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Pennsylvania Capitol Police

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Pennsylvania State Capitol Police
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Agency overview
Formed1895
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionUnited States
Legal jurisdictionCapitol Complex and state office buildings in Dauphin County, PA, and Scranton, Pennsylvania
Specialist jurisdiction
  • Buildings and lands occupied or explicitly controlled by the institution and the institution's personnel, and public entering the buildings and precincts of the institution.
Operational structure
Headquarters70E Capitol East Wing, Harrisburg, PA 17125
Sworn members85[1]
Agency executive
  • Joseph Jacob, Superintendent
Facilities
Stations2
Patrol cars22
Dogs5

The Pennsylvania State Capitol Police is a section of the Pennsylvania Department of General Services providing law enforcement, security and parking enforcement services to the State Capitol Complex in Harrisburg, and at state government office buildings in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Scranton, Pennsylvania.[2][3][4] Their jurisdiction is primarily state owned buildings and property on the Capitol Complex. The Capitol Police jurisdiction extends to several state owned buildings throughout the city of Harrisburg and local townships.

The Pennsylvania State Capitol Police Force was established in 1895 under Governor Daniel Hartman Hastings, the state's 21st Governor. The enactment authorized the Capitol Police as the first Pennsylvania police agency under Commonwealth jurisdiction and the second oldest state police organization in the United States, after the Texas Rangers.[5]

Accreditation

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The Capitol Police was initially accredited on July 9, 2005 through the Pennsylvania Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission (PLEAC) and Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association. In 2024, the Pennsylvania Capitol Police received their sixth re-accreditation. In addition to being re-accredited, the Pennsylvania Capitol Police was awarded the Premier Agency Status by the PA Chiefs of Police.

The Capitol Police received International Accreditation on July 28, 2007, through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). In 2024, the Capitol Police was awarded their sixth award for being re-accredited. CALEA recognized the Pennsylvania Capitol Police for their professional excellence and demonstrating a commitment to being a highly trained police department.

Equipment

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  • PA Capitol Police Vehicle
    PA Capitol Police Vehicle
  • PA Capitol Police Bike Patrol
    PA Capitol Police Bike Patrol
  • PA Capitol Police K9 Unit
    PA Capitol Police K9 Unit
  • PA Capitol Police Cruiser
    PA Capitol Police Cruiser
  • PA Capitol Police Fleet
    PA Capitol Police Fleet
  • Special Response Team (S.R.T.) equipment shown during National Night Out
    Special Response Team (S.R.T.) equipment shown during National Night Out

The PSCP has an all-Ford patrol fleet that consists of Police Interceptor Sedans and Police Interceptor Utilitys. The agency's vehicles are both marked and unmarked.

Though not often displayed in pictures, the PSCP also uniquely uses the IWI X95 Israeli bullpup assault rifle as part of their armament, and were previously the first law enforcement agency in the United States to adopt the TAVOR SAR in 2013 before upgrading to the IWI Tavor X95 in July 2017. [6]

The Department has four K-9 Explosive Units trained in the detection of explosives. All delivery vehicles entering the building of the Capital Complex are searched. Also, the Capitol Police Department has a K-9 Narcotics/Patrol unit trained in the detection of drugs as well as for search and rescue operations.

Units

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  • Patrol
  • K-9's (Explosive and Narcotics Detection and search and rescue)
  • Bike Patrol
  • Criminal Investigations
  • Criminal Intelligence
  • Mobile Field Force
  • Special Response Team (S.R.T)
  • Active Shooter and Crime Prevention Training
  • Risk and Vulnerability Assessments

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Pennsylvania Capitol Police Swear In Three New Officers". archive.ph. July 17, 2024. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  2. ^ Minnema, Lindsay (August 7, 2006). "Dog's job is to sniff out explosives". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved February 27, 2007.
  3. ^ Thompson, Troy (September 23, 2013). "Pennsylvania State Capitol Police receive reaccreditation". Department of General Services. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
  4. ^ Thompson, Troy (August 9, 2016). "Pennsylvania Capitol Police Department Receives State, International Reaccreditation". Department of General Services. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  5. ^ "PA Capitol Police".
  6. ^ "The Pennsylvania State Capitol Police Upgrade to IWI US TAVOR® X95™". July 25, 2017.
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