Firehouse.com

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Jan. 10--A Pittsburgh firefighter was among three men arrested early Saturday in what police say was a home invasion and assault that capped a night of drinking in the South Side.

Police accused firefighter Timothy P. Coyne, 23, and Brian A. Coyne Jr., 26, both of Keystone Street in Upper Lawrenceville, of assaulting Aaron Gilkey after he yelled at Brian Coyne for urinating on the front of his home about 3 a.m.

"It was very frightening. It certainly wasn't just a prank, and this was a very bad decision on their part," said Gilkey, a graduate student at Duquesne University, who works as a restaurant server.

Public Safety Director Michael Huss said Timothy Coyne, who is paid $53,712 a year, has been suspended without pay for 30 days pending a trial board hearing. Joe King, president of Firefighters Local No. 1, did not return a call seeking comment.

During a brief interview hours after the incident, Gilkey said he is "physically fine."

He said he glanced outside when he noticed the glow of red brake lights through a window and spotted Brian Coyne urinating in the small front yard.

"I opened the door and confronted them, and then about five of them came inside here, and there was a short melee," Gilkey said.

One of the five men was Patrick J. Byrne Jr., 22, of Stanton Heights, who stood watch in a hallway as Brian Coyne grabbed Gilkey by the throat and then slammed him into a set of steps with help from Timothy Coyne, according to a criminal complaint.

A woman inside the home called 911 and, after some pushing, the intruders left the house.

They drove away in a red Ford SUV that had as many as 10 occupants inside, police said. Police stopped the vehicle a few blocks from the home at Wharton Square shopping center.

Police arrested the three men Gilkey was able to identify, according to the complaint. The others in the group were released.

No one could be reached at the Coynes' homes. It's unclear how Timothy and Brian Coyne are related. Byrne's family declined to comment.

Byrne and the Coynes face charges of simple assault, burglary, criminal conspiracy and public drunkenness. Police said the three men smelled of alcohol when they were arrested.

A judge set bond for each of the three at $5,000. They will be required to return for a court hearing Wednesday.

The arrests occurred one day after Mayor Luke Ravenstahl proposed an expanded "zero-tolerance" policy against domestic abuse. Police already have such a policy, but Ravenstahl intends to extend it to all city employees.

Pittsburgh officials are implementing random drug testing for city firefighters this year. Firefighters who test positive for drugs can be fired under a policy that is part of the firefighters' new five-year labor contract.

City officials sought random drug testing after police charged several firefighters over the past year with drug- and alcohol-related offenses.

On Wednesday, Fire Chief Darryl Jones suspended Pittsburgh fire Capt. Frank R. Becker Jr., 38, after learning police arrested Becker on charges of drunken driving and drug possession in December.

Police stopped Becker in his car after he ran a stop sign, authorities said. Police said they found cocaine residue on a compact disc in Becker's car. Becker had a blood-alcohol level of 0.163 percent, police said. The legal limit in Pennsylvania is 0.08 percent.

On Jan. 30, police accused Pittsburgh firefighter William White, 50, of Marshall-Shadeland in the North Side with stealing a Rivers Casino security truck, drunken driving and spitting at a police officer trying to arrest him.

In June, firefighter Vincent T. Manzella, 31, was arrested on burglary charges. Authorities have accused him of phoning in three false alarms to draw firefighters out of a Lawrenceville fire station so he could go inside and steal money to support his drug habit.