Delaware County Bureau of Park Police & Fire Safety
# Delaware County Bureau of Park Police & Fire Safety

The Delaware County Bureau of Park Police is a county-wide police force, responsible for providing police services and fire safety for all parks, trails, physical property, and government buildings of Delaware County, Pennsylvania. This is the only police department in Delaware County that has county-wide jurisdiction, as every municipality has either its own police department or is patrolled by the Pennsylvania State Police.

The Bureau has 78 sworn police officers in the department who maintain foot and vehicle patrols twenty-four hours a day, throughout the year. The department also employs one Civilian Security & Fire Safety Specialist along with three fire safety officers (Fire Marshalls), and one Administrative Assistant. The officers continue their training through in-service training, as well as courses offered by the District Attorney's Office, the Police Academy at Delaware County Community College as well as numerous training locations around the area.

All officers are required to qualify annually with their firearms in accordance with the course approved by the Delaware County Police Chief's Association. In addition, the Delaware County Park Police Training Division has certified use of force, firearms instructors and rangemasters and all officers have been certified in basic First Aid and CPR, AED, and Narcan.

The department's Detective Division is responsible for investigating criminal activities that occur on county property, assisting patrol division with preparation of criminal complaints, and investigating motor vehicle accidents and property damage when requested by the solicitor.

The force provides police services for the Department of Special Events and handles approximately 170,000 vehicles with over 500,000 visitors who visit Delaware County parks yearly. In addition, the department is responsible for the issuance of identification cards for all county employees and persons utilizing said properties and facilities.

The Chief of Park Police is John Diehl.

## Organization

The Bureau has two divisions:

* Operations & Administration Division
* Special Operations Division

### Operations & Administration Division

This comprises the following units:

* Patrol Division
* Training Unit
* Equipment & Fleet

### Special Operations Division

This comprises the following units.

* Detective Division
* Special Response Team
* Training Unit
* Fire Safety
* Emergency Management & Planning
* Security and Safety Specialist

## Staff

Officers hold the following ranks:

* Command staff: Superintendent, Captain of Police, Detective/Lieutenant, Lieutenants
* Supervisory staff: Detective / Sergeant, Sergeants, Corporals
* Police officers: Patrolmen and Detective / Investigator

## Responsibilities

The Bureau is responsible for policing the following:

* Courthouse and Government Center Complex
* Fair Acres Complex
* Chester Regional Court
* Chester Division of Adult and Juvenile Probation
* Chester Wharf - Election Bureau
* Eddystone Division of Children and Youth Services
* Human Services Department in Upper Darby
* Upper Darby Division of Adult and Juvenile Probation
* Darby Township Division of Adult and Juvenile Probation
* Delaware County Emergency Services Training Center
* Health and Wellness Center Yeadon
* All County owned Parks and Trails

Chief Deihl is also responsible for overseeing the Delaware County Constable Transport Team. The team consists of two State Constables and one Administrative Assistant. The Constable Transport Team works with the elected State Constable within Delaware County for transportation of detainees to Court Appearances at the Magisterial District Courts in Delaware County.

## Fallen officers

As of February 2023, three Park Police officers lost their lives on duty:

| Rank | Name | End of Watch | Cause of death |
| - | - | - | - |
| Corporal | Ernest L. Lang, Jr. | December 10, 1978 | Shot while intervening during an armed robbery in Chester, PA |
| Patrol Officer | Edward Wehe III | November 5, 2013 | Suffered a heart attack shortly after diffusing a protest at the Delaware County Prison |
| Superintendent | Scott D. "Slip" Mahoney | May 18, 2021 | Complications resulting from contracting COVID-19 in the line of duty |
