Allegheny County Jail Warden Trevor Wingard to Serve as Chief Deputy Secretary of North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections
PITTSBURGH – Allegheny County Jail Warden Trevor Wingard today announced that he has accepted a job in North Carolina, where he will be closer to family. He will serve as Chief Deputy Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.
“I want to congratulate Warden Wingard on his new position in North Carolina and thank him for his service at the Allegheny County Jail over the last year and a half,” said County Executive Sara Innamorato. “Trevor joined the ACJ at a critical time, and under his guidance we have improved medical care and the intake procedure, introduced new programs to aide in the rehabilitation and reentry of incarcerated people, increased standards for professionalism among jail staff, and improved transparency and communication with the Jail Oversight Board, the public, and advocacy organizations. The changes that Trevor made have set the ACJ on the right trajectory, and our next Warden will have the opportunity to build on his success.”
“Leaving Allegheny County right now is truly bittersweet,” said Warden Trevor Wingard. “I came out of retirement to be the Warden at the Allegheny County Jail because I knew it was a special place capable of doing more than people realized. We’ve made huge strides and the staff will continue that forward momentum after I depart. I truly was not looking to leave, but the opportunity arose to take a job in North Carolina closer to my children and that was the one offer I could not pass up.”
During Warden Wingard’s tenure, the ACJ implemented several new programs and created structural changes to improve operations for staff and incarcerated people. A new “unit management” structure was created to allow for better oversight on the housing units and restructured the Security/Intelligence office to continue to address the security concerns. Improving conditions for employees was also a focus, and under Warden Wingard the ACJ added a room for Officers to be able to communicate with their families from inside the ACJ and soon the ACJ will add a staff fitness center.
Building on his experience with the success of fostering dogs in state corrections facilities, Warden Wingard encouraged ACJ to begin a partnership with Animal Friends of Pittsburgh to allow incarcerated persons to help train shelter dogs for adoption. The jail also developed an employee volunteer program allowing staff to help outside organizations, while improving relationships and transparence with advocacy organizations that promote community-based programs and better conditions at ACJ. Finally, during his Warden Wingard’s tenure, the jail implemented innovations regarding compensating incarcerated persons and utilizing technology to provide better overall care of the incarcerated persons.
Trevor Wingard’s last day as the Allegheny County Jail Warden will be Friday, July 31, 2026. The County Executive will name an interim Warden and commence a search for a new Warden prior to that date.
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