Ex-Greensburg police chief Shawn Denning sentenced to 15 months in federal prison

Former Greensburg police Chief Shawn Denning was sentenced Thursday to 15 months in federal prison in a drug distribution conspiracy case that derailed the military veteran’s career and left the community in shock.

U.S. District Judge Cathy Bissoon called Denning’s actions egregious.

“You betrayed the duties of a police officer and the public trust,” she said. “You should be thankful I’ve not sentenced you to a much longer period of incarceration.”

Upon hearing the prison sentence, Denning, 44, of Delmont looked back at six supporters in the courtroom with him. He will remain free on bond until instructed to surrender to begin serving the sentence, the judge ruled. He also was ordered to spend two years on supervised release after the prison term.

Denning’s January 2023 arrest at Greensburg City Hall resulted in his resignation from the post he had held for about a year. He had been with the department since 2008 and rose through the ranks to become chief.

He pleaded guilty in April 2024 to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine.

Denning is accused of communicating with a government informant starting in July 2021 and connecting that person with drug dealers in California to buy cocaine and methamphetamine, according to the original complaint filed in January 2023 in federal court in Pittsburgh by the Drug Enforcement Administration. That would continue for 15 months, according to court papers.

The complaint included conversations between Denning and the informant on smartphone apps where Denning is accused of providing contact information for the out-of-state suppliers and a “menu” of their available drugs, as well as instructions on how to transmit money to them electronically.

Denning vouched for the suppliers, and the DEA provided the informant with money to place orders, according to the complaint. The mailed packages that were confiscated contained drugs, authorities said.

He wore a light gray suit to court Thursday. He admitted his actions were inexcusable but told Bissoon he’s taken steps to better himself since his arrest. In a letter he wrote to the court, Denning pointed to post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of his service as a Marine in Iraq as a contributing factor in his actions.

Defense attorney Steven Townsend pleaded with the judge to keep Denning out of prison, pointing out that the ex-cop did not profit from the drugs.

“He took 100% risk … for no gain, zero gain,” Townsend argued.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Vasquez Schmitt asked Bissoon to sentence Denning to a period of incarceration.

“He should have been working to stop illegal drugs from coming into his community” not bringing them in, she said.

Bissoon said she balanced Denning’s acceptance of responsibility and lack of a criminal history with the serious nature of the crimes and need for punishment.

Investigators said Denning helped one of his former subordinates, Regina McAtee, who was a Greensburg police officer, get methamphetamine pills online and then bought some from her once the order arrived. McAtee, 52, of New Kensington was suspended in 2022 and retired the following year. She pleaded guilty in May 2024 to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

McAtee is scheduled for sentencing May 27.

Denning is awaiting court action in a case filed by Westmoreland County detectives in connection with a backpack containing suspected steroids and psilocybin mushrooms that was missing from the Greensburg police evidence room.