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East Petersburg joins regional police authority charter | Community News

When: Meeting of the East Petersburg City Council, May 7.

What happened: The council unanimously voted to make the district a founding member of the Northern Lancaster County Regional Police Department Commission.

Background: The agreement resolves the county’s previous one-for-one contract with the police department and allows the county to share the cost of police services with Warwick, Clay and Penn townships. The $131,503 buyout cost, to be paid off over 10 years, will save the county money on workers’ compensation as well as special investigations, which were not included in the county’s previous contract.

East Petersburg City Council discusses steps to join charter agreement with Police Department

More: Josh Kilgore, police chief for the Northern Lancaster County Region, said the department anticipates that at least four officers will be needed in East Petersburg to cover the current call volume.

Quote: “Our goal is to offer a high-performance product at an affordable price,” he added.

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Slow it down: Kilgore said there have been more fatal traffic crashes in the last eight months than in his entire career. He attributes this to the increase in traffic and the use of cell phones while driving. He explained that an accident is considered fatal if a person dies as a result of an accident within 30 days of the accident. This requires the painstaking – and time-consuming – work of an accident reconstructionist. He said it can take three months to a year to reconstruct an accident through legal means.

Quote: “We want to share accurate information and that may take some time,” Chief Kilgore said of fatal traffic accidents.

Upcoming meetings: Council will hold its next committee meeting on May 23 at 6:00 p.m. and Council meeting on June 4 at 7:00 p.m.

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