Pittsburgh Police Chief McLay has officers sign memo not to leak info

Pittsburgh Police Chief McLay has officers sign memo not to leak info: A city administration that prides itself on transparency and openness said Wednesday it supports a message to police officers to zip their lips or face discipline.

Pittsburgh police Chief Cameron McLay ordered officers and other police employees this week to sign a “memorandum of individual responsibility” in the presence of a supervisor promising not to share information. It says anyone caught disseminating such information could be terminated.

The memo defines official information as matters that are of a “sensitive, official, confidential or routine use,” according to a copy of the document the Trib obtained.

“My efforts are meant to keep good people honest and, hopefully, prevent disciplinary procedures for improper handling of information,” McLay said in a statement.

What kind of information is prohibited from release remains unclear, a point that drew a rebuke from police union officials.