Clay officer faces charges


A Clay Township police officer is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 11 on 27 felony charges.
Ralph Cierpial, 36, of St. Clair, is being charged with 27 counts of unlawfully granting pistol safety training certificates, a four-year felony.
Online court records show Cierpial will be arraigned on the charges at 2 p.m. Dec. 11 in front of Magistrate S. Keith Bankson.
“Obviously our concern is when a person chooses to carry a concealed weapon and chooses to do that to protect themselves, the state and, frankly, local law enforcement are interested in making sure they have the right level of training to do that,” Prosecutor Mike Wendling said.
Cierpial was a National Rifle Association certified instructor and charged for the service, Wendling said. After questionable training certificates were brought to the county gun board, an investigation was started.
Wendling said more than 300 people were interviewed and every certificate issued by Cierpial was reviewed.
“The fact that he happens to be a police officer happens to be of no relevance to us,” Wendling said. “I won’t say it’s not disappointing, but it’s not relevant.”
Clay Township Supervisor Artie Bryson said Cierpial is on administrative duty and does not have his gun or badge.
“On Nov. 14, 2013, Clay Township received notification from the St. Clair County Prosecutor Michael Wendling that the St. Clair County Sheriff Department obtained a twenty-seven (27) count felony warrant for Ralph Cierpial,” Bryson said in an email. “The warrant is for unlawfully granting/presenting-pistol training certificate.
“To keep the integrity of the Clay Township Police Department in place and the seriousness of the allegations, Officer Cierpial was immediately taken off of street duties and placed on administrative duties. Depending on pending adjudication of court proceedings, appropriate actions will be swiftly taken.”
Bryson said the township will handle the situation appropriately.
“Basically, he’s innocent until he’s proven guilty, and like we said, it’s an unfortunate situation, but we’re going to deal with it appropriately once there’s a determination on his guilt,” Bryson said.
Clay Township Police Chief Don Drake said Cierpial has been a full-time officer for about two years.
“We always assume he’s innocent until proven guilty,” Drake said.
Cierpial did not respond to an email requesting comment. His lawyer, Daniel Garon, could not be reached for comment.