and the stress level goes up – you fall back on your training and react,” said Fochtman, a retired state trooper. “That’s what these officers did that day, and it probably saved a life.”
Pelesky said the inmate recovered from his medical issue and has since been released from custody.
Pay raise panned
One county resident criticized commissioners Tuesday for raising salaries for a group of upper-level county employees a week earlier.
The move impacted nearly 30 positions, including 20 currently filled nonunion department heads, directors and solicitors. It also marked the end of a yearlong effort that previously raised wages for the rest of the county’s 450 employees, the board said last week.
Local resident George Critchfield, a frequent meeting attendee who advocated for raises for rank-and-file workers, said he was concerned the upper-level raises will lead to a future tax increase, and suggested they weren’t necessary.
He called the raises unnecessary, citing one county attorney’s $11,000 raise as excessive.
Commissioners told The Tribune-Democrat last week that the raises were planned ahead through the 2025 budget process, which kept taxes unchanged.
The raises, like previous ones for other county workers, were designed to make salaries more competitive with counterparts in nearby counties and the private sector who are otherwise luring away experienced county workers.
And once county officials started making sweeping changes to county wages, it was only right to ensure all employees benefited, Commissioner Pamela Tokar-Ickes said Tuesday.
“If wages for county employees start going up, they have to (rise) for everyone,” she said.