Prince George's County Police Department
| Prince George's County Police Department |
| Abbreviation |
PGPD |
|
| Patch of the Prince George's County Police Department. |
| Agency overview |
| Formed |
1931 |
| Employees |
2,300 Approx as of 2010 |
| Annual budget |
$244,300,000.00[1] |
| Legal personality |
Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure |
| Operations jurisdiction* |
County (US) of Prince George's in the state of Maryland, USA |
|
| Map of Prince George's County Police Department's jurisdiction. |
| Size |
498 square miles (1,290 km2) |
| Population |
801,515 |
| General nature |
|
| Operational structure |
| Headquarters |
Palmer Park, Maryland |
| Police Officers |
2,000 Approx as of 2010 |
| Civilians |
300 Approx as of 2010 |
| Agency executive |
Mark Magaw, Interim Chief Of Police |
| Stations |
6 |
| Facilities |
| Headquarters |
7600 Barlowe Road, Palmer Park, Maryland 20785 |
| Jails |
1 |
| Police Boats |
3 |
| Helicopters |
2 |
| Website |
| Official Website |
| Footnotes |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. |
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The Prince George's County Police Department (PGPD) is the primary law enforcement agency in Prince George's County, Maryland in the United States, servicing a population of over 850,000 residents and visitors within 498 square miles (1,290 km²) of jurisdiction.[2]
History
The Prince George's County Police Department was created on June 1 1931 in response to the increasing population and crime the county was experiencing. Prior to 1931, the county was primarily policed by the Prince George's County Sheriff's Office. When serious crimes (e.g., murder, rape, etc.) were committed, detectives from the Baltimore City Police Department were borrowed.[3]
Organization
The current Interim Chief Of Police is Mark Magaw. The previous Chief Of Police, Roberto L. Hylton, was relieved of command on December 6, 2010 by County Executive Rushern L. Baker III.
As of 2010, the agency has an authorized strength of 2,000 sworn officers and 300 civilians.
The agency is divided into six districts. Each district is divided into sectors, which are divided into individual beats:
- District I (Hyattsville: Adam and Baker sector),
- District II (Bowie: David and Edward sector),
- District III (Palmer Park: George and Henry sector),
- District IV (Oxon Hill: John and King sector),
- District V (Clinton: Frank sector), and
- District VI (Beltsville: Charlie sector).
Organizational Structure
- Bureau Of Support Services
- Bureau Of Stragetic Management
Specialized Units
- Emergency Services Team (EST or SWAT)
- Canine Unit (K-9)
- Conflict Negotiator Unit
- Collision Analysis & Reconstruction Unit (CARU)
- Motor Unit
- Aviation Unit
- Marine Unit
- Detective Unit
- Internal Affairs Unit
- Recruitment and Selection Unit
- Training Unit
- Bicycle Patrol
- Honor Guard
Excessive Force Incidents
- July, 1999, the department was subject to a complaint [4] by the United States Justice Department regarding alleged excessive use of force by police canine units.
- May 2004, a Prince Georges County police officer detained a University of Maryland student for walking to close to an area where he was interviewing a citizen. He held a handgun to a students head and threated to shoot him in the back of the head if he was ever disrepected like that again.
- July 29, 2008, police executed a search warrant on the home of Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo during which two Labrador retrievers owned by the mayor were shot by sheriff deputies, agents of the State of Maryland. They were there to conduct a search for drugs. The raid was conducted by county police narcotics officers and a sheriff's office SWAT Team. The incident occurred after Calvo carried in a package that was addressed to his wife. The mayor's mother-in-law had told the deliverymen, who were actually undercover police officers, to leave the package outside of his house. When Calvo arrived home that night, he brought the package inside.
- October 23, 2008, the county and three individually-named police officers were found not liable for use of excessive force by a jury after deliberating for twenty minutes. The claim involved injuries sustained by a University of Maryland student who was involved in a riot following a victory over Duke University in basketball in 2005. The student was struck near the eye allegedly by a projectile fired from a FN 303 less-than-lethal riot gun. [6]
John J. McKenna and Benjamin Donat incident
On March 3, 2010 three Prince George's County Police officers were witnessed and videotaped assaulting a Maryland college student[7] following an NCAA basketball game against Duke in College Park. The assault was documented by an eyewitness with a video camera and has been widely disseminated by the national news media.[8]
Officer Sean McAleavey filed charging documents following the incident which he made no mention of the alleged assault, and indicated that two students had assaulted police on horseback who were controlling the throngs of students near the College Park campus after the game. McAleavey charged John McKenna with second-degree assault of Officer John Ardozini and disorderly conduct.[9]
Another student, Benjamin Donat, was also allegedly assaulted, sustained a concussion, cuts, and other injuries.[8] Officer McAlevey charged Donat with assault of officer Glenn Jones and disorderly conduct.
In both cases, the charges were dropped immediately by prosecutors.[8]
The FBI and the state's attorney's office in Prince George's are investigating police conduct in the incident and plan to present to case to a grand jury. Some of the officers in the video had come forward, but others had to be identified as part of a Prince George's County Police internal affairs investigation.
Nearly 30 Maryland students were arrested following the game. In the cases that have made it to court, the Prince George County State's Attorney's office decided not to go forward with the charges.[10]
Other Incidents
- On 9 October 2010, Brian Fowble, an instructor at the Prince George's Police Academy, was transferred out of the Academy. Reportedly, Fowble had recorded all his students with perfect scores on Academy tests, even though students' actual scores varied, and at least some students had failed those exams. There was evidence that Fowble shared exam questions with students in advance of the tests, allowing several classes of recruits to graduate after cheating on their exam.[11]
Fallen Officers
- On 26 June 1978, Officer Albert Marshal Claggett IV and Officer James Swart were shot and killed with Claggett's revolver by Terrence Johnson, a 15-year-old theft suspect, while in the booking area of the Hyattsville District Station. Johnson was found guilty of manslaughter in the death of Officer Claggett and not guilty by reason of insanity in the death of Officer Swart. Johnson was sentenced to 25 years in prison; he was paroled in 1995. In 1997, Johnson and his brother robbed a bank in Aberdeen, Maryland. As police officers approached to arrest him, Johnson committed suicide.
- On 27 June 2008, CPL. Richard S. Findley was killed by Ronnie L. White, who was driving a stolen pickup truck. White struck CPL. Findley with the truck as he attempted to elude police and avoid being arrested in Laurel. White appeared to be in good physical condition when he was arrested but died of asphyxiation while in the custody of the Prince George's County Department of Corrections.[12] The death was ruled a homicide. The Prince George's County Police failed to find any evidence of who could have been behind the murder.
- On 9 March 2010, PFC. Tom Jensen succumbed at Prince George's Hospital Center after a vehicular crash. He was responding to a man breaking into a woman's apartment on 27 February 2010. Due to his 5-plus years of service to the citizens of Prince George's County, he was posthumously promoted to the rank of Corporal.
PGPD Cruisers
See also
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Maryland portal |
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Law enforcement/Law enforcement topics portal |
References
External links
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