Story Archive

Dust Off, Dust On

A few months after Police Corporal Chad Thomas, 41, was promoted — to chief — of the Mahoning Township (Pa.) Police Dept., other officers say “they saw Thomas’ eyes flutter and he was unresponsive,” reports say. “One officer reported that he thought Thomas suffered a seizure.” But when Thomas came out of it, he allegedly admitted he had been “huffing” from a can of dust-off spray to relieve stress. He was on duty. The state’s Attorney General charged Thomas with “smelling or inhaling a toxic releasing substance,” and possession of a solvent for release of toxic vapors or fumes. He was suspended without pay. “I’m not proud of this,” Thomas said later. “I’m sorry for the decision that I made that put me in this situation. I’m very sorry if I caused anyone to lose faith in me, and I will work extremely hard to earn trust back from everybody.” Yes, work: after Thomas waived his right to a preliminary hearing on the criminal charges, he was allowed to return to lead the police department. (RC/Sunbury Daily Item) ...The question is, where is he leading them?