| Philadelphia Police Department |
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| Established | 1850 |
| Jurisdiction | Municipal |
| Sworn | 6,600 (11/2007) |
| Stations | 23 |
| Commissioner | Sylvester Johnson |
| Website | official site |
The Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) is the police agency responsible for law enforcement and investigations within the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest municipal police agencies in the United States, and the fourth largest in the country.
Departmental history
Prior to 1830 the City's police system consisted only of nightly watchmen's patrols directed by the constables of each ward. An ordinance of December 30 of that year first established a "police patrol" which served throughout the day as well as night. Many ordinances extended the scope of the system; in 1833 the City Commissioners' function of lighting the streets was transferred to it and in 1841 a full-scale Police Department was created under the direction of the Mayor. The Marshal Bill (Act of May 3, 1850) established a Philadelphia Police District which embraced the City and the adjoining Districts of Spring Garden, Kensington, the Northern Liberties, Richmond, Penn, Southwark, and Moyamensing. A forerunner of the City-County consolidation of 1854, this new organization solved problems that had arisen through the demarcation of police powers at City and District boundaries. With the Consolidation a County-wide Department of Police was established and duties in regard to street lighting were transferred to the Department of Gas. After 1857 the Department of Police was headed by a Chief appointed by the Mayor; in 1859 a Detective Division was formed within the Department and in the following year a River and Harbor Police were added to it. In 1864 the office of Fire Marshal was created within the Department, where it remained until 1937. In pursuance of the Bullitt Bill the Department was transferred in 1887 to the then-established Department of Public Safety as the Bureau of Police. With the adoption of the City Charter of 1951 and the abolishment of the Department of Public Safety the present Police Department was organized.[1]
Notable events in history
In 1881, the Philadelphia Police Department hired its first African-American police officer. In 1887, the police department was put under control of the city's Department of Public Safety. Two years later, the PPD inaugurated its mounted patrol (which was recently disbanded in 2004). In 1906, the motorcycle was introduced to the Philadelphia police. In 1939, radio-installed patrol cars were put into use. In 1979, the PPD reached its peak size at approximately 8,500 officers. In 1981, PPD Officer Daniel Faulkner was shot while arresting a motorist. Journalist and former Black Panther Mumia Abu-Jamal (né Wesley Cook), shot and was charged with Officer Faulkner's murder (as he allegedly admitted to shooting Faulkner upon arrival in the hospital for treatment for wounds suffered when Officer Faulkner returned fire). The incident, subsequent trial and conviction of Jamal remains a topic of controversy around the world. In 1985, the Philadelphia Police dropped a mixture of civilian and military explosives on a "home-made" wood bunker, built on the roof of the house occupied by members of the MOVE organization. The bomb ignited several barrels of gasoline starting a fire which destroyed the entire block and killed eleven people. In the early 1990s, a corruption scandal centered around officers in the department's 39th district in North Philadelphia led to the prosecutions of 6 officers, and attracted nationwide attention.
Present-day Philadelphia Police Department
The current Philadelphia Police Department employs more than 6,600 officers, and patrols an area of 369.4 km² (142.6 mi²) with a population of almost 1.5 million. The department is subdivided into twenty-three patrol districts, and like many other large municipal police forces, it incorporates many special units such as a K-9 squad, SWAT, community relations unit, and harbor patrol. The highest-ranking officer, the Commissioner, is Sylvester Johnson, a 42-year veteran of the force.
Special aspects of the Philadelphia Police Department
The Philadelphia Police Department has several unique features which distinguish it from other municipal police agencies. One of these features is the department's Hero Scholarship Thrill Show, which is a 45-year-old program designed to provide funds for the college education of the children of PPD officers slain or disabled in the line of duty. Funds are raised through ticket sales for the Thrill Show, which features police and fire department demonstrations, exhibits, and games. Another unique aspect of the Philadelphia Police is its use of a municipal Strategic Intervention Tactical Enforcement (S.I.T.E) special unit. The Philadelphia SITE Unit serves one role within the department:to serve as a specialized anti-crime task force in high-crime areas of the city. The PPD's SITE unit serves as an elite group who work directly for the current Police Commissioner within the department, and has only a few counterparts in other cities that do the same, most notably Boston's Special Operations Unit.
Ranks within the Department
(Highest to Lowest)
- Police Commissioner (Appointed Position by City's Managing Director with Approval of Mayor)
- Deputy Police Commissioner (Appointed Position by City's Managing Director with Approval of Mayor)
- Deputy Police Commissioner - Civil Service Rank
- Chief Inspector - Civil Service Rank
- Inspector - Civil Service Rank
- Staff Inspector - Civil Service Rank
- Captain - Civil Service Rank
- Lieutenant - Civil Service Rank
- Sergeant - Civil Service Rank
- Detective - Civil Service Rank
- Corporal - Civil Service Rank
- Police Officer - Civil Service Rank
- Police Officer Recruit - Civil Service Rank
The ranks of Corporal and Detective have the same pay grade, but have two entirely different functions. Corporal are "Operations Supervisors" and are responsible for overseeing a Patrol District's Operations Room, or a Special Unit's Operations; i.e.: that reports are submitted accurately and in a timely manner, etc. Only in a few rare instances do Corporals work the street, with the noted exception of S.I.T.E. Unit and SWAT tactical units. Detectives come under the Detective Bureau, and are assigned primarely to Divisional Detective Units, and specialized units like Homicide, Organized Crime / Intelligence, and Background Investigation. There are also Police Officers who serve in an investigative capacity, such as in the Juvenile Aid and Special Victims Units. They are paid in the same pay scale as a Police Officer assigned to Patrol. Unlike some departments, the Philadelphia's Detective Bureau does not have the ranks of Detective Sergeant, Detective Lieutenant, etc.
Police Marshalls
- John J. Keyser, 1850 - 1853
- John K. Murphy, 1853 - 1855
Chiefs of Police
- Samuel G. Ruggles, 1855 - 1867
- St. Clair A. Mulhalland, 1867 - 1872
- Kennard Jones, 1872 - 1879
- Samuel L. Given, 1879 - 1884
- James Stewart, 1884 - 1887
- James Lamon, 1887 - 1892
Superintendents of Police
- Robert Linden, 1892 - 1899
- Harry M. Quick, 1899 - 1904
- John B. Taylor, 1904 - 1912
- James Robinson, 1912 - 1920
- William B. Mills, 1920 - 1931
- Joseph E. Lestrange, 1931 - 1936
- James H. Malone, 1936 - 1937
- Edward Hubbs, 1937 - 1940
- Howard P. Sutton, 1950 - 1952
Police Commissioners
- Thomas J. Gibbons, 1952 - 1960
- Albert N. Brown, 1960-1962
- Howard Leary, 1962 - 1965
- Edward J. Bell, 1966 - 1967
- Frank L. Rizzo, 1967 - 1971 (first Italian American commissioner)
- Joseph O'Neil, 1971 - 1980
- Morton B. Solomon, 1980 - 1984
- Gregore J. Sambor, 1984 - 1985
- Kevin M. Tucker, 1985 - 1988
- Willie L. Williams, 1988 - 1992 (first African American commissioner)
- Richard Neal, 1992 - 1998
- John Timoney, 1998 - 2002
- Sylvester Johnson, 2002 - 2007
NOTE: Charles H. Ramsey has been apppointed as the new Police Commissioner, effective January, 2008.
Demographics
- Male: 70%
- Female: 30%
- White: 55.6%
- African-American/Black: 36.4%
- Hispanic: 6.5%
- Other: 1.5%
Link
2004 Philadelphia Police Annual Report
Wall of Honor
Philadelphia honors those men and women who have died while serving in the line of duty. The memorial plaque is located in the courtyard of Philadelphia City Hall. It resided on the southeast corner of where Broad and Market Street would meet if they continued through the building. (NOTE: Prior to 1972, the Fairmount Park Police Department (FPPD) functioned as a separate unit within the City of Philadelphia. Members of the FPPD, who fell in the line of duty are included in the below list with the letters "FPPD" after their name) Unless otherwise noted, the rank of those below is Police Officer.
| Night Officer William Baker, December 26, 1851 | Watchman Neil Mooney, May 25, 1856 | Dennis Sullivan, June 14, 1870 |
| Lewis Lare, Aug. 21, 1872 | Daniel McGonigle, Oct. 9, 1872 | Henry O'Donnell, July 4, 1876 |
| George McGonigal, Feb. 18, 1877 | George Jackson, May 23, 1887 | William D. Johnston, Oct. 3, 1887 |
| Elmer Findley, Dec. 29, 1891 | John Chambers, Sep. 10, 1894 | Charles O. Conaway, Nov. 10, 1900 |
| Edward George, Dec. 27, 1902 | John J. Donovan, Sep. 25, 1903 | Matthew J. Curran, May 26, 1905 |
| Thomas A. Sheldon, Jan. 6, 1906 | Frank Slaymaker, June 6, 1906 | Aug. F. Brusius, Feb. 23, 1907 |
| Scott H. Shelley, Jan. 5, 1908 | Thomas A. Gordon, Apr. 9, 1908 | Edward Mooney, Dec. 19, 1908 |
| Robert Simons, Feb. 17, 1909 | James O'Brien, Feb. 4, 1910 | William Weiss, May 8, 1910 |
| George Barnett, Nov. 28, 1910 | Morris Gelles, Dec. 22, 1910 | Joseph Dolphin, Feb. 17, 1912 |
| Thomas Dowling, June 26, 1912 | David M. Simpson, Sep. 21, 1912 | George Freeman, Sep. 24, 1912 |
| John Mann, Aug. 4, 1913 | Frank A. Sankey, Sep. 18, 1914 | Detective James Maneely, Mar. 25, 1915 |
| Detective Harry E. Tucker, Apr. 24, 1915 | Vincent J. Moore, Aug. 11, 1916 | John F. Smith, Oct. 28, 1916 |
| Fredrick J. Weingard, July 23, 1917 | Detective Frank J. McCartney, Aug. 30, 1917 | George Eppley, Sep. 19, 1917 |
| Detective George L. Williams, Jan. 9, 1918 | Charles T. Dewees, Jan. 12, 1918 | Thompson Black, Jan. 18, 1918 |
| James Wilson, Jan. 21, 1918 | Thomas J. McVay, July 28, 1918 | John J. Knox, Jan. 27, 1919 |
| George Dingwall, Jan. 27, 1919 | Charles Danowitz, Mar. 9, 1919 | Walter S. Gideon, Mar. 13, 1919 |
| James J. Hess, Mar. 14, 1919 | Joseph T. Swiercynski, Mar. 20, 1919 | Abner Braun, May 27, 1919 |
| Conrad E. Gibson, Oct. 4, 1919 | Charles B. Jones, Oct. 5, 1919 | John E. Price, Apr. 19, 1920 |
| Walter H. Hodges, May 11, 1920 | William J. Boyd Jr., May 12, 1920 | Dominic E. Nesavage, Sep. 12, 1920 |
| Detective Joseph P. McGinn, Oct. 3, 1920 | John J. McAntee, Oct. 22, 1920 | Edward W. Kunz, Oct. 28, 1920 |
| Edward W. Holtry, Jan. 17, 1921 | William J. Davis, Jan. 29, 1921 | Edward S. Boynton, Oct. 4, 1921 |
| Edward W. Kelly, Nov. 16, 1921 | Park Guard Vincent A. Hanley, FPPD, Nov. 26, 1921 | Harry J. Stauffer, Mar. 16, 1922 |
| Thomas Brady, Apr. 24, 1922 | James A. Lambert, July 16, 1922 | John J. Toomey, Aug. 26, 1922 |
| Bartholomew J. Coen, Oct. 6, 1922 | Thomas F. Gallagher, Nov. 3, 1922 | William Miles, Feb. 21, 1923 |
| Thomas Wilkinson, Apr. 19, 1923 | Harry R. Reinhart, Mar. 23, 1924 | Detective Truman Swain, July 5, 1924 |
| Thomas J. Nihill, Sep. 21, 1924 | Robert Wise, Nov. 30, 1924 | Harry C. Lomas, Mar. 26, 1925 |
| John F. Creevy, June 9, 1925 | Albert Steward, Oct. 24, 1925 | Frank P. Cook, Dec. 16, 1925 |
| Harry Manley Cooper, May 4, 1926 | Joseph Edward Bell, Dec. 23, 1926 | Charles F. Gay, Jan. 7, 1927 |
| William Slook, Jan. 14, 1927 | Robert A. McGarvey, Feb. 24, 1927 | John J. Watson, Apr. 18, 1927 |
| Edward C. Plenskofski, Aug. 8, 1927 | Gottlob Klemmer, Sep. 11, 1927 | Watchman Steven Heimer, Jan. 8, 1928 |
| Charles A. Fry, Feb. 21, 1928 | Detective Joseph Etriss, Mar. 25, 1928 | Harry Feinberg, Mar. 30, 1928 |
| Charles J. Sheer, Dec. 10, 1928 | Inspector John W. Blackburn, Jan. 17, 1929 | James M. Justice, Mar. 1, 1929 |
| Michael Donnelly, Apr. 12, 1929 | William T. Page, Apr. 21, 1929 | Phillip A. Bruce, Nov. 9, 1929 |
| Assistant Superintendent James J. Hearn, Nov. 27, 1930 | John C. Keen, Feb. 27, 1931 | Elmer E. Patterson, June 6, 1931 |
| Captain Harry B. Price, June 20, 1931 | Raymond Carey, July 13, 1931 | Detective Edward J. Gahan, Aug. 15, 1931 |
| Joseph V. Campbell Jr., Oct. 23, 1931 | Thomas J. Fitzgerald, Nov. 7, 1931 | Albert J. Stokes, Feb. 3, 1932 |
| Sergeant Walter Steinbaker, Feb. 21, 1932 | William J. Henderson, Mar. 3, 1932 | David H. Wiley, Apr. 10, 1932 |
| Nolan Eugene Tipton, June 25, 1932 | Joseph C. Meiers, July 7, 1932 | Isadore Reinheimer, Aug. 2, 1932 |
| Detective Michael G. Croskey, Dec. 7, 1932 | Fred J. Dolan, Jan. 26, 1933 | Detective Louis Moore, June 16, 1933 |
| Charles H. Stockberger, July 14, 1933 | Harry Donahue, Feb. 19, 1934 | Matthew Clowry, Mar. 31, 1934 |
| Alphonso Bonavitacola, July 28, 1934 | William C. Wilson, Sep. 3, 1934 | Paul Hathaway, Oct. 4, 1934 |
| Edwin W. Welsh, Nov. 10, 1934 | William Bunker Hinchliffe, Apr. 24, 1935 | William H. McCloskey, May 5, 1935 |
| Thomas J. McErlane, July 4, 1935 | James T. Morrow, Nov. 23, 1936 | Park Guard Michael McKenna, FPPD, May 17, 1937 |
| Park Guard Martin Clasby, FPPD, Dec. 31, 1937 | Henry Berry, Mar. 30, 1938 | Edward Bradley, Feb. 2, 1941 |
| James J. Clarke, Feb. 11, 1941 | Captain Hugh F. McCann, June 13, 1941 | William J. Henderson, Dec. 25, 1941 |
| Thomas J. Wixted, Mar. 15, 1942 | Karl F. Kohler, Aug. 12, 1943 | Eugene J. Chavis, May 20, 1944 |
| Park Guard William A. Doyle, FPPD, Jan. 8, 1945 | John F. Schaefer, Mar. 31, 1945 | Charles W. Brown, Nov. 27, 1946 |
| Henry Hicks, Dec. 24, 1946 | Cecil Ingling, Jan. 30, 1947 | James J. Quigley, Apr. 3, 1947 |
| Park Guard Thomas A. Ryan, FPPD, Apr. 8, 1947 | Sergeant Samuel Hewitt, Apr. 23, 1947 | Wallace B. Chapman, June 13, 1948 |
| Sergeant Michael J. Hunt, Aug. 4, 1948 | Norman Stinger, Jan. 25, 1949 | Vincent P. Foley, Mar. 20, 1949 |
| George Mitchell, Dec. 31, 1949 | James J. Donahue, May 14, 1950 | Sanford S. Smith, July 15, 1950 |
| Louis Toriello, Oct. 6, 1950 | John Stanley Gordon, Feb. 28, 1951 | James J. Auter, Oct. 15, 1953 |
| Joseph J. DiDomenico, Oct. 30, 1953 | Albert Savich, Dec. 13, 1953 | John S. Colonna, Dec. 24, 1953 |
| Auxiliary Police Officer William James Henhoeffer, Dec. 25, 1955 | Edward Flynn, Aug. 15, 1956 | Daniel Meehan, Jan. 11, 1957 |
| Stella Donahue, Jan. 11, 1957 | Robert T. Roberts, Nov. 28, 1957 | James F. Kane, June 5, 1959 |
| Joseph A. Reiss, Aug. 8, 1959 | Joseph Franceschino, Oct. 26, 1959 | William Duross, Apr. 15, 1960 |
| Joseph McLaughlin, Oct. 14, 1960 | William Powell, Nov. 19, 1960 | James F. Christie, Nov. 27, 1961 |
| Lieutenant Daniel J. McCann, July 30, 1964 | Park Guard Joseph Sankey, FPPD, Sep. 9, 1964 | Raymond Lovett, Dec. 7, 1965 |
| George Jacobs, July 15, 1966 | Richard Rehmann, July 28, 1966 | Robert D. White, Sep. 2, 1966 |
| Ernest Schwoeble, Nov. 13, 1967 | Ross Brackett, July 15, 1968 | William Lackman, Oct. 17, 1968 |
| David Ellerbee, Nov. 1, 1968 | Charles R. Reynolds, Oct. 26, 1969 | Frederick Cione, Jan. 30, 1970 |
| Harry Lee Davis, Apr. 6, 1970 | Sergeant Frank R. Von Colln, FPPD, Aug. 29, 1970 | John M. McEntee Jr., Feb. 20, 1971 |
| Joseph V. Kelly, Feb. 21, 1971 | Detective Douglas J. Alexander, Feb. 9, 1972 | Raymond Fredericksdorf, Feb. 19, 1972 |
| Dominic Guglielmi, Mar. 31, 1972 | Leo Paul Van Winkle, June 27, 1972 | James F. Duffin, Jan. 14, 1973 |
| Louis J. Vasger, Apr. 13, 1973 | David F. Sampson, Dec. 12, 1973 | Sergeant Michael S. Lingham, Apr. 14, 1974 |
| Sergeant William J. Kelleher, May 15, 1974 | James A. McKale Jr., Sep. 15, 1974 | Allan H. Lewin, Apr. 10, 1975 |
| Ronald Trumbette, May 23, 1975 | Artimus Johnson, Oct. 20, 1975 | Corporal William L. Daniels, Dec. 16, 1975 |
| John S. Trettin, Feb. 29, 1976 | James E. Griffin, Mar. 5, 1976 | Lieutenant Walter Louis Szwajkowski, June 27, 1976 |
| Francis W. Magro, Mar. 30, 1977 | James J. Ramp, Aug. 8, 1978 | Artis Norris, July 11, 1979 |
| Sergeant Wilfred Doyle, Dec. 21, 1979 | William Washington, Jan. 16, 1980 | Robert S. Smith, Apr. 23, 1980 |
| Ernest W. Davis, July 16, 1980 | Garrett T. (Gary) Farrell, Sep. 26, 1980 | James N. Mason, May 10, 1981 |
| Daniel J. Faulkner, Dec. 9, 1981 | Richard Lendell, Jan. 14, 1983 | Sandra Griffin, Feb. 13, 1983 |
| Stephen E. Sawka, June 18, 1983 | John Francis Duffy, Dec. 10, 1983 | Sergeant John H. McGill, Dec. 17, 1983 |
| William G. McCracken, Feb. 5, 1984 | James A. Rementer, May 21, 1985 | Thomas Joseph Trench, May 28, 1985 |
| Charles Patrick O'Hanlon, Nov. 13, 1985 | Sergeant Ralph M. Galdi, Mar. 31, 1986 | Daniel T. Gleason, June 5, 1986 |
| William D. McCarthy, Sep. 22, 1987 | Albert A. Valentino, Oct. 23, 1989 | Winfred S. Hunter, June 4, 1990 |
| Joaquin Montijo, June 15, 1990 | Freddie Dukes, Dec. 25, 1990 | Daniel R. Boyle, Feb. 6, 1991 |
| Charles Thomas Knox, Aug. 30, 1992 | Robert Hayes, June 17, 1993 | Stephen Dmytryk, Nov. 16, 1993 |
| Joseph Friel, Dec. 4, 1994 | Kevin Williams, July 31, 1995 | Lauretha Vaird, Jan. 2, 1996 |
| Robert Porter, Jan. 19, 1996 | Pauline Harness, June 18, 1996 | Detective John Cousin, Aug. 15, 1996 |
| Leddie James Brown, Dec. 11, 1997 | Jose M. Ortiz, Sep. 21, 2000 | Thomas M. Bray, Nov. 13, 2001 |
| Detective Anthony Johnson, Jan. 7, 2003 | Paris Williams Sr., June 21, 2005 | Gary Skerski, May 8, 2006 |
| Walter T. Barclay Jr.,Aug. 19, 2007 | Charles Cassidy, November 1, 2007 |
Popular culture
- The Philadelphia Police Department is featured in the 1978 zombie film Dawn of the Dead in which the PPD S.W.A.T. team clears out a tenement building which was harboring the undead.
- The 1983 comedy Trading Places, Dan Aykroyd's character is detained and questioned by members of the PPD.
- The 1985 thriller Witness features Harrison Ford's character as a detective in the PPD who is hunted by corrupt members of the department.
- The PPD's Recruit Training Academy was featured in an episode of Da Ali G Show in which Ali G participates in several police training exercises.
- The police/drama series Cold Case involves detectives of the PPD.
- The 1990 action/comedy Downtown featuring Anthony Edwards and Forest Whitaker. Police officer Alex Kearney works in a rich plush Philadelphia suburb.
- The PPD is shown assisting members of the Baltimore Police Department on a 2002 episode of The Wire during the extradition and arrest of criminal Wee-Bey Brice.
- The PPD is featured in the series Presidential Agent written by W.E.B. Griffin.
- The PPD is featured in the series Badge of Honor written by W.E.B. Griffin.
- The PPD is also featured in the 2007 film Shooter, starring Mark Wahlberg.
Call to Action: 10,000 Men
On September 12, 2007, police commissioner Sylvester Johnson, called on 10,000 black men to patrol the streets to lessen crime. Johnson, an African American has set up the program as a means of countering the city's disproportionate homicide rate of African American men. Dennis Muhammad, Nation of Islam official and Mayor John F. Street supported the project. Philadelphia is America's 6th biggest, with 1.5 million residents, (44%, blacks). The department has had 300 homicide this year in which 80% of the victims were African American. The "Call to Action: 10,000 Men, It's a New Day" program is to be initiated on October 21, 2007.[2]
See also
| Philadelphia Portal |
