Saint Paul Police Department

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 established in 1854, making it the oldest police organization in the state. In the beginning the men did not have a stationhouse. Prisoners were taken to the Fort Snelling brig until the city built a jail. The SPPD is the second largest law enforcement agency in Minnesota, after the Minneapolis Police Department. The department consists of 575 sworn officers and 200 non-sworn officials.City of St. Paul, MN - Official Website - Police The current Chief of Police is Axel Henry. He is the 42nd chief in the history of the St. Paul Police Department and was sworn in November 2022.

History In 1920 St. Paul Councilman and Public Safety Commissioner Aloysius Smith, requested that the St. Paul Police start a Police program for the youth.Origins of the School Safety Patrol, 1921, MNOPEDIA, Minnesota Historical Society website, Eric W. Weber, St. Paul, Minnesota, published: October 29, 2012, Sergeant Frank Hetznecke was selected to create the program. In its first year, 750 students signed up for the training program and in February 1921 the first student monitored crossing took place with students from Cathedral school on Kellogg Blvd. Sergeant Hetznecke is credited with introducing the Sam Browne belt and badge that became synonymous with school patrol across the country and administering St. Paul's program for 30 years.

During the Prohibition era, the department was remarkably corrupt. In 1936, the chief, Thomas Brown was fired after an investigation showed he had protected criminals including the Dillinger and the Barker-Karpis gangs.

An arrest outside of a bar on 26 September 2010 is the subject of a lawsuit that claims excessive force.Man's suit says St. Paul police brutalized him, by: Chris Havens, Star Tribune, 4 October 2010 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.Gang Strike Force shut down after audit finds $18,000, 13 cars missing, by Randy Furst, Star Tribune, 23 March 2011 Press reports indicated the unit used money taken from gang members to attend a 2009 professional conference held in Hawaii.Several officials criticize Gang Strike Force's publicly funded Hawaii trip, by Randy Furst, Star Tribune, 5 April 2009.

In January 2011, SPPD officers roughed up and used a taser on a black man while that man was peacefully waiting for his kids in a public areaSt. Paul man from cellphone arrest video identified; police dropped charges in July Twin Cities Daily Planet The SPPD had two prominent incidents of misconduct in relation to their dogs in 2016 and 2017.

Command structure

TitleInsigniaChief of PoliceAssistant Chief of PoliceDeputy Chief of PoliceDistrict Chief of DistrictSenior CommanderCommanderSergeant (see note)Police Officer NOTE: By contract, all investigators (detectives) hold the rank of sergeant. The time that a uniformed sergeant holds this rank is shown by arcs below the chevrons, one for each 5 years after promotion. After three are obtained the next 5 year periods give progressively a diamond and then a star in the field between the arcs and chevrons. Although this is analogous to the uniforms of the United States Army, no additional command authority is granted.

List of Chief of Police

NameDatesWilliam R. Miller1854-1858John W. Crosby1858-1859John O'Gorman1859-1861Horace H. Western1861James Gooding1861-1863Michael Cummings1863-1864John R. Cleveland1864-1865George Turnbull1865-1866John Jones1866-1867James P. McIlrath1867-1870Luther J. Eddy1870-1872James P. McIlrath1872-1874James King1875-1878Charles Weber Jr.1875-1878John Clark1883-1892Albert Garvin1892-1894John Clark1894-1896Michael N. Goss1896-1900Parker L. Getchell1900John J. O'Connor1900-1912Frederick M. Catlin1912Martin J. Flanagan1912-1913Michael Gebhardt1913-1914 (Acting)John J. O'Connor1914-1920Thomas E. Campbell1920-1921Henry J. Crepeau1921-1922Michael Gebhardt1922Frank W. Sommer1922-1923Michael Gebhardt1923-1924Edward J. Murnane1924-1930Thomas E. Dahill1930 (Acting)Thomas A. Brown1930-1932Thomas E. Dahill1932-1934Frank R. Cullen1934Michael J. Culligan1934-1935Gustave H. Barfuss1935Charles W. Coulter1935-1936Clinton A. Hackert1936-1943Charles J. Tierney1943-1952Neal McMahon1952-1954Albert A. Anderson1954-1955 (Acting)William F. Proetz1955-1961Frank A. Schmidt1960-1961 (Acting)Lester McAuliffe1961-1970Robert LaBathe1970 (Acting)Richard H. Rowan1970-1979Robert LaBathe1980William W. McCutcheon1980-1992William Finney1992-2004John Harrington2004-2010Thomas E. Smith2010-2016Kathy Wuorinen2016 (Interim)Todd D. Axtell2016-2022Jeremy A. Ellison2022 (Interim)Axel C. Henry2022-

Department awards

The department has only issued medals / awards since 1971. The current medals are: 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 Professional Staff of the Year Volunteer of the Year (Added in 2026)

Department size

Like most major cities, the city of St. Paul saw a population decline beginning in the late 1960s. However, the department continued to grow.Saint Paul Police Federation

Year City Population Sworn Officers Non-Sworn Law Enforcement Personnel 1849 910 4 1858 7,000 11 1863 10,401 10 1871 20,030 19 1888 133,156 160 1900 163,065 195 1920 234,698 357 1930 271,606 358 1940 287,736 345 1950 311,329 368 26 1960 313,411 389 43 1970 309,980 463 69 1983 270,230 495 1990 272,235 524 131 2000 287,151 547 211 2010 285,068 560 300 2013 290,770 630 350 2023303,176575225

Saint Paul Police Department

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