The earliest record of the Kennett Square Police Department is July 1882. For more than a century the Police Department has prided itself on service to residents and visitors alike.
In the 90's community policing became the buzz word of the law enforcement community. Many departments realized that for a law enforcement agency to be effective it has to move beyond investigations and arrests. A relationship has to be established with the community so that problems affecting the community can be dealt with before they become a law enforcement issue.
Our department has always prided itself on this type of service. There is no need to return to what we have always done. Presently, there is no incident or issue too small to be overlooked. The Department philosophy is reflected in its Mission Statement.
Operation of the Police Department:
The Kennett Square Police Department operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Council has charged the Department with protecting the health, welfare and safety of its residents. To do so the Police Department is a substantial portion of the Borough's budget. Since Kennett Square is located in the center of major cities, next to major roadways, has a mobile labor force and density, it meets all four conditions that affect police activity. Presently, on just State and Cypress Streets, more than 100,000 vehicles a week pass through the Borough. All of these visitors affect the workload of the Police Department.
Structure of the Department:
The Police Department is broken into several divisions. Each and every member of the Department, regardless of rank, has a duty to respond to a citizen's call as quickly and efficiently as possible. The Department is broken down into Administration, Investigations, Patrol, Traffic, Motor Carrier Enforcement and Parking.
Administration:
The Police Department is administered by the Mayor. Under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Mayor serves as the executive head of the Police Department.Borough Council:
Borough Council sets the budget and the amount of hours the Police Department will work. Council is also responsible for hiring, firing and promoting.
Chief of Police:
The Chief of Police is the chief operational officer for the Police Department. He is responsible for recommending the hiring, firing and promoting of the officers, training and discipline, community relations, crime prevention, investigation enforcement, as well as having the fiscal responsibility of administering the budget.
Lieutenant:
The Lieutenant serves as second in command to the Chief of Police and coordinates the day-to-day operations. The Lieutenant is also in charge of the Criminal Investigation Unit. He is also a certified weapons instructor and coordinates the in-house training.
Investigations and Drug Enforcement:
The Lieutenant is presently supported by one Detective and a Narcotics Officer. The Detective and the Lieutenant both conduct criminal investigations. The follow-up work conducted by the Investigation Unit frees up the patrol officers for their assignments as patrol and traffic enforcement. It seems unusual for a Borough the size of Kennett Square to have a Narcotics Officer; however, with the amount of affluence in the area, Kennett Square has a considerable drug trafficking trade. Council has decided that this is one issue that affect every member of the community and must be dealt with in an effective way. The Narcotics Officer presently works with the PA State Police Troop J Vice and has been effective not only in the Borough of Kennett Square, but throughout southern Chester County.
The Patrol Division:
The Patrol Division is headed by a Sergeant. The Sergeant is responsible for assigning the day-to-day duties of the patrol officers. The management of the Patrol Division is supported by one Corporal, who acts in place of the Sergeant when he is not available. Present, the Department is too small for a roll call, but there are a number of things that administration needs to make the patrol officers aware of on a continuing basis. Additionally, the Investigative and Narcotics Divisions need input from the Patrol Division, but also need to make the Patrol Division aware of crimes that are occurring in the Borough so that they can effectively adjust their patrol tactics. This is done through written communication called a duty roster. It is a written roll call where the officer, reporting for duty, receives his/her car assignment, his/her complaint zone assignment and individual assignments, such as foot patrol, traffic or other specialized detail that are assigned in order to correct what may be occurring in the Borough. The Patrol Division is the basic function of the Police Department. Security patrols and responses to citizens' complaints are the responsibility of every member of the Department, regardless of rank. There are times when officers in command will serve to fill patrol shifts. This keeps them in touch with what is occurring in the community. The Patrol Division also supports traffic enforcement. While on patrol, it is one of the officer's functions to enforce traffic.
Traffic Division:
A separate division of the Department is the Traffic Division. Presently, the part time officers are utilized to fill in shifts where there may be vacancies due to court time, training, vacation, or sick days. In addition to that, from time to time, specialized traffic details are assigned. VASCAR details, safety checks and DUI checkpoints are just part of the operation that the Police Department conducts. The Traffic Division has at its disposal a speed board sign, which is moved throughout the community as a way to make motorists aware of what their actual speed is. Additionally, the Traffic Division has at its disposal five VASCAR equipped cars, as well as Acutrak Speed Timing Devices and a traffic counter which records traffic activity on a given street. This provides the Traffic Division with a fairly good idea of where violations are occurring and at what time.
Motor Carrier Enforcement:
Presently, the Department has two federally certified Motor Carrier Enforcement Officers. Motor Carrier Enforcement is important since the Borough has an abnormal volume of truck traffic as determined by the Chester County Planning commission. A survey was conducted and it was found that, for a town the size of Kennett Square, we experience possibly 40% more than the average town of its size should experience in truck traffic. This is due primarily to its location. In order to control truck traffic moving through the Borough, a Motor Carrier Enforcement Unit was established. On a regular basis at different periods throughout the month the Motor Carrier Enforcement Unit conducts safety checks on motor carriers passing through our Borough. In addition, motor carrier enforcement reduces the trucks that are simply passing through the Borough.
Parking:
The Parking Division is responsible for metered parking throughout the Borough. There are presently two part time Parking Officers. In addition to the metered areas, during certain times of the year, and during special events, parking in other areas of town becomes a problem. Rather than remove Patrol Officers to effectively enforce parking, Parking Officers are assigned to special events to assist in the Parking of vehicles and enforcement, if necessary.
Staff:
The Police Department is staffed by two full time secretaries. One is considered an administrator of records. There are numerous requirements by law enforcement agencies that require the Police Department to report its monthly activity. In addition, there is an office manager who also serves as the Chief's secretary in the administration of the Department.
Specialized Foot Patrol:
Kennett Square is made up of many different neighborhoods. In one square mile the neighborhoods have many different issues. Depending on their location, some neighborhoods are quiet without sidewalks and require very little police presence; other neighborhoods have active vehicle traffic and pedestrian traffic. Foot patrols are established in the neighborhoods when it is determined that the activity in those neighborhoods needs the presence of a foot patrol officer. The officer's assignment is to assure the residents that security is present. It also gives the officer an excellent opportunity to get out of the car and establish a relationship with the community. Foot patrols are also conducted at the large apartment complexes. This adds to the security there, as well as control the activity in the densely populated apartment complexes. The foot patrols are assigned by either the Sergeant or Lieutenant as their daily duties are prepared. The foot patrols are conducted around the clock. Foot patrols are also conducted in the commercial business district so that visitors to the district have a sense of security.
Bicycle Patrol:
The Police Department operates a bicycle patrol. Bicycles are very mobile during special events when traffic tends to get congested. Additionally, bike patrols are utilized at various times during the week to again make a physical presence. Officers are more mobile on a bike and can cover more territory. They have been an excellent community relations project, as well as a detriment to crime. This is usually done with the bikes in high activity areas during day and night hours. It is an excellent way to communicate with the youth in the community.
Crime Prevention:
The Department's philosophy is that it is cheaper to prevent crime than it is to investigate crime. The Police Department regularly conducts meetings in the neighborhoods and is often invited to various groups within the community. This helps to establish the relationship between the community and the Police Department. The Police Department presently conducts D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) in two schools of the Kennett Consolidated School District, as well as St. Patrick School, located in the Borough of Kennett Square. The officers are available to conduct presentations to parents as to what they should look for in determining what activities their children may be involved in. The Police Department has conducted mock crashes for the high school prior to prom week and has conducted crime prevention programs for the senior citizens, as well as businesses throughout the community. Tours of the Police Station are conducted for any youth group throughout the year.
Training:
All municipal police officers in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania must be certified by the Municipal Police Training and Education Commission. On an annual basis, police officers must receive updated training in the areas of legal updates, officer safety, cultural awareness, and forensics. In addition, the officers must maintain a valid CPR and First Aid card and they must qualify with their weapons. A certification must be made to the Training Commission that all of these requirements have been met.
Education:
In addition to the mandatory training, the Borough has prided itself on the education of its police officers. Throughout the year, various officers are selected to go to different types of training. In some areas, the whole department receives training that is beneficial to the entire department as a whole. In other cases, some officers are specialized. For example, the Narcotics Officers and a patrol support officer receive narcotic training updates once a year. They may be assigned to go to various schools involving the present trends in narcotic investigation.
Forensics:
The area of forensics is rapidly developing. The Detective assigned for investigation of criminal offenses will be assigned to various schools detailing the proper collection of forensic evidence at the scene of a crime.
Motor Carrier Enforcement:
The Motor Carrier Enforcement officers are required to undergo an annual update course and certification.
There are two many other classes conducted throughout the year to mention. In addition, the Department has an in-house training session once a month. At these sessions, issues affecting the community are discussed and a plan is developed on how the Police Department will respond. There may be speakers from community groups who present a different topic to the Police Department based on what is happening in the community. For example, domestic violence, crimes against the elderly, and crime prevention are topics that have been discussed in recent meetings.
Firearms:
Weapons qualification is highly emphasized within the Police Department. By state law we are required to qualify with weapons once a year. The Police Department presently employs three certified weapons instructors. The standard for the Kennett Square Police Department is qualification twice a year. In addition, range time is reserved once a month for the entire department and officers are encouraged to attend this voluntary training as often as possible. Generally, an officer will attend at lease 60% of these. The officers are not only qualified in the service weapons they carry, but are also qualified in the use of shotguns. The Department employs a certified instructor in the use of the collapsible baton and pepper spray. The Use of Force Policy and Procedure is emphasized in each of these in-house training sessions. In addition to the requirements of the basic police training, officers of the Kennett Square Police Department must undergo a 40 hour in-house training session conducted on the service weapon that we carry and a 16 hour course on the shotgun that we utilize.
Activity Level:
The Borough experiences a high level of activity. In recent years a number of incidents occurred that caused the Police Department to re-examine itself. Some serious major crime occurred in the mid 90s. Although the incidents were effectively handled by the Police Department, the Police Department felt that it was missing something within the community. After a four month survey it was decided that many of the minor things that the the Police Department places on a low priority were actually little things that affected the quality of life within the various neighborhoods. As a result, the Police Department developed a zero tolerance program that received national attention. We learned from the survey that there is no way to determine what is serious to one individual and not serious to another. Everyone realizes that homicide, burglary, robbery and arson are confidence in the Police Department's ability to handle those particular crimes, but what we weren't affectively focusing on was the minor things (speeding vehicles, loud stereos, trash and disorderly persons). Since the Police Department had only so many resources, many of these things were let go. As a result, the code of conduct in the Borough changed. Since the implementation of the zero tolerance program, we have seen a remarkable improvement in the Borough. The numbers included in a summary of the calls received in 2000 are startling for a small community. A total of 5,849 calls that the Police Department responded to seems extremely high. An examination of these issues in 2000 versus the issues facing the community in 1994 showed us that in 1994 the general amount of work performed by the Police Department dealt with serious crime. In 2000 the general amount of work by the Police Department dealt mostly with service calls. This is due to the declining crime as a result of the zero tolerance program.
