An appeals court on Monday upheld a decision to reduce discipline against two Pittsburgh police officers who were initially suspended for failing to provide a police presence at a Brighton Heights funeral during which five people were shot.

Both Officers Thomas Potts and Dalton Dailey were initially suspended for five days following the Oct. 28, 2022, shooting at Destiny of Faith Church.

The officers had been assigned to work the funeral detail for John Hornezes Jr., who had been killed weeks earlier during an ongoing feud on the North Side. The church’s founder and senior pastor had requested the Pittsburgh police presence.

However, that morning, the officers instead drove to McKees Rocks to pick up uniform pants.

Their supervisor called the men shortly before 10 a.m. and told them to return to handle paperwork. The officers got back to their office between 10:30 and 11 a.m., but the supervisor did not mention the funeral detail to them.

Just after noon they heard on the police radio calls for an attack at the church.

Five people were shot and wounded, as well as a police horse.

Potts and Dailey were each given a five-day suspension, which they appealed through the police union.

During arbitration, the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 1, which represented them, argued that their supervisor knew the officers had gone to the uniform store and didn’t object. The union said the funeral detail “had not been given a high priority.”

The arbitration panel ruled in the officers’ favor, reducing the discipline for both men to an oral reprimand.

The city appealed to Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, which affirmed the arbitration panel.

In two separate opinions filed Monday, Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court agreed, finding that the arbitrators were within their authority to reduce the discipline and did not exceed their jurisdiction.

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