Rally for Rostraver police officer in Greensburg
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Attendees of the rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Austin Branthoover, a 17-year-old student from Hempfield High School, was one of several student speakers who spoke at a rally at Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Kerri Goldinger, back left, of Ligonier, holds a sign during a rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg.
Some attendees of the rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at the Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg carried guns to show support.
Seventh-grade math teacher Joshua Pollock speaks about the situations at schools across the country during a rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg.
GREENSBURG – Brett Seroka admits he does not know the Rostraver Township police officer who wore an assault-style rifle across his chest as he stood across the street from an March For Our Lives rally outside Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg last month.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Attendees of the rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at the Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg stand and listen to the scheduled speakers at the event.
Officer Martin Palla is under an inquiry by the police department after he was photographed with an AR-15 rifle strapped over his chest as he stood across the street during the March 23 anti-gun rally. Chief Greg Resetar said last month township officials were reviewing the incident to see if the officer’s action violated terms of his union contract or civil service rules.
“I feel Officer Palla got a raw deal,” said Seroka of Belle Vernon. “He was exercising his rights. He shouldn’t be criticized because he stepped up and exercised his First and Second Amendment rights quietly and peacefully.”
Seroka said he reached out to Palla and invited him to the rally.
“He hasn’t told me that he is coming but said he appreciated what I was doing,” Seroka said before the start of Sunday afternoon’s rally. “And I understand that.”
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Attendees of the rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at the Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg
Several hundred people gathered in the courtyard next to the courthouse, many carrying their own assault-style rifles or with handguns strapped to their waists or legs. When asked for a show of hands Sunday as to who were there with guns, the vast majority raised their arms to indicate they were carrying weapons.
Kerri Goldinger of Ligonier said she came to show support for the officer and his First and Second Amendment rights as well as the rights for all to protect themselves.
“It is especially important given the ramping up of crime,” Goldinger said. “Police can’t be everywhere.”
“While there may be some bad apples as in any profession, largely police do the best job that can do given the circumstances,” she said.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Attendees of the rally to support Rostraver officer Martin Palla at Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg wait for the event to begin.
Austin Branthoover, a 17-year-old junior at Hempfield High School, spoke at the rally, saying Palla’s treatment as he exercised his rights was uncalled for. Branthoover said he disagrees with fellow students trying to take away gun rights. He said many students were shamed into marching in the earlier rallies, saying it was supposed to have been a memorial for Parkland, Fla., students.
Joshua Pollock, a seventh-grade mathematics teacher at California Area Middle School, also spoke, saying there have been guns in this country since its beginnings. He said guns are not the problem, but rather better identifying and treating mental health issues.
Pollock also saw the need for more school resource officers to keep students safe.
Dr. Charles “Chip” Gallo, first vice president of Firearms Owners Against Crime and a firearms instructor, said Palla had the courage to peaceably stand not only for his rights, but for all of our rights.
“We need to stand tall together to protect our rights or they will be gone,” Gallo said. “Freedom is always one generation away from extinction.”