Westmoreland DA vehicle usage declines as a result of crash

Westmoreland District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli has been driving a county-owned vehicle less frequently since she was involved in a December crash in Murrysville, according to records obtained by the Tribune-Review.

Ziccarelli, a first-term Republican from Lower Burrell, drove her county vehicle nine days and 533 miles in February, according to mileage logs, a 36% decrease from her vehicle use in January.

The district attorney’s vehicle usage came into question following a car crash in December that resulted in nearly $33,000 in damage to the 2021 Ford Explorer she was assigned upon taking office in January 2022.

Ziccarelli’s county-issued SUV skidded on an icy roadway, hitting a small tree and a vehicle parked in the driveway of a home on Cherry Drive in Murrysville as she drove home from comforting a grieving friend shortly after 3:30 a.m. on Dec. 18, according to police records.

The SUV has been awaiting repairs for the past three months. County officials said, since the crash, Ziccarelli has used a county-leased car that previously was assigned to another district attorney’s office staffer.

“It’s still in the shop, and they’re waiting for parts,” Westmoreland County Public Works Director Greg McCloskey said of the vehicle damaged in the crash. The vehicle is scheduled to be returned to the county by April 14.

According to emails obtained by the Trib, the owner of the home where Ziccarelli wrecked the SUV notified the county a tree and a private vehicle were damaged.

Ronald Zona, the chief detective for the district attorney’s office, on Dec. 19 notified the county’s fleet manager and human resources department that the property owner contacted officials about the damage.

“He said he is leaving the tree against his son’s car, and they are not moving it until someone from the insurance (sic) comes to see it. He said his son did not go to work today because he didn’t want to move anything. Think this is going way overboard because it is a small tree and it appears the vehicle has a broken headlight cover,” Zona wrote.

According to the email, Zona said the property owner’s insurance company deferred from processing a claim.

Attempts to contact the property owner were unsuccessful.

County officials, responding to the Trib’s public records request records, said it had no documents related to a private insurance claim filed in connection with Zicarrelli’s crash.

In a separate email, Melissa Guiddy, the county’s solicitor, said an insurance claim would be filed after the an crash report is obtained from police.

The cost of the repairs to the SUV will be paid by the county’s insurance carrier. Ziccarelli said she personally paid the policy’s $2,500 deductible.

Related:

• Westmoreland DA: Crash involving county vehicle was 'minor'

• Westmoreland DA crash racks up nearly $33,000 in SUV repairs

All county employees, including elected officials, are required to file logs each month with the county’s fleet coordinator that detail usage of county take-home vehicles. Ziccarelli did not submit logs in 2022, her first year in office, according to records requested by the Trib in February.

January mileage logs, along with details for Ziccarelli’s vehicle usage in February, were disclosed as part of a subsequent records request.

Ziccarelli declared use of a county vehicle for 16 days in January for “criminal investigations and commute” totaling 839 miles.

Ziccarelli’s spokeswoman Melanie Jones said Ziccarelli does not use her county vehicle every day. She drives her own vehicle on days when she has a personal commitment, Jones said.

Only three county elected officials are assigned take-home vehicles — Ziccarelli, Coroner Tim Carson and Sheriff James Albert.

Carson and Albert previously submitted mileage logs.

Albert’s logs filed in February indicate he drove 1,394 miles. Albert previously said he commutes daily from his home in New Alexandria to Greensburg.

Carson included a daily breakdown of his use of the county vehicle, listing weekday commutes from his Scottdale home to the coroner’s office at the county’s forensics center in Hempfield totaling 514 miles.

Take-home vehicles are to be used for work purposes and for minor personal use.