Mayor's resignation 'best thing that could have happened'

Shawn Speicher has lived in West York his entire life, and he believes embattled Mayor Charles Wasko's resignation is "the best thing that could have happened" to the small town in South Central Pennsylvania.

The mayor garnered international headlines in recent weeks as the public and elected officials, including Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf, called for Wasko's resignation. Facebook posts, described as racist and offensive, prompted the fury.

One post depicts a wheelbarrow full of orangutans and has a caption that states moving day at the White House "has finally arrived." Others strike a similar tone. To this day, his Facebook page remains visible to the public.

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"If you don't have equality, you're going to have nothing but a breakdown," Speicher said.

The town's borough council accepted Wasko's resignation at a meeting Monday, saying it met one of three recommendations the mayor required for his departure, as spelled out in an Oct. 11 email. Members appointed Shawn Mauck, the council president, to fill out the mayoral term when Wasko's resignation became effective on Oct. 21. 

Wasko, however, has contended that he didn't resign. The council disagrees, and is moving on, Mauck said.

Speicher was walking with his teenage son after school this week when he paused to talk about what's happened in his town that borders the city of York. He said he sees the mayor's departure from office as a turning point for the borough, which has had a rocky political past. He hopes elected officials can put their differences aside and say they are here for everyone.

Speicher said he supported Wasko when he ran for mayor in 2013. At the time, Speicher was president of the fire company, and it was butting heads with then-Mayor Samuel Firestone.

The borough was looking at disbanding its police and contracting with a regional department. It wanted to do the same with the fire services, Speicher said. It was a contentious issue, and Wasko supported the fire and police departments, which remain independent.

READ: Wasko's actions prompt community outrage, forum

Speicher said he thought Wasko would be good for the borough.

"Would I have known this, no, I would have voted differently," Speicher said.

Wasko narrowly won primary

In the 2013 Republican primary, Wasko beat Firestone for the four-year mayoral seat, by a vote of 116 to 108. Wasko was unopposed in the general election and took office in January 2014.

Wasko, 66, is retired. He had served on the council in the past.

In Pennsylvania, a borough mayor's duties are limited. They include preserving order, enforcing ordinances and regulations, removing nuisances and ensuring appointed officers are faithfully performing their duties, according to the borough code. The mayor also has "full charge and control of the chief of police and the police force."

West York has about 4,600 residents. It's predominantly white, with a 12 percent black population. The streets are lined with row houses, some single-family homes and a mix of businesses.

Christina Hood said she moved into the area in January, and she met the mayor at an event at a park. He seemed nice, but "then again, I'm white, so maybe he didn't have a problem with me."

"I never had my two older kids with me — they're actually biracial," she said. "... looking back, I kind of wish they were standing with me when I met him."

Hood said she hasn't attended borough meetings. She's glad he's out of office.

"Our community is way too diverse to have somebody representing us that is going to post something like that," she said, referring to his Facebook comments.

One of Wasko's neighbors, who declined to give her name, called the controversy "nothing but politics."

On Facebook, Ed Washington thanked Wasko for his service. Washington said he knows how West York operates.

"I saw firsthand how you helped in countless ways over the years," he wrote.

Even before the recent controversy, there have been tense times in borough government. During his tenure, Wasko broke a tie vote to buy the former Grace E. Loucks Elementary School for the borough's new offices.

It was during that same meeting that a police officer had to intervene in a heated exchange between Wasko and then-council member Nicholas Laughman. The councilman had questioned how the borough was going to pay $200,000 for the building without raising taxes.

At the time, Laughman said his wife, who was in the audience, made reference to a previous confrontation between the mayor and Laughman. That's when the mayor pointed his finger at her and stood up. A police officer then stood up to prevent the mayor from entering the gallery, and the officer moved in between Laughman and the mayor.

Laughman resigned from the council in June. His resignation letter cited numerous reasons, including "personal medical issues" and the behavior of council members.

Wants an explanation

Wasko has not attended recent council meetings since the Facebook controversy erupted. Longtime resident Bryan Evans said he wants to hear the man's opinion.

"He needs to say why he feels that way," Evans said, adding that it affects the public.

Evans, who has been following the news, said he, too, believes Wasko should throw in the towel and "stop with the drama."

Wasko has written on his Facebook page that he will not be "politically correct, I will say what is on my mind and what I believe in …" Wasko also told a local TV station that, “The racist stuff, yeah I’ll admit I did that, and I don’t care what people label me as."

Wasko spoke briefly Tuesday as he worked in his garage, peering out from under a nearly closed door. He said he grew up in a black neighborhood, and he stands up for black people. He said he's not against all black people, saying some are "good, hard-working" people. He also talked about youths who call each other the "N-word."

He gave the York Daily Record a copy of the email he sent to council on Oct. 11 about his recommendations for his resignation. They were:

• "Entertain the thought of looking for an outside person, male or female, of any ethnicity, with a bachelor's degree from an accredited university in a related field of study, such as criminal justice or police science, that has at least four years of experience, of at least a Sergeant, that is looking to become a Chief of Police for the Borough of West York."
• Replace acting Police Chief Matthew Millsaps from within with the qualifications in the first recommendation.
• Return Police Chief Justin Seibel to his former position, "if he so desires."

Wasko wrote in the email that his resignation would take effect 10 days after one of the items had been completed.

The council president said they did "entertain" his first condition, therefore his offer to resign was accepted, and that's that.

Tension between the police, borough

Seibel was placed on administrative leave last month, and elected officials have remained mum about why, saying it's a personnel issue.

Wasko called for the acting chief's suspension in his email to council. He said that Millsaps has been observed several times out of uniform and without full body armor while on duty. The council said the suspension was without merit. It voided the suspension and voted to pay Millsaps for the time he missed from work.

Emails show the tension between Millsaps and Wasko. On Oct. 12, the mayor ordered Millsaps not to talk to the news media about anything related to the borough. Millsaps responded that Wasko has no right to restrict his First Amendment rights.

Millsaps also wrote that he attempted to remain neutral in borough politics, but that became impossible with Wasko's Facebook posts. The acting chief said it was important to let the public know his department did not hold racist views.

Residents Kirby and Cortellia Crawford said Millsaps knocked on doors recently in their neighborhood to explain where he wants to take the community. He described how officers would be walking or riding bicycles as part of their patrols.

READ: 'The mayor makes it seem like we're all idiots.'

Millsaps was carrying his badge, but he was dressed casually, Cortellia Crawford said, adding that when an officer is in uniform, it's more intimidating.

That's what the Crawfords, who recently moved to the borough, would like to see more of from West York as the borough moves forward. Let the residents know what's going on.

"Make them feel involved, because if they feel involved, then they're going to take a sense of pride in where they live and try to help you," Kirby Crawford said.

All that can be done now is to move forward as a community and "try to better ourselves," she said.

Looking to the future

Shawn Mauck, who who was sworn in Friday as mayor, said the job for officials is to move the borough forward in a meaningful way that everyone can feel good about.

He wants to make the police department a top-notch organization that others will want to emulate.

He wants the borough to adopt President Obama's 21st century model for policing, and he wants to put together a training program for officers.

He and the council want to track the race of people who are stopped by police to ensure against racial profiling. Councilman Brian Wilson said recently he's heard complaints that minorities have been unfairly stopped and are afraid to come to West York and spend money.

Mauck said he wants to be a cheerleader for West York, encouraging people to open businesses in the borough. He wants to listen to the residents and to work with neighboring municipalities.

"When we work together, we are strong together," he said, "and I believe we will be able to prove that."