Saint Paul Police Department

Saint Paul Police Department
Abbreviation	SPPD
Patch of the Saint Paul Police Department.
Motto	Committed to Excellence, Ethics, Empathy & Education
Agency overview
Formed	1854
Legal personality	Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction*	City of Saint Paul in the state of Minnesota, USA
Map of Saint Paul Police Department's jurisdiction.
Size	56.2 square miles (146 km2)
Population	285,068 (2010)
General nature	Law enforcement Local civilian police
Operational structure
Headquarters	367 Grove St. Saint Paul, Minnesota
Police Officers	Authorized to 630
Civilians	~300
Agency executive	Thomas E. Smith, Chief of Police
Districts	List Central Eastern Western
Website
Saint Paul Police Department
Footnotes
* Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction.

The Saint Paul Police Department (SPPD) is the main law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the City of Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It was first established in 1854, making it the oldest police organization in the state. The SPPD is the second largest law enforcement agency in Minnesota, after the Minneapolis Police Department. The department consists of 615 sworn officers^[1] and 200 non-sworn officials.^[2][3] The current Chief of Police is Thomas E. Smith, who was sworn in on June 15, 2010. He succeeded John M. Harrington, who had been the department's chief since 2004.

Command Structure

Title	Insignia
Chief of Police
Assistant Chief of Police
Senior Commander
Commander
Lieutenant (see note)
Sergeant (see note)
Police Officer

NOTE: Current contract allows for a lieutenant rank, but the rank is NOT currently in use by the department. By contract, all investigators (detectives) hold the rank of sergeant.

Department Awards

The department has only issued medals / awards since 1971. The current medals are:^[2]

• Medal of Valor Class A
• Medal of Merit Class B
• Medal of Commendation
• Life Saving Award
• Chief's Award For Valor
• Chief's Award For Merit
• Chief's Award
• Officer of the Year
• Detective of the Year
• Civilian Employee of the year

Department Size^[3]

Like most major cities, the city of St. Paul saw a population decline beginning in the late 1960s. However, the police department has continued to grow.^[3] The current police chief also has a hiring push underway to increase the size of the force to help continue to fight crime.^[4]

Slain officers

^[5]

Misconduct

A lawsuit alleges that on 13 July 2010, SPPD officers took part in a drug raid on the home of an innocent family. The complaint claims the policemen handcuffed the family including the children, kept them from medical aid and forced them to sit next to the body of the family pet who had been shot.^[6]

An arrest outside of a bar on 26 September 2010 is the subject of a lawsuit that claims excessive force.^[7]

In March 2011, the elite Gang Strike Force was disestablished when a state audit could not account for 13 vehicles and over $18,000 in cash the unit had seized. The auditor's report indicated that Officer Ron Ryan had sold property his detail had retained.^[8] Press reports indicated the unit used money taken from gang members to attend a 2009 professional conference held in Hawaii.^[9][10]

See also

• List of law enforcement agencies in Minnesota

References

Coordinates: 44°57′23″N 93°5′9″W / 44.95639°N 93.08583°W / 44.95639; -93.08583

External links

• Saint Paul Police Department
• Saint Paul Police Historical Society
• Saint Paul Police Foundation
• Saint Paul Police Federation
• Saint Paul Police Reserve