BPD Personnel 1888

 

 The Book Our Police 1888 Click HERE

Harry Gilmor served in the Confederate cavalry and was captured twice. He was captured first in September 1862 and then exchanged as a prisoner of war in February 1863. He was captured again in February 1865 and remained captive for the duration of the war. During that time he compiled a series of historical sketches about his career which were later developed into Four Years in the Saddle.

He was Baltimore's Police Commissioner from 1874-1879.

 

BALTIMORE CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT

ROSTER OF THE FORCE

January 1, 1888

Board of Police Commissioners

EDSON MARION SCHRYVER, President

ALFRED J. CARR, Treasurer

J. Q. A. ROBSON

JACOB FREY, Marshal.

JOHN LANNAN, Deputy-Marshal.

   Name                           Date of Appointment      District

A.

Abell, R. A………………………………....April 10, 1886.………...W.

Ackerman, J. J. …………………………...October 5, 1885.......N.W.

Ackler, W. F. ……………………………. November 28, 1876...…C.

Adkinson, B. B...........................................June 12,1886............N. W.

Ahern, James............................................June 17, 1878..................E.

Allen, Benjamin T., Sergeant....................June 17,1884...............W.

Allen, Wm. C. ..............................................July 21,1886............…..C.

Anderson, James D. ...............................February 10, 1876……..S.

Andrews, Ringgold ...................................June 19, 1876........……C.

Arbin, William........……………………….July 9, 1885.............…N.E.

Arminger, Jesse…………........................June 6, 1885.…......……S.

Armstrong, Thomas………………........August 1,1878….........N.E.

Arnold, H. T.................................................April 13, 1886.............S.W.

Arnold, T. E................................................July 17, 1884............. S. W.

Arthur, Thomas.........................................June 14, 1876.................C.

Atkinson, William M................................November 26, 1886...S. W.

Auld, Benjamin F., Captain....................April 23, 1867...................E.

Austen, William H....................................April 12, 1886..............N. E.B.

Bachman, John........................................December 27,1882..........E.

Bafford, E. T..............................................April 22, 1881...................C.

Bailey, George...........................................May 27, 1885.............N. W.

Baker, James C.........................................January 25, 1884...........E.

Baker, John Captain…..............................May 22, 1867...........S. W.

Ballard, L. J..................................................October 11, 1886..........C.

Bannahan, P. F..................... ...... ...............July 27, 1887................W.

Barber, Alexander Clerk............................April 13, 1886................E.

Barber, Henry L...........................................January 29, 1886....N. E.

Barber, Philip J., Captain..........................April 10, 1869............N. E.

Barker, William, Sergeant.........................April 29, 1867................C.

Barnes, John A..........................................February 9, 1885...........C.

Barranger, Thomas, Detective................July 20, 1867..............HQ.

Barrett, Michael..........................................July 15, 1884..................S.

Bayne, William C. Sergeant.....................March 18.1875...............S.

Beckmyer, W. L. .........................................May 14, 1885.................C.

Behrens, Manno A. ...................................August 21, 1879...........E.

Behringer, Phillip.........................................April 22, 1886...............C.

Bell, Thomas L. ...........................................February 3, 1877.........C.

Berger, Philip R., Sergeant........................September 3, 1867.....W.

Berney, J. J. ..................................................April 21, 1881..............W.

Biddison, W. G...............................................August 19, 1886.........C.

Billmire, George ,W. .....................................April 6, 1886................E.

Bishop, Alonzo R..........................................August 19, 1886........W.

Black, Michael F., Sergeant.........................April 15, 1882.............E.

Blackiston, Albert C.. Sergeant..................April 25.1867..............S.

Blair, Jeremiah………………………………May 1, 1885.………...S.

Blake, James………………………………..January 21, 1871.…..C.

Blaney, Samuel……………………………..April 13, 1885.…...N.W.

Boone, Mathew.......................................October 14,1870.........N. W.

Boose, William H. .....................................September 21,1886..N.W.

Bortle, Caleb …………………………….April 23, 1886.………....W.

Bosch, P. F. J., Sergeant.........................September 15, 1879..N.E.

Boston, James H.......................................August 8, 1883...........N.E.

Bouchett, Joseph A.................................April 25, 1867..................C.

Bouckelle, P. S...........................................April 10, 1886.................C.

Bowen, William H., Sergeant..................April 25, 1867..................S.

Bowers, G. W..............................................June 21, 1886...........S.W.

Bowling, William E.....................................December 8, 1877 ........E.

Bradley, William T.......................................December 3, 1884...S.W.

Brandt, J. H...................................................February 21,1876....N.E.

Brayden, S. W.... .........................................October 15, 1885.....N.W.

Brennan, P. J. .............................................December 2, 1880........C.

Broderick, T. A., Sergeant.........................February 4, 1875.....S.W.

Brooks, M. S., Turnkey.............................July 27, 1875.............S.W.

Brooks, William...........................................April 4, 1873..............N.W.

Brown, James F..........................................May 31, 1881............N.W.

Brown, John C............................................November 4, 1881........E.

Brown, Richard P ......... ............................February 27, 1872........C.

Brown, Thomas..........................................October 14, 1867..........S.

Brown, Wilson W........................................May 2, 1884.…….....N.W.

Browning, George D..................................November 24, 1886......S.

Bruchey, David H., Lieutenant................November 5, 1869........S.

Brunner, J., Jr.............................................April 9, 1886..................W.

Bryan, James J..........................................May 17, 1883 ...........N.W.

Brydon, E. R...............................................January 7, 1879.........S.W.

Buckless, Thomas E., Sergeant.............August 20, 1872............E.

Buckley, D. E...............................................June 15,1886.…………C.

Buenger, John H........................................April 13, 1881.…………E.

Buppert, Joh11...........................................April 23, 1885............S.W.

Burnes, James M.......................................January 3, 1884....……S.

Busch, William H.........................................August 24,1880.……...S.

Busick, Harry G...........................................July 22, 1885.………....C.

Busick, Jamcs H., Lieutenant...................May 1, 1867.……….....C.

Butler, John, Sergeant...............................Apri121, 1879...........S.W.

Byrnes, B. D..................................................June 28,1873...........…C.C.

Cadden, Thomas..........................................October 15,1881........E.

Cadwallader, Lewis W., Captain...............June 27,1861.........…W.

Cain, James T. …………………………….December 3, 1874.…C.

Caldwell, Andrea P. Clerk………………..April 29, 1875.…….N.E.

Callen, Thomas J………………………....June 29, 1885.……….E.

Campbell, G.L. ...…………………………..May 7, 1867.……….N.E.

Canby, W. S. ………………………………April 22, 1886.…….N.W.

Cannoles, Francis ………………………..March 9, 1877.……N.W.

Carberry, R. H. ……………………………August 5, 1886 ………C.

Carey, C. J. ………………………………...March 21, 1884 …...N.E.

Carey, John ………………………………..April 15, 1868 ……N.W.

Carey, Thomas …………………………….May 23, 1872 ……N.W.

Carey, Timothy W. ………………………September 12, 1871.....S.

Carlos, John, Sergeant ………………… October 25, 1872 ...N.W.

Carney, M. T. ………………………………March 14, 1887 …….W.

Carney, O. B. ………………………………February 2, 1886 …..W.

Carr, A. R. ……………………………….....October 3, 1877 ……..C.

Carr, Nicholas J............................................March 31, 1880 ….N.W.

Carrick, Lackey M. .......................................June 13, 1887 ...........W.

Carrick, William J., Sergeant ......................July 26. 1876 ........N. E.

Carroll, J. H., Lieutenant ........................March 25, 1869.…….N. E.

Carson, T. W. D. …………………………September 5, 1885 ..S.W.

Carter, I. T. ………………………………..October 16, 1876 …..N.E.

Carter, Robert D. ………………………May 12, 1884 ………..N.W.

Casey, John A………………………….April 9, 1886.……………C.

Casey, Samuel B. …………………….January 24, 1881 ……..N.E.

Cash, Patrick ………………………….December 7, 1885 ………C.

Cassidy, Thomas R...............................April 30, 1885.………........C.

Cavanaugh, Matthew ...........................November 27,1875.……..S.

Chaillou, Aug., Sergeant ......................November 14,1867.....N. E.

Chaillou, Lewis  Sergeant ...................April 10,1882........………..S.

Chaney, Charles P ................................April 29,1867.………........C.

Cbesgreen, William J.............................October 8,1868.................C.

Claiborne, Charles H., Captain ...........December 21, 1868...…..S.

Clark, Charles..........................................June 4, 1870.…………....S.

Clark, J. A...................... ...........................February 27,1882.….N. E.

Clark, Patrick J.........................................April 27, 1887...................S.

Clause, Frederick.....................................May 6, 1880.………….....C.

Clautice, George, Sergeant ...................September 23,1873........C.

Clautice, George B...................................November 3, 1884.…….C.

Clemson, Richard H................................October 25, 1883 ..……..E.

Cline, Daniel H. Sergeant .......................October 2,1875.……N. W.

Clipper, Lewis............................................June 7,1875....................S.

Close. R. J...................................................May 7, 1885...................W.

Clowe, John H., Sergeant ......................November 16, 1877.….W.

Cole, C. Wallace.......................................July 27,1886.…………....E.

Cole, Lewis D.......….................................December 16, 1886.…...C.

Coleman, Charles L. ................................August 31, 1868.……...E.

Collins, Joseph D. Sergeant ..................July 30. 1868.………….S.

Comman, John..........................................April 3. 1870.......……….E.

Connery, John...........................................January 26, 1874.....N. W.

Connolly, James F.....................................February 3, 1887.…….C.

Connolly, William........................................December 28, 1867.…E.

Connor, Patrick F........................................January 6, 1887.……..S.

Considine, Patrick.......................................December 2, 1872......W.

Conway, J. H ...............................................April 30, 1885...........S.W.

Conway, Patrick...........................................December 28, 1872....S.

Conway, Richard..........................................May 2, 1887.................C.

Conway, Thomas.........................................November 7, 1883......S.

Cook, C. E.......................................................October 14, 1886......W.

Cook, G. L.......................................................August 26,1874.....S.W.

Cook, John.....................................................March 1, 1857.…...S.W.

Cook, William ............... ................................April 8, 1871.………...E.

Costello, John W...........................................March 3, 1883.............E.

Costello, P. S..................................................April 30.1867.........N.W.

Cox, John B. .............................. ...................August 15, 1878........E.

Cox, John T.....................................................May 1,1871................C.

Crate, F. S., Sergeant .................................February 27, 1877..N. E.

Crawford, James A. ...................................April 9,1886...................E.

Crawford, John O.......................................October 20, 1881....N. W.

Creamer, Anthony.....................................August 14, 1868.......S.W.

Crispens, William H...................................October 15, 1886.……..S.

Crooks, T. B. …………………………….February 10, 1871 ……W.

Cross, B. O. L. …………………………..April 21, 1881 ………..N.E.

Cross, Franklin T......................................May 13,1885...............N. E.

Cullem, J.W. ..............................................October 7, 1871..............C.D.

Dahle, George............................................August 21, 1884.............C.

Davis, John ...............................................September 10, 1873......C.

Davis, John W. ………………………….April 4, 1881 ……………E.

Deaver, George B. ………………………May 7, 1867 …………...C.

Debring, A. B, Turnkey ...........................January 11,1883......N. W.

Debus, Lewis ……………………………April 10, 1886 ………….S.

Deems, John …………………………….September 11, 1882 ….S.

Dempsey, William B..................................February 18, 1885.........C.

Devan, J. T. ................................................October 11, 1872..........W.

Devon, Francis P. ………………………April 10, 1882 ………….C.

Dietz, John ................................................December 20, 1871........C.

Diggs, Daniel E., Sergeant .....................April 25, 1867.……….....E.

Dingle, Henry.............................................July 31, 1878...................S.

Dolan, Michael...........................................February 1, 1871...........C.

Donahue, P. J.............................................August 20, 1886 ...........C.

Donnelly, Bernard .....................................March 2, 1870...........N.W.

Dorn, Charles P., Sergeant ..................September 18, 1878..N. W.

Dorsey, John B. .........................................September 1, 1885.......C.

Douglass, George E...................................July 7, 1885...................S.

Doyle, Bernard..........................................September 7, 1887....N.W.

Doyle, James...........................................September 12, 1884..N. W.

Doyle, William F. ......................................August 2, 1869................S.

Doyle, William H .......................................December 17, 1881.......C.

Driscoll, John, Sergeant .........................August 14, 1873............W.

Drohan, David ...........................................May 7, 1867...............N. W.

Droste, William H., Detective ..................June 5, 1868...............HQ.

DuBois, Edward S., Clerk .........................April 9, 1886..................C.

Dudrow, T. C..................................................May 8.1871.............N. E.

Dull, George, Sergeant ...............................April 25, 1867..............S.

Dull, George F...............................................February 11, 1882......S.

Dunn, Edward .............................................November 24, 1874.....C.

Durkee, Henry.............................................June 27, 1861 ...........N.E.E.

Eagan, Michael ...........................................April 12,1886 ................C.

Earhart, George T., Captain ...................September 8, 1868...N.W.

Edwards, David .........................................October 6, 1879.............E.

Egan, John ………………………………December 24, 1885 ..S.W.

Elbacher, L. H. …………………………..April 12, 1886 ………….C.

Emerine, George………………………..August 12, 1876.………C.

Emery, W. H……………………………..December 6, 1884.…..N.E.

Ennis, James R. ……………………….February 25, 1886.……...E.

Enrich, Henry…………………………..October 29, 1886.………..E.

Eppley, John A. ………………………November 15, 1871.…..N.E.

Escavaille, George S. ………………..April 13, 1886.…………N.W.

Eustace, Levi………………………….April 25, 1881.…………….E.

Evans, George N. …………………….May 11, 1874.……………..S.F.

Fairbanks, William J...................................May 1, 1867...................S.

Fallon, Peter ………………………………April 10, 1886 ………...C.

Farley, George …………………………November 14, 1883... S.W.

Farnan, Thomas P., Captain ....................April 30, 1867...............C.

Farrell, Thomas J.......................................June 16, 1886..........N. W.

Faulkner, Thomas E....................................April 22, 1886...............S.

Feeney, Charles M. ……………………….April 10, 1886 ……….C.

Fetch, John ………………………………...August 21, 1884 ……S.

Fink, Jacob ………………………………....April 30, 1887 ……S.W.

Finnerty, Bernard ………………………….June 17, 1879 ………C.

Fitzgerald, Thomas A., Lieutenant ......November 20, 1867. .S.W.

Fitzmorice, M ................................................April 10, 1886 .........S.W.

Fitzpatrick, A. H..............................................May 15, 1885..............C.

Fitzpatrick, H. F............................................Feburary 25, 1884.. N. E.

Fitzpatrick, T. J............................................April 13, 1886............N.W.

Flannery, Frank .J., Lieutenant ..........September 2, 1885.....N. W.

Flannery, Patrick........................................March 31, 1880..............S.

Fleckenstien, Jacob..................................August 31, 1876............E.

Flood, Philip, Sergeant ............................November 11, 1882......S.

Floyd, Wllliam.............................................April 30, 1867..................S.

Fluskev, D. B..............................................September 21, 1881 .....C.

Foll, Charles F...........................................August 15, 1884 ............E.

Ford, John N. ...........................................July 27,1883................N. E.

Foster, Theodore J., Sergeant ..........December 29, 1883 ....N. W.

Frazier, George........................................December 11,1875..........C.

Frazier, William H., Lieutenant ..............April 25, 1867..................C.

Freburger, S. H., Captain of Detectives ..May 1, 1875..............HQ.

Frederick, H.W..........................................April13, 1886..............N. W.

Frey, Jacob Marshal of Police ……....April 23, 1867 …………HQ.

Friedel, John M. ………………………..April 11, 1884 …………..E.

Fritz, Andrew …………………………...April 9, 1886 …………….S.

Fullem, J. J., Lieutenant .........................August 22, 1878 ...........W.G.

Gaffney, John.............................................March 25, 1868 ……….C.

Gallagher, Martin B.……………………...May 3, 1887...………….S.

Garrett, John W. ………………………....April 22, 1886 …………S.

Gartside, Jacob W.......................................April 10, 1886..........N. W.

Garvey, Thomas …….................................May 12, 1879................C.

Gauley, Philip...............................................May 16, 1885 ...............W.

Gault, Albert, Detective .………………December 8, 1866 …...HQ.

Gaunt, William T. ………………………December 1, 1887 …...N.E.

Getz, John..................................................September 8, 1877 ...N. E.

Gilbert, Joseph J., Sergeant ................January 27, 1881.............C.

Gillespie, James T. …………………….September 19, 1884 …...E.

Gillespie, W. T. …………………………March 1, 1883 ………….W.

Gittings, Charles W..................................July 17, 1886...................C.

Glynn, John J. …………………………..October 4, 1883 ……N.W.

Goldsborough, G. W. ……………………May 3, 1884 …………..E.

Goldsmith. J. B............................................May 30, 1871 ...........N.W.

Goodwin, Joseph........................................April 13,1886............S.W.

Goonan, Timothy........................................April 9, 1886............S. W.

Gordon, George H. ………………………May 25, 1872 …………E.

Graff, Raymond …………………………..April 8, 1873 ………….E.

Graham, James A. ………………………December 13, 1878 ….S.

Graves, Walter ............................................July 21, 1886 ...............W.

Grau, Adam ……………………………….October 30, 1883…….E.

Grebe, Frederick ..........................................January 3, 1885 …….E.

Green, Lewis ................................................April 21, 1881..........N.W.

Green, Samuel G. …………………………April 22, 1886 ……..N.E.

Green, Thomas T. Sergeant …………….June 5, 1875 …………E.

Griffin, M.........................................................April 9.1886.............S.W.

Griffriss, Joseph W.......................................November 4, 1886 ....S.

Grill, Philip ……………………………….....July 14, 1874 ………..S.

Grimes, George A. ........................................April 14, 1884 ........S.W.

Grossman, Leopold .......................................October 3, 1876 .......S.

Gruber, William G......................................November 1, 1884....N.W.

Gumpman, Peter H. .....................................August 26, 1886 ........S.H.

Hahn, Lewis....................................................April 15, 1876........S.W.

Hagan, Mark .................................................September 29, 1887...C.

Hall, T. B. Detective ..................................April 21, 1875 .............HQ.

Halstead, E. G. …………………………..June 7, 1880 …………..E.

Hamilton, A. J. ………………………….December 1, 1880 ……..E.

Hammack, Wm. E. ……………………..July 5, 1887 …………..N.E.

Hammond, J. M. .......................................February 26, 1880.....N.W.

Hanson, E. H.............................................April 10, 1886..............N.W.

Hardesty, James A. .................................April 25, 1881..................S.

Hardesty, Thomas J. ................................October 10,1887...........W.

Harman, L. W. ….........................................May 12, 1875............N.W.

Harvey, James Sergeant ..........................May 1, 1867..................C.

Hays, George W....................................September 15, 1865......N.W.

Headdington, I. B. ......................................December 9, 1886...N.W.

Healey, John J. ………………………......May 14, 1873 …………C.

Heath, George W. ………………………..July 19, 1878 ……….N.E.

Heiderman, Charles E...............................September 10, 1886.....S.

Heimiller, Herman .......................................September 25, 1877 ..S.

Henisler Samuel H. ….................................April 23, 1875..........N. E.

Henkel, Frederick..........................................October 27, 1884........E.

Henneman, J. H., Sergeant ........................June 8, 1876..............W.

Herfel, George W. ..........................................March 9, 1886.……...E.

Higgins, William F. ........................................March 19,1885 ..........C.

Higinbothm, J. B. .........................................January 20, 1887...N.W.

Hilderbrand, Henry Turnkey. ....................August 17, 1870.........E.

Hoffman. E. J., Sergeant ............................August 25, 1881........W.

Hogan, Michael ............................................April12, 1882...........N.W.

Hogan, Thomas F. Sergeant ....................April 7, 1874.............N. E

Hood, T. J. .................................................September 26, 1887.S. W.

Hook, Charles...........................................January 3, 1888..............C.

Hook, George ,W. .....................................April 12, 1886..................E.

Hooper, James A. .....................................April 10, 1886................W.

Horstman, Henry. ......................................November 2, 1884.......W.

Hosefrons, Lewis.......................................April 11, 1874...............W.

Houck, Samuel N ........................................May 15, 1885 .........N. W.

Howe, John...................................................October 4, 1871.....N. W.

Hoyle, George .............................................December 10, 1881.....C.

Hughes, Michael..........................................July 17,1884 ................S.

Hughes, M. J................................................December 26, 1884.....C.

Hughes, Terrence ......................................April 9, 1886.............N. E.

Hughes, Thomas J. ...................................January 10, 1887...N. W.

Hughes, Timothy.........................................April 21, 1881 .............W.

Hussey, Michael .........................................April 1, 1885 ................W.

Hutson, George W.......................................July 20, 1882................E.

Hyland. Francis ...........................................June 21, 1875 ........S. W.

Hymes, A. H. ...............................................April 30, 1867................C.J.

Jacobs, John................................................August 23, 1873 .........S.

Jaecksch, John H. ......................................January 3, 1885 ..........E.

James, Gilbert C. .........................................June 29, 1887 .......N. W.

Jamison, Andrew ........................................April 13, 1886 .............C.

Jarbo, C. W. ...................................................May 14, 1885..............W.

Jennings, Michael ........................................August 16, 1870 ........S.

Johnson, Charles E. ....................................Apri1 22, 1886.......N. E.

Johnson, John T. .........................................September 5, 1885....E.

Johnson, William R. Lieutenant ...............April 25, 1867..............E.

Jones, Francis W., Sergeant ......................May 7, 1867................E.

Jones, Henry C. ............................................July 12,1877...........N.E.

Jones, Joseph ..............................................February 2, 1869 ......W.

Jones, Leven ................................................April 10, 1886 .........N.E.

Junker, Adam ...............................................April 30, 1867..............S.

Junker, John ................................................July 30, 1873...............S.K.

Kabernagle, George W. ..............................June 10, 1886.............C.

Kalbfleisch, William Sergeant ...................December 6, 1882.....W.

Kane, C. J. ......................................................July 21, 1876..............C.

Kaufman, Andrew........…………..............November 12, 1879.....C.

Kayer, Philip................................................November 21, I878.......E.

Kehoe, Nicholas.........................................May 12,1881..................C.

Keller, George H..........................................April 30, 1868................C.

Kelly, Edward J...........................................December 26, 1884......E.

Kelly, James II.............................................December 8, 1884.......C.

Kelly, John...................................................June 8, 1876..................C.

Kelly, John T................................................March 3, 1882...............S.

Kelly, Patrick J. ..........................................December 5, 1883........C.

Kelly, Thomas ............................................October 24, 1887..........E.

Kelly, Thomas P..........................................May 15,1883.................C.

Kelly, William A. .........................................August 4, 1885..............C.

Keen, Samuel M. ........................................April 17, 1874...............W.

Kennedy, A. J. ............................................June 21, 1886...............W.

Kerr, John.....................................................May 7, 1867...................E.

Kessler, George ..........................................June 5, 1886.................S.

Kiessling, John.............................................April 21, 1881..............E.

Kiggins, James T. ........................................June 28, 1884..............E.

Kimmitt, Thomas ..........................................March 11, 1882 ..........S.

King, John R. .............................................December 1, 1885....S.W.

King, Samuel Turnkey .............................December 1, 1874....N. E.

Kirsch, Lewis Sergeant ............................April 15, 1870................C.

Kissner, George N.......................................April 10, 1886...............E.

Knight, Thomas Turnkev............................May 6, 1867.................S.

Knott, Corneliue L. Sergeant.....................May 1, 1867............N.W.

Kratz, John H. ..............................................May 15, 1885................E.

Krause, Henry .............................................December 9, 1881.......E.

L.

Langley, J. K. P., Sergeant .........................September 8, 1876....E.

Lannahan, Michael Sergeant ..................February 24,1879 ...S.W.

Lannan, John Deputy Marshal................October 20,1869.......HQ.

Latham, Charles L.......................................April 22, 1886...............C.

Lattier, Louis ………………………………May 8, 1885 ………N.W.

Lauer, Henry ………………………………August 8, 1878 …….E.

League, A. L. ………………………………April 22, 1886 ………C.

League, George Lieutenant ......................March 23, 1870............E.

Ledley, Jacob C. ...........................................May 7, 1884.................S.

Lehman, John................................................August 9, 1883......N. E.

Leilich, L. E. ....................................................June 3, 1879..........S.W.

Leitch, John V. …………………………….April 22, 1881 ……….C.

Leitz, J. A. ……………………………….......May 14, 1885 ……S.W.

Lemmon, William ………………………….March 31, 1870 ……S.

Leonard, Patrick ……………………………July 17, 1884 ………W.

Lerp, Theodore, ……………………………April 30, 1867 ………S.

Lewis, James T. .............................................May 6, 1881 ….…….C.

Little, R. T. ………………………………......April 30, 1885 ……S.W.

Loker, Alfred ………………………………..March 16, 1885 ……C.

Long, George ……………………………….June 16, 1876 ……..S.

Loudenslager, Thomas …………………...July 7, 1876 ……….S.

Loudenslager, William ………………….....May 29, 1872 ………S.

Lutts, William J. ..............................................April 2, 1883.……….C.

Lynch, John ………………………………....March 2, 1885 …….W.

McBride, Frank T. ..........................................January 24, 1884 .....C.

McCart, George O. ………………………….February 9, 1885 ….C.

McCauley, John S. ………………………....May 6, 1862 ………..C.

McClelland, David P. ……………………….May 1, 1871 ………..C.

McClelland, Isaac A. .................................September 2, 1887...N.E.

McClelland, J. A. .........................................September 3, l887.......S.

McCourt, Charles J. .....................................January 1,1886..........C.

McCroey, Thomas E. ....................................May, 1871..................C.

McDonald, James Turnkey ........................July 14, 1873.........N. E.

McDowell, William.........................................July 13, 1867............W.

McElroy, M. E. .......................... .....................October 4, 1884.....N.E.

McFaddon, John F. .......................................August 19, 1886.......C.

McFarland, J. W., Clerk..................................July 21,1886.........N.W.

McGee, Thomas D. Sergeant .......................February 18, 1878...S.

McGeeney, John M.........................................April 13, 1886 ..........C.

McGinn, Patrick ...............................................October 14, 1867.…E.

McGough, Patrick..........................................October 21, 1880..N.W.

McGovern, Joseph........................................May 15, 1885..............S.

McGraw, Thomas ..........................................February 28, 1883....C.

McGuire, Thomas........................................November 28, 1868....C.

McIntire, John A.........................................April 4, 1887..............N.W.

McIntyre, James........................................December 2, 1815........ C.

McKenna, Michael....................................June 27, 1881................ C.

McKew, Michael........................................December 9, 1874 .........S.

McKew, William H. ....................................July 23,1877...................S.

McLane, Charles M. ............................December 21, 1880..... N. W.

McMahon, P. J. .......................................April 11 1882.............. N. W.

McNally, John ...........................................August 6, 1884 ............. C.

McNeal, Michael ......................................June 15, 1868................. C.

NcNulty, James P ................................November 17, 1885..... N. E.

McPherson, John V...................................April 12, 1882...............W.

McShane, Charles.....................................August 25, 1887..…......C.

Magee, Edward V.....................................September 24, 1884.......C.

Magness, C. R.............................................April 9, 1886................. C.

Maguire, Edmund O. .................................June 26, 1886............... C.

Mainster, Jacob........................................June 19, 1863..................E.

Mainz, John................................................October 7, 1881............. S.

Malone, Daniel..........................................October 7, 1869............. C.

Manning, B Turnkey ...............................June 9, 1868................... C.

Manning, James.. ......................................April 11, 1882................W.

Marsden, James H................................December 30, 1874..... N.W.

Martenet, Charles F..............................August 4, 1883............. N. E.

Mason, W. A.............................................April 10, 1886.............. S.W.

Mauer, Max ……………………...............April 12, 1886.……….N.E.

Mayers, John H. …………………..….....June 13, 1884 …………S.

Medders, C. W. S..................................December 5, 1878........ N. W.

Meehan, Edward F., Sergeant .............August 25, 1881............. C.

Meehan, Edward L..................................August 19,1886.............. C.

Meekins, John D......................................June 16,1876...................S.

Melville, William ...................................May 5, 1879................... S. W.

Mersman, Charles F ...............................April 23, 1875..................C.

Mettee, Joseph.........................................March 15, 1880................C.

Middendorf, John....................................July 10,1872.....................E.

Miener, Alexander..................................September 8, 1881...........E.

Miles. George W. ………………………..April 25, 1879 ………….C.

Miller, E. H……………………………….April 9, 1886.…………N.W.

Mills, John C. …………………………March 26, 1881.………N.W.

Mills, Thomas W……………………….....May 27, 1870.…………C.

Mills, William H ........................................November 29, 1872........S.

Milroy, William A.....................................January 25, 1877.............C.

Minor, William B., Lieutenant..............August 22, 1874.......... S.W.

Miskelly, James F....................................March 3, 1869..................C.

Miskill, Michael ....................................….April 12, 1886.......….......C.

Misklmmon, Philip ........……................November 4, 1882............E.

Mitchell, H. H...............................................May 7,1867.....................C.

Mitchell, J...............................................September 7, 1871............W.

Mitchell, Joseph C. Detective ......Apri1 21, 1867.......................HQ.

Mittendorf, Henry Sergeant…......May 6, 1867...........................N.E.

Montague, Peter Sergeant …....January 12, 1872...................S.W.

Moog, James R. ………………….April 11, 1882 ……………..N.W.

Moore, Henry C. ………………….August 9, 1886 ……………N.E.

Moore, James M. …………………..July 17, 1884 ………………W.

Moore, John Moore. ………………January 6, 1887 ……………C.

Moore, Randolph I.. ...........................May 1, 1867...........................C.

Moran, Thomas...............................November 1, 1877...................S.

Morhiser, H. P., Sergeant .........September 7, 188l..................S. W.

Moylan, Patrick................................November 7, I878....................S.

Mullen, Peter B. ...............................October 19, 1886.................... C.

Murphy, Michael.............................March 3, 1879.......................S.W.

Murray, James C..........................December 22, 1884............... N.E.

Murray, John …………………….January 7, 1879 ………………S.

Myers, Charles H. ………………....April 11, 1882 ……………….C.

Myers, Samuel D. …………………June 12, 1885 ……………….C.N.

Nagle, Charles F. ………………….July 21, 1886 ………………..S.

Napler, Arthur …………………….January 15, 1885 ……………C.

Neary, Michael J. …………………October 15, 1877.……………C.

Neubeck, Frank ……………………June 3, 1881.………………..E.

Nevins, Joseph ……………………April 12, 1886.……………N.W.

Nicholson, Charles ……………….April 7, 1873.………………..W.

Nippard, James Sergeant ………..January 11, 1873.…………..C.

Nix, John …………………………....April 10, 1886.……………….E.

Nolan, Thomas Turnkey ………….May 27, 1869.………………W.

Norris, Charles Clerk ………………April 9, 1886.……………….S.

Norton, Patrick Turnkey …………..June 1, 1874.……………….S.O.

O’Brien, Giles J. …………………….March 25, 1875.…………….S.

O’Brien, Thomas…………………....May 28, 1871.……………….C.

O'Ferrall, Hugh.....................................June 2, 1879....................S.W.

O'Grady, John.......................................October 10, 1878.................S.

O'Keefe, Daniel.....................................October 2, 1871...................C.

O'Keefe, William ...................................March 12, 1885..............N. E.

O'Meara William ....................................March 1, 1873................N.W.

O'Neill, Frank..........................................April 7,1878........................W.

O’Neill, James…………………………November 24, 1874.…….C.

O’Neill, John F. ……………………….October 25, 1886.………..W.

O’Neill S. J. Detective ………………..June 22, 1875.…………H.Q.

Orr, Patrick F. ………………………….April 24, 1880 …………N.E.

Owens, Gwinn F. Clerk .........................April 9, 1886................S. W.

Owens, Henry F. ……………………….May 7, 1867.…………N.W.

Owings, Theodore …………………….January 17, 1884 ………S.P.

Paff, John J. ............................................May 7, 1867.......................E.

Parks, John A., Sergeant ....................May 1, 1867........................S.

Pasterfield Charles................................November 4, 1874.......N. E.

Pearson, William H.................................May 7, 1867.......................S.

Pennington, Augustine H.....................July 7, 1887.......................S.

Peregoy, George K.................................June 11, 1875.............N. W.

Perry, William H. .....................................November 18, 1875 ........S.

Pfister, Nicholas ……………………....October 20, 1880.……….S.

Pick, William A. ……………………….November 12, 1878.……..C.

Pierce, John ………………………......June 10, 1868.…………N.E.

Pierey, Jacob …………………...........August 20, 1881.……….N.E.

Pohler, Herman ………………….......June 11, 1883.…………….E.

Polton, Charles A.................................July 27, 1883......................W.

Pontier, John S., Detective ................April 2 , 1866....................HQ.

Poole, Henry, Sergeant ......................May 7, 1867.……................E.

Posey, John V. ......................................March 23, 1870..................C.

Potter, Charles B....................................September 19, 1881.…....E.

Powers, John ............... .........................May 15, 1872.…................C.

Price, J. E. ……………………...............June 21, 1886.…...........S.W.

Pumphrey, A. J. Detective …………..February 12, 1875.……H.Q.

Putsche, Frederick.................................October 18, 1875........N. W.

Pyles, Francis ……………………….....April 22, 1886.………..S.W.Q.

Quill, John H. ………………………….August 19, 1886.……...N.E.

Quinn, M. E. Sergeant ………………..April 30, 1867.………...N.W.R.

Rafferty, John...........................................April 10, 1886 ………….C.

Rauh, Adam G...........................................May 14, 1885...................E.

Reilly, John E. Detective ..…………….May 6, 1867 …………..HQ.

Reinhardt, Augustus …………….……May 31, 1876.…………...C.

Reinhardt, Charles. Sergeant...............December 2, 1871...........C.

Reth, John …………………………......September 29, 1884.……E.

Rever, Lewis G. ………………………February 7, 1887.……...N.E.

Reynolds, George W. ………………..April 14, 1885 …………….E.

Reynolds, Martin J................................December 27, 1886.……..S.

Reynolds, Michael J...... ..............….....December 20, 1887.....….C.

Reynolds, Thomas F.............................May 15, 1885................N.W.

Rider, William N., Turnkey…................April 9,1878.………..........W.

Riefner, William H ...................................July 3,1879.......................E.

Riley, John A.............................................September 20, 1878..…C.

Riley, Michael............................................September 1, 1870.……C.

Riley, Peter. Sergeant...............................April18,1873.…………..S.

Riorden, Michael........................................May 6, 1867...............S.W.

Roben, William ...........................................February 15, 1883....N.E.

Robey, W. W................................................April 4, 1884..............S.W.

Rochfort, Robert J. ...................................May 14, 1885 ……….....E.

Rochfort, Thomas C..................................August 11, 1875............E.

Roder, John E.............................................June 1, 1882..............N.E.

Rodgers, George........................................July 26, 1876.......…...N.E.

Rodgers, John ...........................................April 30, 1867............N. E.

Rose, Charles....... .....................................April 16, 1885.................E.

Roth, John...................................................October 27, 1879.…….E.

Rourke, James .......................................September 15, 1870...N.W.

Rowe, William B. Sergeant …………..April 29, 1867 …………...C.

Roycroft, J. Andrew Sergeant ………October 27, 1871.……….E.

Ruckle, James S. ……………………..September 2, 1884.……...C.

Russell, W. T., Sergeant .......................September 29, 1884....S.W.

Ruth, P. W. ………..................................December 15, 1882 ….S.W.

Ryan, A. A. Turnkey ……………….....April 22, 1881 ……………C.

Ryan, Ambrose A. Sergeant ………..December 21, 1875 …….C.

Ryan, James F. ……………………….October 14, 1884 …….N.W.

Ryan, Martin J. ……………………….April 22, 1886 …………….S.

Ryan Peter …………………………....April 22, 1886 …………….S.

Ryan, Timothy ………………….........August 16, 1880 ………….S.S.

Sauer, Andrew ……………………….May 1, 1867 ……………….S.

Santry, John J. ….................................April 12, 1886................N. W.

Saunders, J. R. Sergeant ...................July 30, 1868..................N.W.

Scarborough, William T.......................June 23,1886.…………….S.

Schafer, George W. Sergeant ………March 16,1870…………N.E.

Schaffer, William B. …………………..December 16, 1884 …..N.E.

Scherer, F. H. ………………………….November 10, 1871 ….N.E.

Schieve, William J. ……………………May 6, 1887 ………….......C.

Schimp, Martin P. Sergeant …………September 12, 1868 .…...C.

Schleigh, John …………………….......April 10, 1882 …………...C.

Schleigh, Edward Sergeant …………February 10, 1881 ………E.

Schmidt, G. C. .........................................April 22, 1886...................W.

Schneider, John E..................................March 11, 1882.................S.

Shoemack, Henry Sergeant …………November 29, 1876 ……C.

Schulte, Ernest ………………………...April 12, 1886 …………...C.

Schulte, Frederick ……………………..March 5, 1885 …………..C.

Schultz, Edward, Sergeant ...................August 17, 1880...............S.

Schuster. John S.....................................April 12, 1886...................C.

Scott,F. H., Lieutenant ............................July 6, 1877....................W.

Scott, William G., Sergeant .....................December 2,1876..........C.

Scully, Michael J. ……………………….April 13, 1885 ………N.E.

Seibold, Frederick ………………………August 11, 1886 ………C.

Seibold, George W., Detective ...............July 28, 1863..............H.Q.

Scipp, Frederick ………………………….July 11, 1879 …………S.

Seltzer, George W. …………………….November 6, 1886...... N.W.

Selvage, Charles N................................December 5, 1878........N. E.

Shannahan, J. E.....................................May 1, 1883...................N.W.

Sheppard, E. T........................................January 8, 1883.......….S.W.

Shettle, Daniel, Lieutenant...................August 3, 1867.….......N. E.

Shoemaker, Charles A. Sergeant ......January 17, 1880.........S.W.

Short, Robert F. ......................................March 1, 1884...................S.

Shultz, J. A. G., Sergeant .......................October 4, 1870..........N.W.

Sinclair, Charles H. ..................................June 13, 1887................W.

Sindall, George W. …................................June 16, 1876.................S.

Singer, J. F...................................................May 14, 1884...……….W.

Slaysman, Alexander................................May 1, 1867....………...C.

Slinkman, John H. ....................................June 1, 1874.……….....W.

Slunt, Charles ……………………………August 6, 1873.……N.W.

Smeak, William …………………………..April 2, 1887 ………….W.

Smith, C. F. ………………………………January 15, 1886 …….W.

Smith, George A........................................February 3, 1879.……..C.

Smith, Henry C. Sergeant ……………...July 16, 1874 ………S.W.

Smith, Jacob ……………………………..April 15, 1868.……...S.W.

Smith, James E. ……………………….....April 10, 1885 ………...C.

Smith, Joseph.........…….............................October 6, 1883............E.

Smith, Peter..................................................July 6, 1867...................E.

Smith, William H. ………………………....April 12, 1886 ………...C.

Smith, W. M. D. ……………………………May 10, 1885 ………...C.

Snyder, John.............................................November 10, 1885...N.E.

Sommers, August....................................August 5, 1884................E.

Spellman, John J. ………………………April 21, 1881 ……….N.E.

Spittel, Lewis …………………………....April 26, 1886 ……….....W.

Sporrier, Matthew ………………………April 10, 1886.……….N.E.

Stack, Garrett Turnkey ………………...March 18, 1869 …….N.W.

Stack, Joseph A........................................September 6, 1883....N.W.

Stallings, John ……………………….....September 17, 1874 …..S.

Starling, Frank ………………………….June 7, 1884 ………...S.W.

Steindle, John ………………………….May 27, 1887 …………...E.

Stevenson, John ………………………April 30, 1867 ………..N.E.

Stiner, B. F. ……………………………..August 27, 1886 …….S.W.

Street, David F. ………………………..September 29, 1885 ....N.E.

Street, Shadrach ………………….......April 10, 1882 …………N.E.

Streib, Henry Sergeant ………………June 7, 1876 …………….S.

Strodman, Charles …………………...October 30, 1885 ………..S.

Strout, George T. ……………………..April 10, 1882 ……………C.

Sullivan, P. …………………………….April 14, 1881 …………N.W.

Sunstrom, Calvin  Lieutenant ……...May 2, 1870 ………………S.

Swartz, Frederick ……………………..December 24, 1868 ……..S.

Sweitzer, John ………………………..April 24, 1875 …………….S.

Sylvester, Daniel ……………………..October 15, 1878 ………...E.T.

Tarr, R. S...................................................May 2, 1885..................S.W.

Taylor, James W. W. ..............................February 7, 1876.............E.

Taylor, Owen M. ......................................April 10, 1886........…...N.E.

Thompson, E. A. ……………………….February 3, 1887 ……N.E.

Thompson, J. J. ………………………..May 7, 1867 …………..N.E.

Thornton, Joseph ……………………..February 26, 1883.….N.W.

Tienken, George H. …………………...October 16, 1879.…….N.E.

Tierney, P. E. Sergeant ………………February 26, 1880.……..W.

Tighe, .John.............................................May 13, 1872.…….......N.W.

Tinsley, Charles E. ……………….......September 23, 1875.....N.W.

Tipton, Alfred…………………………..May 7, 1867.…………..N.W.

Todd, Edward D. ………........................June 21, 1886..………….W.

Toner, Francis J., Sergeant .................May 12, 1871.………........C.

Toner, Hugh.............................................July 6, 1881.......................C.

Townsend, Harry G. ..............................July 6,1887...................N.W.

Townsend, Joseph.................................February 2, 1875.............S.

Tracey, James S......................................March 1, 1867...................C.

Tracey, Thomas .....................................September 25, 1882.……E.

Travers, H. Clay …….............................July 17, 1884.....................S.

Tress, Washington ……………………April 30, 1867.…………...C.

Tritel, Jeremiah W. ……………………September 14, 1868.……C.

Trott, Joseph E. ……………….............April 22, 1886.……………S.

Tuohy, John............................................December 21, 1887.…….C.V.

Vansant, A. W.........................................June 24, 1884.…….......S.W.

Vaughan, Benjamin J. ….....................July 26, 1879.…….....S.W

Wagner, George L. …………………...May 6, 1867.……………...W.

Wagner, Henry………………………..October 20, 1877.……...S.W.

Wallace, William E................................April 25, 1867.......................S.

Wallas, John..........................................February 26, 1880..............S.

Walsh, James J. ……….......................April 12, 1886.................N.W.

Walsh, Maurice D. …………………....May 14, 1885.…………….E.

Walsh, Michael Turnkey…………….July 27, 1868.…………..S.W.

Walsh, W. J. ...........................................August 8, 1881..................W.

Walter, John A. .....................................July 17, 1876.…..................S.

Ward, Bernard J. Sergeant ………....June 20, 1883.…………….S.

Ward, John……………………………November 6, 1874.……….E.

Ward, William H. ...................................April 27, 1867......................S.

Warfield, William L. ..............................Deccmber 14, 1887........N.E.

Warnsman, William F. H. ……………August 23, 1887.…………C.

Watkins, M. F. ………………...............July 15, 1881.………….N.W.

Watkins, William McK., Lieutenant....September 12, 1872....N.W.

Watson, Charles F. ..............................December 16, 1887..........W.

Weaver, J. H. ……………….................November 27, 1875.…….W.

Webster, A. J. ……………..................May 15, 1885 ………...…N.E.

Welch Edward R. Clerk ...………….April 9, 1886.……………….W.

Welch, John..........................................April 9, 1886.........................C.

Wellener, B. S., Jr., Sergeant ...........April 21, 1881....................N.E.

Wenzel, H. V. ………………………...January 21, 1887.………N.W.

Wessels, L. B., Sergeant …………..April 8, 1874.…………….N.W.

Whalen, P. Sergeant ………………..October 15, 1877.………...W.

Whitley, Joseph……………...............May 12, 1868.……………...C.

Whittle, William H. …..…………........July 20, 1883.………………C.

Weist, Jacob………………………….June 17, 1885.……………..E.

Wilderson, R. R. ……………………..July 16, 1887.…………...N.E.

Wigley Edward O. ……………...........January 16, 1886.………....C.

Williams, George T. …………………October 20, 1884.…………S.

Williamson, C. H., Sergeant...............April 8, 1874....................S.W.

Wilson, John F .....................................July 22, 1885.……..............C.

Wilson, S. J. D........................................April 10, 1882.……............C.

Wiseman, James H..............................April12, 1886.…...............N.E.

Witters, Thomas D. .............................April 28, 1867......................C.

Wolf, August ........................................Deccmber 15, 1881....……S.

Wolf, Henry, Turnkey .........................May 7, 1867...........…...........E.

Worley, Charles R. .............................June 17, 1886.. ...............N.W.

Wortman, Charles...............................December 9,1884............S.W.

Wright, George H. ...............................May 6, 1874..........................C.

Wright, John W. .................................January 2, 1872....................C.

Wright, John W. .................................April12,1886.…................N. W.Y.

York, Benjamin W., Sergeant.........May 13, 1884............……...N.E.Z.

Zapp, Jacob .......................................August 27, 1872.....................S.

Zehner, Lewis...................................April 19, 1881.......................N.E.

Zerwick, J. Frederick .......................January 2, 1875......................S.

Zulauf, L. B.........................................April 22, 1886......................N.E.

                                     RETIRED LIST

Date of Appointment     Date of Retirement        District

Burkins, William...........May 1,1867 ...........April 22,1886.............W.

Byrne, Michael.............May 6,1867 ...........April 22,1886..............C.

Crosby, Thomas H. ...July 14,1869.........August 19,1886..........C.

French, C. Dorsey......January 1,1879.....April 22,1886................S.

Graham, Benj. F., Sgt. ....April 30,1868....April 21,1886...............E.

Helm, Joseph H. .........June 27,1861........May 6,1867..................C.

Hickley, Robert P. ......May 6,1867 ...........April 22,1886............…S.

Lepson, Daniel, Captain...April 23,1867....October 14,1886...S.W.

McGee, J. William .......December 6,1866...April 22,1886............W.

Mantle, William.................April 30,1867......April 22,1886.........N.W.

Reed, Joseph H. ..............May 24,1869......April 22,1886.............W.

Roberts, Washington......May 2,1868........April 22,1886..............C.

Russel, William H. ...........Apri1 27,1867....April 25,1887..........S.W.

Sindall, William M. ...........October 15,1870 ..October 14,1886...W.

Sinskey, John...................September 30,1873...April 22,1886.....E.

Swearer, George..............May 6,1867...........August 19, 1886..N.E.

Williams, William......….....September 24,1869...April 22,1886....S.

Wright, William O., Lieut.....May 7,1867.....November 24,1886...S.

Zimmermann, F. ....January 13,1868.........April 22,1886.........S.W.

SUMMARY

Marshal…….....…….....1

Deputy-Marshal……...1

Lieutenants...........….14

Sergeants ..................72

Detectives..................10

Patrolmen ............... 575

Turnkeys...................14

Total.........................695

Baltimore Police Handcuffs Restraints

W.S. Darley Receipt courtesy Ray Wheatley
1944 Receipt for a set of Peerless Handcuffs

Catching criminals is only half the battle, restraining them can be several more battles throughout the course of effectively prosecuting them. Police have the odd job of fighting a man but only to a point which is necessary, the man he fights is trying to kill him, but the officer is only allowed to fight to a point which necessary to effect the arrest, after which he must, switch roles, offer first aid for injuries, then restrain and protect. Often a suspect is wanted by the public, so officers have to get the suspect safely before the courts. Many don’t realize jails and prisons are made as much to protect the prisoner from society and them to protect society from that prisoner. It used to be that jails were for punishment, a sort of adult timeout… then they became all about educating a man, teaching him the wrongs of his former self. They hope he will come out a better man. To get to that place and along the way we had restraints. This is a brief history of those restraints. 

Baltimore Smith and Wesson Model 90 Handcuffs

Here's a close-up of the marking 

Why Do we Cuff all Prisoners Today
In Part Because of Cases Like this

On 19 Nov 1928 Captain John Carey night commander of police, received word that a man answering the description of a man wanted in New York for armed Robberies and the shooting of a New York City Police officer was in a Baltimore Street hotel. Three detectives were detailed to go to the location and bring the suspect in; Captain Carey told them to bring the suspect to police headquarters for questioning. The detectives tried up the location and found the person that was being reported but felt he was not the suspect wanted, by NYPD. Captain Carey said he told the three officers sent earlier of the dangers of this suspect, and let them know he was a dangerous and desperate character. While the Detectives didn’t think the guy they received a tip on was their suspect they still brought him in for questioning where they cleared him and released him shortly after.

Later the same morning Detective Sergeant Frederick W. Carroll received a phoned in a tip of a suspect at a downtown hotel, he didn’t have any info on the suspect, what he was wanted for, or even that three Detectives had already gone out on this call. All he had was that police were there earlier looking for a suspect, and that the suspect was there now. Detective Sergeant Carroll then left the station to investigate this complaint; he didn’t know it was guys out of his own unit/division that went. We don’t know who phoned in the tip, it may have been the person police brought in, and then released, or a hotel employee; we’ll never know. Likewise, we’ll never know why, Detective Sergeant Carroll didn’t look into it any further, or take back-up. He just took the name the caller gave him, grabbed a set of keys, and went alone… While at the hotel he located the suspect and arrested him. The two proceeded from the hotel to as far as Fayette Street, and Fallsway when the suspect pulled a pistol and demanded that Detective Sergeant Carroll put his hands up. Detective Sergeant Elmer O’Grady and Detective Joseph Carroll, who was looking out a window of the police building, ran out to assist Detective Sergeant Carroll, only to be met by the gunman’s fire. Detective Sergeant Carroll died a few minutes after being taken to the hospital. Oh, Grady and Joseph Carroll were reported as doing well. 

Several things that should be known about the Baltimore Police 1928
1^st - We didn’t cuff people in public
2^nd - We didn’t search people in public, nor did we stand by and watch as other searched people in public. To that Commissioner Charles D. Gaither read the following from the rule book to the media:

“Members of the force shall not search, or act as a witness to the searching of any person in any place other than the station house, or headquarters unless such search is made for dangerous or deadly weapons suspected to be upon the person of the prisoner.”

In this case Det. Sgt. F Carroll had no info on the suspect and was within the rules of the Baltimore Police Department. It is because of cases like this, that we have the rules we have today, cases like this that let us handcuff people that are only suspected of a crime. And cases like this that let us search incident to arrest. This happened in 1928, things were so different, without radios on every shoulder, or hip like today, information wasn’t as freely distributed as it is today.

As his brothers and sisters of the Baltimore Police Department we will not let him be forgotten, His service Honored the City of Baltimore, and the Baltimore Police Department may he rest in peace, and may God bless him. 

The suspect in this case also died of his injuries, but not before admitting to police that he was the suspect wanted in New York for robberies and Shootings, of two police officers in the NYPD

A Brief History of Handcuffs

since being used, in one form or another for centuries, they have had a variety of names. Manacles, Nippers, Thumb-cuffs, Grips, Hooks, Claws, Dowlers, Shackles, Handcuffs, often shortened to “Cuffs” are just a few of the names used. As for styles… we have the Iron claw originally put out by Argus, later sold under the name Pee Jay, then there is the Pistol Grip, A Policeman’s Hook, Harvey Chain Grip, a simple leather strap with a wooden turned handled used like a leash, to hogtie, the suspect twisting his/her arm behind their back and transport (normally walk them to a call box to wait for a wagon, or before that to walk them to the station. Over the years, there have been many styles of these mechanisms used primarily as restraints. What other uses than restraints, you wonder. Well, entertainment Houdini? His use of handcuffs was to escape from – not be restrained by - handcuffs, while he mesmerized crowds of spectators. And, in France in the 1950’s, the single locking La Pegy handcuff was thought to be a fashion statement. France fashion, Go figure! And let’s not forget those that used them as a sexual implement, (Ok let’s forget them… ) so much for fashion and style and such; let’s get down to the real deal/appeal about handcuffs.

From convicts to captives, to conjurers, to perverts, handcuffs have been used to detain, constrain, and entertain since they have been recorded in history.

The poet Publius Vergilius Maro, known in English as Virgil, recounts the legend of the

fitting of the first handcuffs on the mythical god Proteus. Possessing the gift of prophecy

but not the gift of giving, Proteus selfishly kept his knowledge to himself. Aristaeus knew

that the only thing that would compel Proteus to share his knowledge was to bind him

and not let go. This binding or cuffing is the first recorded (though mythical) use of what

we now call handcuffs.

But, there is more to the story of handcuffs. In the 4th century B.C., Carthaginians lugged

chariots full of handcuffs with them in their anticipation of conquering the Greeks.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, the words swivel manacle, and shackbold were used to

describe handcuffs. The word eventually evolved from the Anglo-Saxon “hand cop”,

meaning that which “cops” or “catches”, to the version of the word we use today –

handcuff.

Because the use of and need for restraining people developed before working metals were discovered, the first handcuffs were actually made from strips of animal hide, rope

made from reeds and vines was the updated method and material employed to confine

other human beings and prevent escape. As time progressed, so did human beings’ ability to make stronger, reusable hand cops/cuffs. This ability to make stronger handcuffs was introduced, along with the invention of locks, in the Bronze Age. During the Iron Age, a more sophisticated workmanship was forged. However, most handcuffs were ‘one size fits all’ and caused more pain for the bigger boned detainee and potential freedom for the small-wristed prisoner. They were simple metal rings that locked in place with no room for adjustment to the size of the captive’s wrists. That is until 1862 when there were major changes to handcuffs when inventor W.V. Adams patented a design for handcuffs that had adjustable ratchets. In 1865, John Tower, who

started one of the most successful American handcuff companies, used Adams’ design to

manufacturer handcuffs up until WWII. Now, there are literally hundreds of types of handcuffs. Some bought for collecting only, and some made to accommodate law enforcers in their need for swift and secure handling of disorderly crowds and individuals. For the swift securing of the unruly, Plasti-Cuffs are often used; they are flexible restraints that resemble the plastic ties used to secure cable lines in the field these are known as “Flex-cuffs”. With Universal Precautions the outlook of the day, Plasti-Cuffs help prevent the spread of disease, as they are disposable. They are also cheaper than the traditional metal restraints used by law enforcement, as well as easier to carry. (I should say they are said to be easier to carry, these used to be quite cumbersome, on raids guys would put a rack of these on their belt keeper and go in looking like a lineman.

So, the handcuff has evolved from myth to leather, to twine, to metal mechanism most popular throughout recent history back to a disposable one time use flexible, “Flex-cuffs”. All the while preserving the original uses – to constrain, detain and even entertain.

References –

Handcuffs.org

Yahoo.com

The rest is history.com -Article by J. Parker Adair

Handcuffs by Inspector Maurice Moser.

Styles

Handcuffs which were worn during trials by the accused in the assassination of President Lincoln.

There are three main types of contemporary metal handcuffs: chain (cuffs are held together by a short chain), hinged (since hinged handcuffs permit less movement than a chain-cuff, they are generally considered to be more secure), and rigid solid bar handcuffs. While bulkier to carry, rigid handcuffs permit several variations in cuffing. Hiatts Speed-cuffs are rigid handcuffs used by most police forces in the United Kingdom. Both rigid and hinged cuffs can be used one-handed to apply pain-compliance/control techniques that are not workable with the chain type of cuff. Various accessories are available to improve the security or increase the rigidity of handcuffs, including boxes that fit over the chain or hinge and can themselves be locked with a padlock.

In 1933 the Royal Canadian Mounted Police used a type called "Mitten Handcuffs" to prevent criminals from being able to grab an object like the officer's gun. While used by some in law enforcement it was never popular.

Handcuffs may be manufactured from various metals, including carbon steel, stainless steel, and aluminum, or from synthetic polymers.

Sometimes two pairs of handcuffs are needed to restrain a person with an exceptionally large waistline because the hands cannot be brought close enough together; in this case, one cuff on one pair of handcuffs is handcuffed to one of the cuffs on the other pair, and then the remaining open handcuff on each pair is applied to the person's wrists. Oversized handcuffs are available from a number of manufacturers.

The National Museum of Australia has a number of handcuffs in its collection dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These include 'T'-type 'Come Along', 'D'-type and 'Figure-8' handcuffs.

Double Locks

Handcuffs with double locks have a detente which when engaged stops the cuff from ratcheting tighter to prevent the wearer from tightening them. Tightening could be intentional or by struggling; if tightened, the handcuffs may cause nerve damage or loss of circulation. Also, some wearers could tighten the cuffs to attempt an escape by having the officer loosen the cuffs and attempting to escape while the cuffs are loose. Double locks also make picking the locks more difficult.

There exist three kinds of double locks as described in a Smith & Wesson brochure:

Lever lock: Movement of a lever on the cuff causes the detente to move into a position that locks the bolt. No tool is required to double lock this type of cuff.

Push pin lock: A small peg on the key is inserted end-wise into a hole to engage the detente.

Slot lock: These also are actuated with a peg, but in this case, it is inserted into a slot and moved sideways to engage the detente.

Double locks are generally disengaged by inserting the key and rotating it in the opposite direction from that used to unlock the cuff.

Plastic handcuffs

Plastic restraints, known as wrist ties, riot cuffs, plasti-cuffs, flex-cuffs, flex-cuffs, tri-fold cuffs, zap straps, zip-cuffs, or zip-strips, are lightweight, disposable plastic strips resembling electrical cable ties. They can be carried in large quantities by soldiers and police and are therefore well-suited for situations where many may be needed, such as during large-scale protests and riots. In recent years, airlines have begun to carry plastic handcuffs as a way to restrain disruptive passengers. Disposable restraints could be considered to be cost-inefficient; they cannot be loosened and must be cut off to permit a restrained subject to be fingerprinted, or to attend to bodily functions. It is not unheard of for a single subject to receiving five or more sets of disposable restraints in his or her first few hours in custody. However, aforementioned usage means that cheap handcuffs are available in situations where steel ones would normally lay unused for long times. Recent products have been introduced that serve to address this concern, including disposable plastic restraints that can be opened or loosened with a key; more expensive than conventional plastic restraints, they can only be used a very limited number of times, and are not as strong as conventional disposable restraints, let alone modern metal handcuffs. In addition, plastic restraints are believed by many to be more likely to inflict nerve or soft-tissue damage to the wearer than metal handcuffs.

Leg-cuffs (leg-irons)

Standard type leg-cuffs (leg-irons) made in Taiwan

On occasions when a suspect exhibits extremely aggressive behavior, leg irons may be used as well; sometimes the chain connecting the leg irons to one another is looped around the chain of the handcuffs, and then the leg irons are applied, resulting in the person being "hog-tied". In a few rare cases, hog-tied persons lying on their stomachs have died from positional asphyxia, making the practice highly controversial, and leading to its being severely restricted, or even completely banned, in many localities.

Universal handcuff key

Keys

Most modern handcuffs in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Latin America can be opened with the same standard universal handcuff key. This allows for easier transport of prisoners and keeps one out of trouble if one loses one's keys. However, there are handcuff makers who use keys based on different standards. Maximum security handcuffs require special keys. Handcuff keys usually do not work with thumb cuffs. The Cuff Lock handcuff key padlock uses this same standard key.

In addition to the Universal handcuff key, a few modified designs exist, including a key that has been molded to fit behind an officer's badge (colloquially known as "The New York Tuning Fork" (U.S Patent 607,305).

Hand Positioning

Old Handcuffs

In the past, police officers typically handcuffed an arrested person with his or her hands in front, but since approximately the mid-1960s behind-the-back handcuffing has been the standard. The vast majority of police academies in the United States today also teach their recruits to apply handcuffs so that the palms of the suspect's hands face outward after the handcuffs are applied. The Jacksonville, Florida Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and others are notable exceptions, as they favor palms-together handcuffing. This helps prevent radial neuropathy or handcuff neuropathy during extended periods of restraint. Suspects are handcuffed with the keyholes facing up (away from the hands) to make it difficult to open them even with a key or improvised lock-pick.

Hinged handcuffs applied behind the back, with palms facing outwards.

Because a person's hands are used in breaking falls, being handcuffed introduces a significant risk of injury if the prisoner trips or stumbles, in addition to injuries sustained from overly tight handcuffs causing Handcuff Neuropathy. Police officers having custody of the person need to be ready to catch a stumbling prisoner.

As soon as restraints go on, the officer has full liability. The risk of the prisoner losing balance is higher if the hands are handcuffed behind the back than if they are handcuffed in front; however, the risk of using fisted hands together as a weapon increases with hands in front.

Some prisoners being transported from custody to outside locations, for appearances at court, to medical facilities, etc., will wear handcuffs augmented with a belly chain. In this type of arrangement a metal, leather, or canvas belt is attached to the waist, sometimes with a locking mechanism. The handcuffs are secured to the belly chain and the prisoner's hands are kept at waist level. This allows a relative degree of comfort for the prisoner during prolonged internment in the securing device while providing a greater degree of restriction to movement than simply placing the handcuffs on the wrists in the front.

Miscellaneous

Display of old handcuffs, Tatton Park Flower Show, 2010

In Japan, if someone is photographed or filmed while handcuffed, their hands have to be pixelated if it is used on TV or in the newspapers. This is because Kazuyoshi Miura who had been arrested brought a successful case to court arguing that being pictured in handcuffs implied guilt, and had prejudiced the trial. Similarly, in Hong Kong, people being arrested and led away in handcuffs are usually given the chance by the policemen to have their heads covered by a black cloth bag.

Police handcuffs are sometimes used in sexual bondage and BDSM activities. This is potentially unsafe, because they were not designed for this purpose, and their use can result in nerve injury (Handcuff Neuropathy) or other tissue damage. Bondage cuffs were designed specifically for this application. They were designed using the same model of soft restraints used on psychiatric patients because they can be worn for long periods of time. Many such models can be fastened shut with padlocks.

Legcuffs
Leg cuffs in use

Leg cuffs, shackles, footcuffs, fetters or leg irons are a kind of physical restraint used on the feet or ankles to allow walking but prevent running and kicking. They made the leg irons restrict running and kicking so that the prisoners could not fight back. The term "fetter" shares a root with the word "foot".

With respect to humans, typically only prisoners, bondage fetishists, and African American slaves while enslaved wore shackles. Leg shackles are used for chain gangs to keep them together. 

Chain Gang Street Sweepers, 1909

A shackled animal is typically either a dangerous animal or one prone to escape. Metaphorically, a fetter may be anything that restricts or restrains in any way, hence the word "unfettered".

History

Cup lock shackle with no built-in lock

The earliest fetters found in archaeological excavations date from the prehistoric age and are mostly of the puzzle lock type. Fetters are also referenced in ancient times in the Bible.

In the Scriptures the Hebrew word necho′sheth, usually meaning “copper,” is frequently translated “fetters of copper” or “copper fetters,” because fetters were often made of copper or bronze, although wood and iron were also employed. (2Sa 3:34; 2Ki 25:7) In the British Museum, there is a pair of bronze fetters from Nineveh (the capital city of ancient Assyria) in the form of a bar with a ring at each end.

Roman times already see a variety of restraint types. Some early versions of cup lock shackles can already be found. These were widely used in medieval times but their use declined when mass production made the manufacture of locks built into restraints affordable.

Simple fetter types continue to be used like puzzle lock shackles as the typical slave iron or irons riveted shut for prisoners being transported to overseas prison camps.

Standard type leg irons made in Taiwan

The first built-in locks often were of a simple screw-type but soon developed into the "Darby" type. In Europe, these continued to be used into the middle of the 20th century, whereas in the US from the late 19th century onward many new designs were invented and produced before handcuffs and leg irons of the Peerless type became the standard several decades ago.

Controversial use

Heavy leg irons from China, including a metal plate to protect the keyhole from collecting dust or being tampered with

In comparison to handcuffs, the wearing of leg irons may be found less restrictive. Thus the prison authorities in several countries deem their long-term use acceptable. In order to avoid condoning this disputed practice the countries of the European Union have banned exporting leg irons into non-EU countries. The countries that continue to make prisoners wear fetters long term now tend to resort to manufacturing their own restraints.

Plastic handcuffs

Policeman Carrying Plastic Handcuffs

Leather Nipper/Come Along

The Baltimore Police Department's Motor's Unit was formed on 29 May 1914 with 5 Indian twin cylinder motorcycles. Their main duty was to chase down speeding horse-drawn vehicles but that quickly changed with the growing number of automobiles.  The unit has been in continuous operation since 1914.  In the beginning, they worked out of the Districts but in the 1930's they were reassigned to the newly formed Traffic Division, and were designated as the Traffic Enforcement Section, Motorcycle Unit (the division also had a parking control unit, a foot traffic unit that directed traffic downtown, and an accident investigation unit).  The number of officers has risen and fallen several times due to finances, or safety issues but is alive and well today.  The recently appointed commissioner [2013] is from California and he is a supporter of the Motors Unit.  Harley Davidson is the only brand used today and has been since 1920 when a Harley shop opened in Baltimore.  The department used Cushmans, and small Hondas but these were used for foot beat officers to get to their posts.

2000 - 2020

Our Police 

 "EVER ON THE WATCH"

City police planning new suspect identification process As police propose changes, prosecutors say they are working to build careful cases

By Ian Duncan, The Baltimore Sun

7:21 PM EDT, March 28, 2013

Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts said Thursday that he is planning to change the way police get eyewitnesses to pick out suspects, citing research that shows current techniques can lead to cases of mistaken identity.

Batts said he wants officers to show witnesses one picture of a possible suspect at a time, instead of in groups. He said the change, along with a few others. could significantly improve the reliability of the identifications that police use to make their cases.

"What I'm going to introduce to the Baltimore Police  Department … is to continue to bring cameras into interview rooms and make sure that we document and we record those interviews so there are no mistakes there," Batts said.

Batts made the comments while participating in a panel discussion at the University of Baltimore Law  School with his predecessor Frederick H. Bealefeld III and State's  Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein.

Bernstein said eyewitness testimony is a powerful element at trial, which is why it is so important that investigators get the initial identification right.

Identification policies have changed over the years. Bealefeld said in the 1980s  officers were drafted to participate in live lineups — practice police here have abandoned.

Witnesses in Baltimore are shown a group of pictures, known as a "six-pack", containing the suspect and five other people, and asked to pick out the person they believe committed the crime.

But Rebecca Brown, a policy advocate at the Innocence  Project, said police practices have not kept up with research that shows witnesses make more reliable picks if they are shown the pictures one after another, rather than all at once.

Police and prosecutors have not always seen eye-to-eye on how identifications will stand up in court. Col. Dean Palmere, Baltimore's chief of detectives, said at a  recent City Hall hearing that he had met with prosecutors to get authorization on four cases that police wanted to move on.

Bernstein said in an interview that his office recently indicted a homicide case involving a single witness. He declined to name the defendant, and his spokesman Mark Cheshire said that's because he is personally involved in the case and does not want to prejudice it.

During the panel, Bernstein said prosecutors have to be careful about how they approach cases with just a single eyewitness.

"If you have a case in which your only evidence … is one witness identifying a stranger … I think you have to be very very careful about that kind of case," he said. "When you have that kind of situation … you need to really look hard and make sure you have corroborating  evidence."

Baltimore Sun reporter Justin Fenton contributed to this article.

Baltimore City Police Officers spent 2 days in DC and were assigned the post of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
"The WHITE HOUSE"

(Photos are courtesy of Officer William Painter)

 

Photo courtesy of Officer William Painter

 

 

Photo courtesy of Officer William Painter

 

 
2003 snow blizzard brings the Maryland National Guard help with Humvees

COURTESY DETECTIVE LES STICKLES

Baltimore Police Family Tradition

Father, Son, Grandson

Retired Lieutenant Leslie J. Stickles Sr., Officer Brandon Stickles

Retired Detective Leslie J. Stickles, Jr.

2006

 

EMERALD SOCIETY PHOTO
Officer Owen O’Neill

Entrance On Duty: June 27, 1935

Retired from Duty: June 27, 1956

21 Years of Honorable Service

EMERALD SOCIETY PHOTO

Certificate of Accomplishment

50^th Anniversary of Officer Owen O’Neill’s

Retirement from the

Baltimore City Police Department

Awarded by the

Police Emerald Society of Baltimore, Maryland

 ~In Memory~

A Baltimore Police Department Tragedy

Agent Edward William Eldridge, Jr. passes from this earth alone

 

Courtesy Lt. Tom Douglas
Agent Edward William Eldridge, Jr

To the men and women in blue. Thursday last, at 0914hrs. retired Baltimore City Police Officer Edward William Eldridge Jr. passed from this earth. Edward was 62 yrs. old and had been retired 10 years. The very tragic sad part of this is that Edward took his own life. It seems that following his retirement in 1998, Edward lost touch with his brothers and sisters in blue. To the point, that it appears that he did not have anyone to call for life’s emergencies. On the day of his death, he was to undergo arthroscopy surgery on his knee. At the Hospitals request, Edward needed to be accompanied to the Hospital by someone who would stay until his release. Edward apparently did not have anyone to call. Edward did make arrangements with the NE District where he lived for a ride to and from the Hospital. However, he was concerned that the Hospital might not be satisfied with that arrangement. Unfortunately, he opted to take his life instead. Edward never married, had no children, no siblings and his parents were deceased. Edward lived alone and died alone. Edward was brought up Catholic. A neighbor of his for the last 20yrs. expressed her dismay and recounted the following: When her children were youngsters, Mr. Ed would fix all the kids bikes in the neighborhood and would give them money to buy candy. Records were located that showed that each Halloween, Edward would spend as much as $ 153.00 in his purchase of candy and would keep track each year how many children came to trick or treat. At the height of his records, 61 children would knock at Mr. Ed’s door. Your thoughts and prayers for the departed would be much appreciated. Edward Eldrige will be buried next week at Rucks Funeral Home in Towson Md. The only family Edward has to attend his interment and memorial service are his brothers and sisters in blue. I know we all have hectic lives these days. However, if you knew Edward or not, he served 26 years in our uniform and deserves an abundant showing from the Baltimore City Police Department.
To those who read this, I personally thank you for your time. Edward was a Central District wagon man for a number of years.
Entered BPD 1972.---------- Retired 1998. Date of death 29 January 2009, 0914hrs. - Det. Randy Wynn Homicide

Let his death be a reminder that we are family, renew a friendship of a past side partner

 

 Courtesy Lt. Tom Douglas

 Agent Edward William Eldridge, Jr.

SUN PAPER ARTICLE:

By Peter Hermann

February 9, 2009

Edward William Eldridge Jr. took his own life at the age of 62. He lived alone in a small semidetached, red-brick house on Daywalt Avenue in Northeast Baltimore. He had no wife, no known children, no brothers, no sisters, and his parents died years ago. He listed his only aunt as a beneficiary, but she, too, had passed away. He had no friends, at least none close enough or willing enough to stay with him at the hospital for a few hours so he could undergo the arthroscopic knee surgery he was scheduled to have on the day he died. He had nobody he could talk to or who could help him when he lost $100,000 of his retirement savings to the faltering stock market. Now Eldridge's body lies at Ruck Funeral Home in Towson - a viewing is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. tomorrow, memorial service at 11 a.m. Wednesday - his earthly remains saved from becoming a ward of the state and from a pauper's grave by the Baltimore homicide detective who got the case, went to the house and recognized the dead man as a colleague and an old acquaintance. He had "shot the breeze" with Eldridge years ago when the detective walked a foot post and the now-dead officer was the Police Department's Central District wagon man. His name, with rank attached, was Agent Edward William Eldridge Jr. He joined the Baltimore Police Department on Aug. 4, 1972, and retired Aug. 6, 1998. He had earned a degree in business and public administration from the University of Maryland, was drafted into the Army and sent to Okinawa to guard underground missile silos. "He served his country for two years and he served this city for 26 years," Detective Randy Wynn said after he claimed the body at the morgue. "At the very least he deserves a proper send-off." The detective is trying to get current and retired police officers to come to services for Eldridge, and he plans to display nearly two dozen certificates and commendations he found after spending days digging through boxes and bags at the house where Eldridge grew up and died. Wynn found a neighbor who told him Eldridge fixed bicycles for the kids - there were parts scattered in his basement - and gave them money for candy. There were 40 names in Eldridge's address book, and Wynn called them all. Every single number went to a business where people had dealt with Eldridge but didn't really know him. Only his retired accountant thought Eldridge's demeanor had soured - "that he didn't seem the way he used to be," Wynn said. He had lost contact with the cops he had worked with, most recently in the Northeast District. He was so alone that he worried nobody would find his body after he died - maybe they wouldn't care enough to even look. It was Jan. 29, a Thursday, at 9:09 in the morning, the day his surgery was scheduled, that he called 911 and told an operator, "Ma'am, I'm planning to shoot myself." His voice was as steady and cavalier as someone ordering a pizza. He was polite, not a trace of urgency or hesitation. "I don't want the body to stink up the neighbor's house," he said into the phone. The operator asked whether he had any weapons, and he said he had two. She asked where he was, and he told her he was in his upstairs back bedroom, and that he had left the front door unlocked so officers could get inside. He had a .40-caliber Glock and a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver. Eldridge chose the Glock - the kind of gun carried by city police - to end his life. The operator was still on the line when he pulled the trigger. It's hard to imagine being so alone, and the extent and reason for whatever emotions caused him to take his life may never be fully known or understood. For Detective Wynn, who gets paid to immerse himself in this city's overabundance of death and despair, this case is a stark reminder that people need to help each other and ask for help for themselves. Wynn could have shoved this file aside, written a perfunctory report and moved on. But he is driven to get others to care about a man who should not have been allowed to die as he lived - without family, without friends, without someone knowing even a little about him. For the detective, who has spent 40 years on the city force, it's a lesson to get friends outside the job. "When you're in uniform, everybody knows who you are," he said. "Then all of a sudden you retire, and nobody knows who you are. After being in his house and reading his stuff for 12 hours, I realized he didn't have a friend in the world." Eldridge was born June 27, 1946, at Union Memorial Hospital and grew up on Daywalt Avenue. His parents were both from Philadelphia; his father worked as a clerk at Sparrows Point. He graduated from Polytechnic Institute in 1964 and headed off to the University of Maryland. Wynn made a list of Eldridge's varied and prodigious studies: introduction to business; introduction to philosophy; public speaking; introduction to world literature; general chemistry; Western civilization; social psychology; principles of government and politics; accounting; marketing principles and organization; auditing theory; income tax accounting; business statistics; and civil rights law. The Army drafted him the year he graduated, 1968, but he was spared Vietnam and sent to train for a year at Fort Bragg in North Carolina and the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, where he earned a marksman's badge for the M-16 before heading off to Japan. While on duty there, he had a security clearance, studied the Japanese language, attended a law enforcement program and rose to the rank of sergeant. Wynn found Eldridge's honorable discharge papers, dated June 14, 1971, along with two letters of appreciation signed by President Richard M. Nixon and Army Gen. William C. Westmoreland.

He returned to Baltimore, bought a house on Homestead Street in Better Waverly and joined the police force. Eight years ago, he moved back to Daywalt Avenue to take care of his sick mother. Neighbors said they rarely saw him and that he kept his windows covered. Wynn found piles of books, Western movies and boxes filled with documents that shed some light on Eldridge's personality, and how he kept meticulous records of the most mundane chores. There was a log of "every gallon of gas he ever bought," Wynn said. Curiously, it appears that Eldridge kept the records for records' sake and not to track mileage. He kept a similar list of visits for Halloween and how much money he spent on the small candy bars he handed out. In 2000, 52 kids came to his door; in 2001 it was 18, a year later 31 and a year after that 52. It topped 61 in 2005 and dropped to "only eight children" last year. He spent between $94 and $159 on candy each year. Why he compiled these lists might remain as mysterious as to why he took his life. In a suicide note found at the foot of his bed, neatly written in cursive and taking up a full page of notebook paper, Eldridge went on at length about his surgery, scheduled for that day at 2 p.m. at Franklin Square Hospital Center. He had saved the doctor's instructions reminding him not to eat that day and had written notes to himself about what time to call a taxi to take him to the hospital. He had later made arrangements with officers at the Northeastern District to give him a ride to and from Franklin Square, but he had nobody to stay with him during the procedure, a requirement. He wrote that he was afraid he would be sent home and that doctors might learn his backup plan was suicide. He was afraid of being committed. Eldridge, fully clothed, lay on his back on his bed and called 911. The final sound on the tape is a gunshot followed by the operator's scream. Wynn said Eldridge actually shot himself twice, the first time through his right jaw, then in a split second he turned his head and shot himself above the left ear. His Glock was still in his right hand when police arrived. The detective has played the tape for his colleagues. "Everyone up here who has heard it has never heard anything like that," he said. "Ever." Regarding the viewing Lt. Tom Douglas arrived at 6:00 PM and there were uniformed police leaving. As he entered the second floor, the room was large and occupied by uninformed, plain clothed, young and retired officers. He said he would venture to say at one point there were over 200 police on that floor and in the room. Retired Police Commissioners Bishop Robinson and Ed Woods and current police commissioner Fred Bealefeld also came. The Northeastern District Commander came as did other Officers, Agents, Detectives, Sergeants, and Lieutenants. Several motor officers were out front and also saw retired Deputy Commissioner John Gaverelis was there as well. It was the general consensus Detective Wynn did an outstanding job on making the arrangements and getting the word out. There were photos of Ed and his family around the room, his Army duffel bag, and uniform, his badge was in the coffin with a lone bouquet of flowers. There were a couple flower arrangements besides the unpretentious casket which was closed. Many officers would approach, kneel by its side and either say a prayer or their goodbyes. Detective Wynn did an outstanding service for this officer, our department and for the men and women that were now afforded a chance to say their goodbye to this kind, yet lonely, an officer that was too lonely to call for help.

GOODBYE EDDIE, if you had only known.

KGA 161........ KGA to 161..........161 is 10-7

An outstanding piece of Police work by Detective Randy Wynn. His dedication to duty is only outweighed by his compassion. Detective Wynn’s handling of this incident exemplifies what it means to be a COP and especially a BALTIMORE COP. We are family and he took his “Brother” to his maker in the manor any family member would do. Thanks, Detective Randy Wynn for bringing this tragedy to light and may this never ever happen to another one of our own. MESSAGE FROM BRPBA CHAPLAIN TIM RABBIT:

Greetings B.R.P.B.A. Members,

 

I write to you with a concerned heart about the recent death of Retired Officer Edward William Eldridge. Many of you know

that Edward took his own life on 1/29/09. This is a tragedy that touched many lives. Not just the lives of those who knew him, but the lives of every man and woman that wear a badge.

 

Edward lived by himself, had no known living family members, and didn't leave the house much. We can all speculate why he took his own life, but we don't really know. The tragedy is that he did. I want every member to know that somebody cares about you. First and foremost God cares about you and He Knows what you're going through. You're are important to each one of us. The bottom line is you're a somebody and not a nobody. We all get physically sick, lonely, and depressed at times. You're not out there by yourself. If you need a friend or just someone to talk to, please call me or one of the other members. Remember were family and family sticks together and takes care of each other. The problems of life can be huge when you take them on by yourself. Please let someone else walk with you in your time of difficulty. Life is given by God and is Sacred.

 

Below is my contact information call me, I care !!!

 

Rev. Tim Rabbitt

Chaplain- B.R.P.B.A

Member- B.R.P.B.A

 

email- This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Cell Phone- 410-952-5167

COURTESY AUX. LIEUT. JAMES DERRETH

 

 Baltimore Police Auxiliary Lieutenant James J. Derreth, one the many who volunteer their time and services to assist Baltimore Police Officers with traffic and crowd control details. “Jimbo” has worked 21 years giving his time and energy to the City of Baltimore and the Baltimore Police Department.

Jim was recently promoted to the rank of Major

 

.

 

 

 

 

Photo courtesy Officer Rick Krause

 Another in a law enforcement family tradition Officer Rick Krause (R) stands with his son, Rick, who is an officer with the Harford County Police Department.

Courtesy Det. Leslie Stickles, Jr.

Lieutenant Leslie Stickles (2006) was the K-9 Commander in 1967 when I first joined the department.

He was one of the first who helped guide my career in Law Enforcement.

 

 Officer Mickey Rodriquez

 

 

 

 

Officer Mike Parrish standing with command staff waiting on the current academy classes to form up for a ceremony

Mike Parrish's PT shirt was framed and now hangs over the entrance to the fitness and combat training facility

 

 

 

 

Photo courtesy Officer Brian S. Weber

Officer John Robinson and Officer Brian S. Weber stand in front of the US Capitol in Washington DC during Police Week

 

 

 

Photo courtesy Sergeant Louis Ely

 

 

Photo courtesy Sergeant Louis Ely

 

 

Photo courtesy Sergeant Louis Ely

 

 

Photo courtesy Sergeant Louis Ely

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P/O Chris Ahearn & P/O Scott Davis

 

Officer Robert Brown formerly of the Western District showing off his shirt received as a gift.

 

 

 

Deputy Commissioner Debbie Owens seen with some of the participants of the MSP Polar Bear Plunge

Photo courtesy P/O Thomas A. Linton

THE BLIZZARD OF 2010Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Baltimore City Police Marine Unit during the blizzard of 2010

 

 Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

 Baltimore City Police car in snowstorm 2010

 Photo by Sgt. Jennifer Sardam, 29th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment - Sgt. Troy K. Mitchell of Joint Force Headquarters, Maryland Army National Guard, works to free a Baltimore City Police vehicle from where it was stuck in the snow

 Photo by Sgt. Jennifer Sardam, 29th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)  Left to right: Baltimore City Police officers, Justin Howard and Joe Crystal, and Sgt. Troy K. Mitchell of Joint Force Headquarters, Maryland Army National Guard, work together Sunday (February 7) to free a Baltimore City Police vehicle from where it was stuck in the snow.

 

Photo courtesy Major John Hess
Major John Hess, Deputy Major Dan Lioi, Colonel Dean Palmere and Lt Tracy Geho (Left to Right).
Standing at Federal and Broadway in the great Eastern District.

The date is February 10. 2010 @ 2100 hours.

 

 

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila

Supervisor's Leadership Course

2010-02

 

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila

 

 

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila

 Commissioner Bealefeld III addresses the class

 

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila

Sergeant Brickus

 

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila Sergeant Terry Bell

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila
Sergeant Tommy Bracken

 

 

Photo courtesy: Sgt. Carlos Vila

Sergeant Ted Friel

 

 

5 alarm fire on the "Block"

December 06, 2010

 

 

PHOTO COURTESY OFFICER BILL EDGAR

Officer Bill Edgar blocks off Baltimore St. at Commerce St., for ATF investigators after the 5 alarm fire on "The Block"

December 16, 2010

 

POLICE INFORMATION

Copies of: Your Baltimore Police Department Class Photo, Pictures of our Officers, Vehicles, Equipment, Newspaper Articles relating to our department and or officers, Old Departmental Newsletters, Lookouts, Wanted Posters, and or Brochures. Information on Deceased Officers and anything that may help Preserve the History and Proud Traditions of this agency. Please contact Retired Detective Kenny Driscoll.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

NOTICE

How to Dispose of Old Police Items

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.

Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll  

1960 - 1980

Photo Courtesy Lt. William Bowen

Officer William Bowen

1960

1967-1973

OFFICERS CONDUCTING AN INVESTIGATION 1960s

1962

Photo courtesy Det. Charlie Smoot

Officer Lawrence Barry seen here in a departmental ID card shot was in the Baltimore Park Police and when that agency merged with the Baltimore City Police around 1961 he joined the Baltimore Police Department and retired in the 1970's. Officer Lawrence Barry was an uncle of Detective Charlie Smoot Below Officer Lawrence Barry is seen wearing a vintage uniform complete with the old "bobby" type hats, 3 rd. issued badge.

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Officer Robert DiStefano as the young grunt in 1962

Photo courtesy Officer William Hough

Officer William Hough is seen here with cut on his face and a bloody uniform shirt after being the victim of an assult on a police officer. 

Sgt Charlie Barclay
circa 1960 

 Robert Nuedecker
1975

AS 600-PAGE SURVEY RAPS CITY POLICE

RICHARD H LEVINE
The Sun (1837-1987); Jan 10, 1966;
pg. A1

Organized crime, place our terms of widespread
Police recruit standards down low…… page A9
By Richard Levine

The Baltimore Police Department has been closely examined and found to be seriously inadequate by the nation’s leading consulting firm specializing in police administration.

The 600 page report issued last night focuses severe criticism at the quality of leadership and management in the police department.

It points up many areas of critical deficiencies and levels both broad and detailed attacks on almost all aspects of police service, all phases of police administration and all divisions, bureaus, squads and specialized functions.

Reorganization Asked
It recommends an immediate, total reorganization of the department and immediate attention to some essential policing responsibilities that are most severely crippled by bad management practices.

It asserts that despite contrary opinion of the public, Baltimore is saddled with place and organization crimes of major proportions.

The report is the result of a $52,000 March to October study conducted by the field service division of the international Association of Chiefs of police.

Besides the dissection of the department problems, the report contains detailed recommendations for improvements.

Two Principal Concerns
The report bears down particularly hard on the top principal concerns of the Police Department – crime control and traffic control.

It engages in widespread faultfinding in both areas. The consultants recommend that the police department remain a state agency and that the governor retain its statutory power to appoint the Commissioner and his power to remove him from office misconduct for incompetency. Other major recommendations are these:

1. The organization of the department according to functions with clear lines of authority and responsibility. Include is the elimination of the rank of inspector and chief inspector.
2. The inauguration of an accurate, complete crime records system revision of beat patterns
3. A total revision of the beat pattern to equal the workloads of men in patrol.
4. The proper development of the planning and research division with a crime analyst unit and expanded use of data processing.
5. The creation of a criminal investigation division for expert handling of all felonies and major vice cases from evidence gathering to preparation for trial.
6. The implementation of the internal investigation unit – now only on paper – as the commissioners watchdog on the department, responsible for intelligent information on misconduct, corruption, abuse of authority and the activities of organized crime figures.

Urges Formal Procedures
7. The establishment of formal disciplinary procedures and a disciplinary board for the prompt proper handling of charges brought against officers from within the department or civilians.

8. A formal system for airing grievances of uniformed and civilian employees of the department with the right to make formal grievances guaranteed by state law.
9. Higher education, physical mental and medical standards for applicants to the force.
10. A revision of the standard for rating candidates for promotion.
11. The restriction of promotion to the top five candidates on a merit rating list.
12. A serious police community effort to reduce the high automobile accident injury and fatality rate in the city with a special pedestrian safety program.
13. Elimination of the present law which restricts candidates for the position of Commissioner to residents or businessmen in the city.
14. A general increase in salaries and benefits including any bays, holidays, overtime pay, insurance benefits and uniform supplies.
15. The construction of a new department headquarters building: the immediate elimination of northern district with its patrolling divided between Northwest and Northeastern: the abandonment of the northern district headquarters building as soon as the police Academy can be moved to a newly constructed department headquarters building: the eventual abolishment of the southern district and a abandonment of its headquarters building.

It also calls for a realistic attitude toward problem of vice and crime and a harder attack on these conditions and on the block as a source of “moral blight.”

Two subjects that have drawn much public interest recently are handled by recommendations that the Police Department relieve itself of responsibility for them.

The consultants believe that all towing matters, removal of illegally parked vehicles as well as vehicles and accidents, should be turned over to private contractors.

Sanitary Inspection
And it recommends that the city assume the task of sanitary inspections.

The consultants call for the abolishment of the auto theft squad, the pickpocket, hotel and V. I. P. Squad, the riot squad, the mounted sections horses, and the transfer of their functions elsewhere.

There are thousands of specific suggestions directed toward every subject from the meter maid’s manner to the length of the Espantoon.

Even as it urges an immediate program of reform, the report points out that the consultants while engaged in the study, were met with the kind of obstinate resistance that prevented improvements and progress in the department in the past.

“These recommendations will be of little value unless the administrative climate of the Police Department is changed,” the reporter says.

“Superior officers must accept the fact that the department needs improvement and must recognize their responsibilities and lifting the department from its content with the status quo and traditional concepts, to those of the modern, progressive and efficient department the community deserves.”

First Study in 25 Years
the report points out that this is the first comprehensive survey of the department in 25 years, that the reorganization plan suggest that in the previous report was never adopted and that they did department’s structure is virtually unchanged from that which existed in 1940. The report warns:

“It is to be hoped to that history does not repeat itself: restructuring the Baltimore Police Department is sound in importance only to improving the competence of its management.”

The consultants ordered the following guide to their own approach to the survey: “of this report is critical in nature, because in an effort of this type, the most intensive examinations are naturally made into existing weaknesses.

“Intentions of this criticism is that it be constructive: that it assists in improving the organization, personnel and practices of the Baltimore Police Department so that the people will receive effective police services consistent with democratic ideas.

“It should be remembered that the survey is directed toward all police activity and is not just a narrow search for faults. Thus it is consistent with the standards of objectivity.”

The criticism is of two types: that directed toward practices and policies that are not as effective as they should be, and exposure of major flaws that are so basic as to cripple the department. As late as this fall, the department walked on the implementation of two aspects of report that were considered to be important enough for immediate action.

The police Association consultant said that the recommendations on record management were presented in preliminary form to Commissioner Bernard J Schmidt and his inspector on September 21, 1965.

Final Report Presented
Several meetings were held to discuss the recommendations, the consultant said, and a final report was presented to the department on 20 October to enable the Department to inaugurate new reporting procedures by the start of the calendar year.

“Despite this, to date the department has taken no action whatsoever in preparation for a change in the present reporting procedures.”

“A second matter indicated similar dilatory handling.” Says the report.

On September 29, the report says, the police Commissioner was given to plans prepared by the I. A. C. P. For the establishment of an internal complaint investigation procedure.

These plans were made after conference had taken place with major McKeldin and Gov. Tawes. There were later conferences.

A Capt. was promoted to inspector, the report says, “reportedly to command the proposed new unit. The plans, however, has still not been implemented.”

What is required in Baltimore the report states, is “inspired, imaginative and indefatigable leadership in the police department and cooperation and support from the community and the state.

However, the consultant was described present leadership in a department in the following statements:

“Management competency is questionable.”

“Management sidesteps responsibilities.”

“Management fails to take strong stands, fails to plan for the future needs and fails to recognize the reality of poor procedures.”

“Supervision Misdirected”
“There is misdirection of the first line supervision – the practices of advancing or promoting personnel are antiquated and restrictive.”

“The system of evaluating personnel performance has been perverted.

“But management, even though cognizant of and dissatisfied with the use of the system, has failed to take meaningful corrective action.”

The report makes clear that under the present organizational structure the department’s chief inspector, George J. Murphy, is a “strong assistant Commissioner” who assumes and in ordinate share of the actual command and, therefore of the responsibility of the department.

Source of Difficulties
The report, where ever its intention turns, looks back at “management” and “the supervisors” to find the source of the difficulties. For instance: “demands for a civilian review board to oversee the conduct of force are not usually heard in those communities where the police agency operates an effective disciplinary program of its own.”

This statement is in a discussion of the internal investigation division IID. The unit that Commissioner Smit found an inspector for but, according to the report, has failed to organize.

The I. A. C. P. Went against its own previous position and recommending that the police department remain under state control.

Transfer Idea Discussed

In lengthy discussion of this topic of the consultants conclude that “competent police management can do an outstanding job under the present set-up.”

Primary reason for making a change, the report says, would be to avoid political control and interference, to satisfy desire for home rule or to escape financial burden imposed by the state.

The consultants found none of these factors present in Baltimore.

There is no popular moved to transfer control, they said, and in referendum the citizens of Baltimore have previously rejected taking control.

Legislation last year gave the city control of the police budget. Purchasing and disbursements. Moves that gave the city virtual financial control of the department, they continued.

As for Political Interference:

“External control of the department does not appear to be a major problem… Indeed, the present political climate in the city might prove such a move(transfer to city control) to be harmful.”

Further on:

“we have seen little evidence of machine politics in the operation of the Baltimore Police Department, although there are rather well – circulated rumors concerning the influence of certain promotions. Many of the derogatory facts of unwholesome political control are conspicuously absent in the city of Baltimore.

The I. A. C. P. Experts, probably too many people surprise, did not recommend any increase in the number of patrolman needed for crime patrol.

Repeatedly, however, the consultants complained that that the departments in accurate crime stats hamper attempts to determine such things as actual workloads, the level of crime or whether crime is increasing or decreasing.

However, by utilizing a short time, temporary, control system enough information was gathered to allow a new mapping of the beats to equalize the workload for patrolman.

The suggested shifts actually resulted in a surplus of 136 positions over actual minimum needs. At the same time, the report said, the police coverage and quality of protection would be improved.

Other Cities Compared

In terms of money and men, the report says the Baltimore compares favorably with other major cities in the nation.

The Police Department gets $27 million annually which represents 14% of the receipts from general property taxation – a per capita cost of $24.30.

Comparative cost figure for other cities are: Chicago $25.69: Washington $32.49: Los Angeles $22.41: Detroit $21.82: St. Louis $21.81: Philadelphia $21.25: Milwaukee $19.59: Cleveland $18.62 and Houston $11.74.

In terms of police and please per inhabitant, Baltimore ranks higher than any city in that group with an exception of Washington in terms of police employees per square mile Baltimore ranks fourth.

The consultant said that a further significant comparison was with the city’s Los Angeles and Milwaukee “regarded by some as among the best police departments in the country.”

The I. A. C. P. Found the Baltimore spends more and has a higher proportion of police employees than either of those cities.

The picture of what the city gives the department is far brighter, however, then what is returned.

Because of the garbled records the department’s performance in criminal convictions could not be computed. The report said, it did conclude, however, that only a relatively small percentage of persons who committed major crimes in the city are ever found guilty of the original charge.

On Traffic Control

As for traffic control, this second major area of responsibility “provides some insight on the departments of efficiency.”

The report contains this summary statement” “the traffic performance record of Baltimore Police Department is below recommended national standards in the categories of training, hit and run convictions, overall enforcement, selective enforcement, enforcement by nine full-time traffic officers, pedestrian enforcement and enforcement of drinking driving laws. The overall 1964 traffic performance of the department was evaluated at 32% of the recommended performance 100% level”

The I. A. C. P. Recommend restructuring the department into three functional bureaus – administrative, operations and services – each headed by a deputy Commissioner.

Under them would be other functionally organize units headed by men with new ranks – three chiefs, 12 directors and three deputy chiefs – all above the rank of Capt.

That use would head the division’s largest in personnel and authority – patrol, traffic and the new criminal investigation division.

All the way down to the organizational chart, services would be combined with like services.

Because of the intense difficulties in traffic control the I. A. C. P. Recommends the formation of a special community committee to strike at this problem with the new traffic division.

Equally disturbed to the consultants was the departments approach to criminal investigations.

The report speaks of lack of understanding of the investigation process in modern policing and the confusion among units as to the responsibility for investigations.

Furthermore, follow-up investigations, the consultants found were draining a great amount of time from preventative crime patrolling and taking sergeants away from their primary responsibilities of supervision.

The separate investigation unit would take over follow-up work in felonies and vice, thus adding professionalism to the task of freeing the patrol for its specialty.

“Not Satisfactory”
As for the present patrol assignments, the report turned them “Not satisfactory.”

It points, for example to the workload of the radio car 504 which was found to be the only 38% of that of a radio car 102.

The department was found to be guilty of other had patrol practices. Men are divided nearly equally among the three shifts each 24 hours even though the work load and crying frequently is not equally distributed.

A study showed that the greatest amount of work occurred during the 4 PM to midnight shift but that the largest proportion of patrolman were assigned to day shift.

In figures the 4 PM to midnight shift had 40% more work than a day shift and 17% fewer men.

Different Workloads
Similar inadequacies were found from district to district.

The one man patrol cars, the two men radio cars and foot patrolmen were found to be carrying workloads which were disproportionate to their total manpower strength.

Foot beats were found to be unrealistically large in many cases. Despite these illogical assignments the drain effectiveness the consultants found further that “a high proportion” of available manpower was assigned to a host of miscellaneous duties, and this “in the face of claimed that shortages of manpower to fill foot post.”

The discontinuance of the northern and southern police district, the consultant said, would further increase patrol efficiencies and free extra men for the streets by eliminating duplication of non-patrol assignments.

“The presence of the district station is in itself no deterrent to crime” a very small percentage of all police services originate with a complaints appearance at a station,” the report says.

Not only did the consultants find men enough to patrol Baltimore’s streets, they also found there were enough patrol sergeants to do adequate supervision. Outside of the patrol, supervisory ratios provided another kind of problem.

For instance it was found that there were twice as many detective Sgt. is needed The supervision of the 154 detective patrolman. The report recommends cutting the complement of 49 sergeants in half.

Beside the detectives, the homicide Bureau, Hotel squad, narcotics squad and states attorney unit was found to be “top-heavy with supervisors.”

And yet with all these supervisors, lack of supervision was an important complaint of the report.

The problem, “questionable selection process; failure to use a supervisory probationary period; failure to provide adequate supervisory training: excessive familiarity with subordinates and lack of bearing” and several other reasons.

Along with the lack of supervision, the consultants found a lack of effective control from the Commissioner which they particularly blame on the organizational structure and partially one lack of staff supervision.

The consultant said the apparent intent of the organization scheme is to give the Commissioner administrative functions and the chief inspection operational functions.

The report says this system makes the chief inspector “a strong assistant Commissioner” and quotes a textbook on this situation: “at best a single assistant chief accomplices tasks that are properly the duties of an executive officer or adjutant: the worst he isolates the chief of the department and takes over policy decisions without which the department head cannot be chief in fact and becomes sort of a “grandvizer” to which all ranks must bow in order to have their request granted.”

Responsibilities Shared
The survey team labeled the Baltimore system as “defective” because responsibilities from management are not clearly fixed but are shared.

“The final result is that the Commissioner is held responsible in practice by the governor and by the public for all the activities of the department, but is insulated and prevented from being an executive in fact.”

Because of the lack of staff inspections, the report said, Commissioner Smit must accept reports on performance of duty from those who are personally charged with the responsibility for the duty.

There is no way for the Commissioner to ensure that the line commanders are properly performing their duties.

The report says that the most singular recent example of what this lack of real information can lead to was the commissioners lack of knowledge of the faulty crime reporting procedures until outside sources disclose them publicly with the resultant wave of unfavorable publicity.

“Even an outsider unschooled in police work could detect something was wrong with the crime reporting and were courting as practiced by the Baltimore Police Department.”

The imperfect recording of crime incidents, the report says, was not the fault of the investigating officers and sergeants, lieutenants, captains and top administrators were aware of the practices and permitted them.

On December, 1964 after the police crime records were publicly questioned, a thick report was transmitted to governor Tawes by the Police Department in which nearly every officer above the rank of Lieut. claim that there was no evidence to indicate that they complete recording was not being practiced.

Very Little Praise
In a mass of criticism, very little praise comes forth.

The consultants do command the public relations efforts of Capt. Norman J. Schleigh, head of the police training academy, any attempts made by Thomas J. Miller, former personnel director, in areas of improving the process of selecting officer candidates and in trying to activate formal grievance procedures.

Among the miscellaneous services that receive strong criticism is the medical division and the police positions.

The consultants claim that physicians exercise more control over a high sickness rate in the department, an average of more than 12 days a man every year for the past two decades.

The consultant said that a combined sickness and injury rate of eight days or more a year as an average for the department should prompt the administration of the department to either improve control over misuse of sick leave or else and prove a genuinely poor health record.

In Baltimore’s case both approaches must be used, said the report.

Reducing the sick leave to a tolerable average of eight days a year would be the equivalent of a gain of 90 men on the force, the consultants figured.

Would Replace Doctors
“If physicians on the staff are not sympathetic to more stringent control procedures, they should be replaced with doctors who are willing to assert their responsibility and authority, “said the report. The positions were also said to have no well-developed medical standards for recruits and for accepting candidates of questionable physical fitness.

There are a number of miscellaneous criticisms of major importance in many areas.

The consultant thought the K-9 Corps was poorly assigned and wasting time patrolling hospitals.

A spot check revealed that citizens call for help were more probably answered on the regular administration telephone lines than through the emergency numbers.

Sgt Charlie Barclay circa 1960

WHAT ARE POLICEMAN MADE OF?

Don’t credit me with the mongrel prose: it has many parents-at least 420,000 of them: Policemen.

A Policeman is a composite of what all men are, mingling of a saint and sinner, dust and deity.
Gulled statistics wave the fan over the stinkers, underscore instances of dishonesty and brutality because they are “new”. What they really mean is that they are exceptional, unusual, not commonplace.
Buried under the frost is the fact: Less than one-half of one percent of policemen misfit the uniform. That’s a better average than you’d find among clergy!
What is a policeman made of? He, of all men, is once the most needed and the most unwanted. He’s a strangely nameless creature who is “sir” to his face and “fuzz” to his back
He must be such a diplomat that he can settle differences between individuals so that each will think he won.
But…If the policeman is neat, he’s conceited; if he’s careless, he’s a bum. If he’s pleasant, he’s flirting;if not, he’s a grouch.
He must make an instant decision which would require months for a lawyer to make.
But…If he hurries, he’s careless; if he’s deliberate, he’s lazy. He must be first to an accident and infallible with his diagnosis. He must be able to start breathing, stop bleeding, tie splints and, above all, be sure the victim goes home without a limp. Or expect to be sued.
The police officer must know every gun, draw on the run, and hit where it doesn’t hurt.He must be able to whip two men twice his size and half his age without damaging his uniform and without being “brutal”. If you hit him, he’s a coward. If he hits you, he’s a bully.
A policeman must know everything-and not tell. He must know where all the sin is and not partake.
A policeman must, from a single strand of hair, be able to describe the crime, the weapon and the criminal- and tell you where the criminal is hiding.
But…If he catches the criminal, he’s lucky; if he doesn’t, he’s a dunce. If he gets promoted, he has political pull; if he doesn’t, he’s a dullard. The policeman must chase a bum lead to a dead-end, stake out ten nights to tag one witness who saw it happen-but refused to remember.
The policeman must be a minister, a social worker, a diplomat, a tough guy and a gentleman.
And, of course, he’d have to be genius….For he will have to feed a family on a policeman’s salary.

By:  Paul Harvey

Photo courtesy Officer William Hough
GRADUATION CERTIFICATE WILLIAM J. HOUGH
         January 14, 1964
Officer William Hough seen below on foot patrol

Photo courtesy Officer William Hough

Photo courtesy Sgt. George T. Owens

Officer George T. Owens's seen here at the Civic Center (the patrolman on the right hand side in the jacket) working crowd control when the Beatles came to Baltimore.  September 13, 1964

Officer George T. Owens seen here patrolling his post. 1964

Photo courtesy Sgt. George T. Owens

Officer Joseph B. Huffman 1965

Photo Courtesy James Redding

Lieutenant Clyde Redding (far right) BCPD Officer of the Year 1966

along with the BCFD officer of the year 1966

Courtesy Wally Brenton
He served in the Southeast District 1967-1973

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

 Baltimore Police Officers and their wives listen to Govenor Marvin Mandel who promised raises and told them to just have patience

 Honor Guard 1968

Photo courtesy Rhonda Owens

Officer Wiley Melvin Owens Jr.

Badge #2928

Later promoted to Detective and assigned ISD

Passed away December 1, 1973

He was an honest, dedicated, faithful member of the force who served the community valiantly.

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 Officer Wiley Owens Jr. was offered a $100.00 bribe to change his testimony in a drunk driver case by defense attorney Jackson Dulaney Pennington ,but Officer Owens maintained his integrity and promptly reported the incident. November 13, 1969

 Photo courtesy Rhonda Owens

 Sergeant Francis Max Gutierrez

COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

Sergeant Gutierrez receiving his certificate of promotion to Sergeant from Police Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau 12/26/1968

Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
Blast from the past: Officer Howard "Bud" Lindsay Officer John Scales and Bob Fisher

Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
Ellis "Ditty" Baldwin

Notice the word "City" isn't on the truck! City, wasn't removed from "Baltimore City Police" until the mid, to late 70's as the Mayor at the time was transitioning Baltimore into a Tourist town, Building the Inner Harbor, and wanted to remove the tough sound of City from Baltimore, but that all came much later than this truck. This was a sign of thngs to come.

Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay

The "Command Chair" at 1050 S. Broadway. Notice the mirror and fish eye mounted on the window frame. Very useful to detect sneaking bad guys, and duty officers.- When the uniform cap was worn on the truck, it was wise to remove the inside wire in the top portion, (Known by some as the stylish "50 Mission Crush" of the hat) Otherwise, the wind would blow it off and out of the truck), Mine (Michael Roselle) was run over by some wise guy in a Buick. The guy was last seen driving east on Fayette from Central laughing.

Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
John Scales and Bud Lindsay with a recovered possible 81mm mortar round or a 122mm rd.

Courtesy Det.Mark Lindsay

Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay

Photo courtesy Officer William hough

Front cover of the 1969 departmental phone book

Original Certificate of Retirement

John N. McCormick

25 years of dedicated service

1943-1969

Flag draped casket of Officer Donald Sager

April 24, 1970

Shriner's circus detail 1970's

with one of the circus performers

The following several pictures are at the Baltimore City Fair in the late 1970's

MORE POLICE TRAINING SET

KIRK SCHARFENBERG

The Sun (1837-1989); Jun 25, 1968; pg. C8

MORE POLICE TRAINING SET

Schooling of All Recruits

In State to Rise 50%

Ocean City, June 24-The executive secretary of the Maryland Police Training Commission said today that by this fall the length of the mandatory training period for recruits on police forces around the State will be increased by 50 per cent.

Robert L. Van Wagoner told members of the Maryland Municipal League, meeting at the Commander Hotel here that the planned increase in, hours of training from 160 to 240 will make the Maryland program among the most thorough in the country.

He also told the group that, within a year, officers entering training schools run by his commission will have to pass intelligence and stability tests.

Determining Tests

Mr. Van Wagoner said the commission is now working with the University of Maryland to determine what specific tests will be used.

State law, he said, requires all men recruited by police forces throughout the State since June 1, 1967, to pass a training course approved by the commission.

The course must be completed within a year of the officer's appointment to the police force.

Mr. Van Wagoner said he is "reasonably certain" that there have been violations of the law "though ignorance." But, he added, a new State program, providing $21,000,0110 to local police departments and requiring compliance with the commission's standards, should aid in enforcement of the requirements.

Has Not Used Power

He noted that the commission, composed of leading law enforcement officials in the' State, the attorney general and the president of the University of Maryland, has not yet exercised its authority to set standards for veteran police officers.

He termed this the most difficult aspect of the commission's 1 work, but said that the standards will be set.

Mr. Van Wagoner added, "the large portion of police officers 1 in the Slate have never had an ounce of training and have never shot a gun, except on July 4th.

"Ninety-five percent of the police officers want this training,” he said, estimating that the initial course for veteran officers would probably last a week.

Small Communities

Ile noted that the increased standards for admission to the training schools, which already require a high school education and good character references, may work a hardship on small communities which have difficulty paying their police forces even now.

He suggested, therefore, that these communities use the State money they receive to improve their police salaries to hire qualified men

"It's no good to have equipment if you don't have the qualified men to operate it," he said.

Photo courtesy Det. Charlie Smoot


Photo courtesy Det. Charlie Smoot

 Officer Lawrence Barry ( white shirt) is seen here attending a retirement party.

Officer Vernon G. Barclay

Officer Charles Thompson (left)

Officer Clyde Redding (right)

Sergeant John Jackman escorts a prisoner from a disturbance at western High School

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

Officer John Grosskopf "Hero" saved several children from drowning 

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

Black Panther raid 1700 blk. N. Aisquith St.

April 30, 1970

Photo Courtesy Lieut. William Bowen

Lieutenant William Bowen

1972

Courtesy of Officer Dick Busch

Courtesy of Officer Dick Busch

Courtesy of Officer Dick Busch

Sergeant Robert Wilson working Druid Hill Park 1970's in a Dodge Aspen

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Wilson

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Wilson

LAWS & LIBERTY

The Sun (1837-1989); Sep 8, 1974; pg. AA29

LAWS & LIBERTY

The increasing pressure of traffic particularly in the downtown sections of our great Babylon’s and Gomorrah, has at least one laudable effect: it makes the police happy. Naturally pedantic, and trained, the pedagogues, in the doctrine that all human beings are precisely alike and maybe handle stalks of weed, BB shot Hall at the stockyard, they delight in the opportunity to make and enforce ever more complex and nonconsensual regulations.

The other day I read in the Sunpaper that so many motorists were herded for trial in a traffic court that it took three judges to dispose of them... Obviously, the police, like Judge Elbert H. Gary, have no need to wait for heaven; they enjoyed here and now. What could be more charmingly to their taste than a body of laws which fills two courtrooms suffocation every day, and keeps three judges leaping and tugging back fire engine hoses the situation is made the more intoxicating by the Attacked that 9/10 of the criminals or persons who would not otherwise fall into the toils – the traffic regulation tap whole new categories of victims...

The United railways [which ran the public transportation system] has ably seconded the police in this gradual disciplining and regimentation of the people of Baltimore... Today riding on the cars of uniting railways is indistinguishable from running a gantlet. The passenger is no longer a customer, nor even an individual; he is simply an anonymous unit in an endless chain – a sort of sausage fed into an insatiable and impersonal maw. His desires are no more regarded than if he were a corpse. The instant he steps of a board a car the cogs and levers of the machine grip him, and thereafter until he escapes, he is a sleeve. He must deposit his fair at a certain time and place; he must move as ordered; if he happens to be smoking he is in for a sharp reprimand. All his old rights now reduce themselves to one: he may get off if he doesn’t like it, and be damned... Meanwhile, the company hires in psychology at $50,000 a year and expense to improve its public relations – that is, to diminish the climber that goes on against it all the time. No wonder there is a climber. Don’t the halls in the slaughterhouse wheel?

The Evening Sun March 23, 1925

it takes a very powerful effort of the will and imagination for any reflective man, in these last days of the Republic, to be proud that he is an American; those who seem to be the proudest of it, indeed are precisely the worst cads and ignoramuses on view. But all the while it remains relatively easy to be proud of being a Marylander, for here in this little state, stuck forlornly between the serfs of the North and the slaves of the South, there remains in active being a great deal of the genuine liberty of the braver and more expansive day, and what is better still, there is not slightest sign that in so far as the people of this state can control the matter, it is distinguishing. Period.

Maryland is one of the few free states left in the American Commonwealth – almost, indeed, the only state remaining in which the guarantees of the Bill of Rights has served the roguery of legislators and imbecility of judges...

This respect for human rights – this quick resentment of every appearance of official bullying – remains alive in Maryland because of the survival of an older tradition of freedom. But perhaps that tradition itself survives because of something that is too often forgotten, to wit, that in Maryland the jury in a criminal case is a judge of the law as well as the facts. It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of this constitutional safeguard. On the one hand, it instantly draws teeth of the foolish and oppressive laws… And all the other hand, it makes it almost impossible for the police to make law on their own book, and railroad innocent men to prison, as has happened so often in California and other Western states, and of late even in New England…

Liberty is a great deal less esteemed in America that used to be; the other day the American ambassador to Rome was deriding it as archaic. But here in Maryland it is still respected, and that single fact is worth more than all the sugar refineries, Tanneries, guano factories and other such great dunes that go-getters will bring to the state between this day in the day of judgment.

The Evening Sun, July 31, 1923

This is one of the few American states which, in the state courts, constitutional guarantees of the citizen are jealously guarded. Unlike New York, Pennsylvania, and most of the Western states, we have no laws limiting the free play of opinion; and Marylander is at liberty to set forth his honest sentiments, in private or in public, without interference by the police no so-called soapbox or, however extravagant and idiotic, has ever been sent to prison in Maryland.

The Evening Sun, September 22, 1924

Eugene Grannan, who died a week ago, was one of the town characters of Baltimore at the end of the last century, antique His peculiar color and charm to the end… He was… A man almost ideally fitted for his job [of police magistrate]. For years a professional detective, working for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, he knew familiarly most of the petticoats working in these parts. More common a new policeman, and could read their peculiarity innocent minds. Yet more, he was a man combined great shrewdness and an expansive sentimentality in a way that is very rare to this world. Finally, he had a vast untapped for lawyers, and scarcely less for the law…

Grannan first came into public notice by a devastating attack upon the old system of intrigue which for years had made criminal justice a mockery in Baltimore. He was then sitting at the Western police station on Pine Street, and his bailiwick included the nearby red light district. The girls in that district were frequently in conflict with the police, and so most of them got themselves protectors of political influence – naturally enough, a worthless and the last class of men. Sometimes these protectors will get drunk and beat the girls. The police would then lock them up to prevent murders, but in the morning they were commonly turned loose without punishment.

But soon after Grannan went up on the bench such as scoundrel appeared before him, and, in violation of the immemorial practice, he called for the witnesses and proceeded to trial. The evidence was plain enough. The fellow had got drunk and given his girl a beat. He now stood before the bar with Democratic ward leader of that vicinity on one side of him, and the group of gaudy brethren of his craft on the other. He plainly expected the usual humane treatment. Disdaining a jury trial, he elected to be tried by Grannan. Grannan found him guilty and sentenced him to two years in the house of corrections…

This episode made Grannan a town celebrity, and the notion got around that he was a crusader against politicians, and eager to get all of them into prison. He was, of course, nothing of the sort. On the contrary, he knew very well that politicians serve a very useful purpose, especially of the more petty varieties, and he made constant use of them in his work...

His attitude toward policeman was much the same. He knew that 9/10 of them was simpleminded honest men, but he also knew how much professional prejudice: their thoughts… He was thus very suspicious of constabulary testimony, and seldom accepted it unless it was supported by disinterested witnesses…

The life of such a man, it seems to me, is immensely valuable to the community he lives in, and he ought to be remembered. There was nothing brilliant about Grannan… But he had qualities that were of high social work and excellence, and chance threw him into a position where they could be utilized effectively and made to yield permanent benefits. He founded a whole school of police magistrates, obviously better than the old school… And his influence, I believe, as it towered to this day.

What made him attractive personally was his pawky and sardonic humor. He greatly enjoyed his work, despite the foul smells of his court and the daily contact with wretchedness in all its form, and always kept it on a level of amiable tolerance. Time and time again I have seen him dissipate misery with a jocosity. He loved to scare minor offenders horribly, and then turn them loose. Once an old German was before him, Charles was quarreling with his wife of 40 years. Both parties will repentant and ashamed. Grannan solemnly tried the old man, sentenced and 25 years in the penitentiary, and then, after the cops had revived him since him is way, his wife on his arm. He ordered the case to them from the books and asked the reporters not to mention it…

The only time I ever saw him show anger on the bench was one in E. Baltimore St. missionary came before him, charging an ancient Russian Jew with assault. The missionary, it appeared, had dragged the Jews grandson into his gospel all, and tried to convert him to Methodism. Grannan, usually very dignified on the fence, lost his temper and gave the missionary a dreadful cursing. Then he turned to the Jew. “I am glad you feed him,” he said, “but don’t do it again. The law is an ass, but it has two years. The next time he tackles your grandson, bring him here.”

The Evening Sun, September 6, 1926

Baltimore City initiates a Gun Buy Program August 1974

Major John Kollmann stands amid some of the 1,000 guns that the City bought at $50.00 each from City residents, no questions asked, as an incentive to rid the City of guns. 


COURTESY SERGEANT BERNIE WEHAGE

Officer Warren Todd Central District R/C 102 on a business check at Harley's,
Liberty & Fayette Sts.

BALTIMORE POLICE STRIKE 1974

A dark time in the history of the Baltimore Police Department.

The first police strike in a major City since 1912.

A Civil War, BPD Officers vs. BPD Officers.

The strike became a part of our history and for all law enforcement.
It was not a proud moment for the Baltimore Police Department.

Many BPD officers were in a state of conflict, do the Right thing or fight
for a cause they truly believed in. No one won in this conflict.

Scars were left and will be a long time healing.

They will, indeed, heal. May this never happen again in our history.
May our ranks stay united as a brotherhood.
Officers working together for the benefit of all.

Officer Paul Bach standing next to a 1974 Plymouth in the SED parking lot

Officer William Hackley(L) and Officer Joe Snyder NWD detailed to the Afram Festival

1977

Officers in UNITY  1978

Courtesy Lt.Tom Douglas
Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau appoints Officer Tom Douglas to Police Agent June 15, 1977

(Below) Commissioner Pomerleau with Newly appointed Agent Tom Douglas with his parents Sue and Doug proudly looking on.

Courtesy Lt.Tom Douglas


COURTESY OFFICER JOE WICZULIS

Photograph of Colonel “Dick” Francis that was given to Officer Marion Wiczulis for Good Luck (above)

COURTESY OFFICER JOE WICZULIS

During the Custom Motorcycle Show held March 1977, at the Timonium Fair Grounds, Officer Marion S. Wiczulis of the Enforcement Section of the Traffic Division and his fiancée,Paula, devoted his spare time to display one of the Department's motorcycles and also helped promote motorcycle safety in conjunction with members of the Baltimore County Police Department.

Major Patricia Mullen, Sergeant Mercedes Rankin, Carol Channing 1978

THE BALTIMORE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S GANGBUSTERS

June 1975

Front Row: Robert Ackerman, SWD; Raymond Gillespie, WD; Richard Boronyak, NWD; Thomas Heathcoate, IID; William Hausner, NED; Michael Andrew, SWD; Martin Hanna, SWD; Leonard Willis, CID; Second Row: Robert Dapp, NED; Anthony Collini, ND; Lawrence Banks, Youth; Gary Childs, CID; Anthony Rinaldi, CD; Clayton Wright, SED; James Griffin, WD; Charles Cichon, NED; Back Row: Colonel Wilbur C. Miller; George Seltzer, WD; William Arnett, Youth; Daniel Markowski, CD; Donald Farley, Youth; Joseph Powell, CID; Robert Thomas, Tac.; Fred Oster, Youth; James Gilbert, CID; Police Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau.

BALTIMORE POLICE NEWSLETTER

Detective Julius Neveker

December 1978

President Jimmy Carter, Major Regis Rafensberger,
Major Ron Mullen, Commissioner Bishop Robinson 1979

MOTOR POOL OFFICE

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Photo courtesy Officer Brian Beauchamp

 Brian W. Beauchamp graduated academy class 70-2 on July 2, 1970, and was assigned to the Northern District, where he remained until he left the department July 11, 1973, and moved to Michigan for family reasons. He started with the Shiawassee County Sheriff's Department in Corunna, MI and retired as a DET/SGT in December 1997

Photo courtesy Officer Brian Beauchamp

Photo courtesy Brian Beauchamp

Life after the BPD

Courtesy Officer John Brazil

Courtesy Officer John Brazil

Photo courtesy Gary Provenzano

Departmental Accident Shop# 9031

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Sergeant William Staley & Al Bowling celebrating the Sergeant's Birthday (Below) Sergeant Staley enjoys a piece of Birthday Cake 1976

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

 Officer Kenneth S. Peach receiving his Sergeant promotion certificate from Police Commissioner Pomerleau

 Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Kenneth Peach hard at work

Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Peach stops a moment for this photograph

Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Peach diligently working on a report for the Police Commissioner

Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Peach and his wife after receiving his promotion to Lieutenant

Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer
Lieutenant Kenneth Peach in the Armory Unit

This shot of Lieutenant Peach is probably the most memorable photograph of him etched into everyone's mind. Every visit to the Armory Unit you would find him at his desk thinking and working on some project or working on a gun.  He put dedication and pride into his job.

He retired from the department and then passed away very suddenly on February 11, 2007 suffering from cancer. His service to the department is immeasurable and it Honored the Department.

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon
Officer William Gordon 1977

Photo courtesy Lt. Robert Wilson

Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau promoting Sergeant Robert Wilson to
the rank of Lieutenant on December 21, 1978. Lt. Wilson with
his wife Lynn and daughters Jessica and Betty Lynn are proud of their dad.

Bobby Ackison
Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Officer Al Diggs, Don Hoppe, Bob Gains

Courtesy Lt. Tom Douglas

Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

Deputy Commissioner Harwood Burritt presents Lt. John Drexel a retirement plaque for his 23 years of service.
(Below) Retiring Lieutenant John Drexel stands at the podium with his wife Faye at his retirement party June 1975

Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter


Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

Captain R. L.Connely giving Lt. John Drexel his retirement certificate


Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

Lt. John Drexel being congratulated on his retirement while his daughter Christina looks on

The first row, left to right: Inspector Clarence Kelly, General George Gelston, Inspector George Deuchler. Deputy Commissioner Ralph Murdy.

Second row, left to right: Colonel Richard "Dickie" Taylor, Colonel "Box" Harris. Deputy Commissioner Wade Poole. Inspector Frank J. Battaglia, Inspector Thomas "Tom" Keyes, Captain G. Gordon Gang. Third row left to right: First position unknown to me. Inspector

Frank Deems. Third position unknown to me. Last rows sort of combine. The man with the glasses, peeking out above Box Harris, is Inspector Clarence German. The gentleman in the suit, directly behind Wade Poole I believe is Captain Anthony Nelligan of the Crime Lab. The man directly behind Frank Battaglia is Inspector August Gribbin.

Officer Zawadski, Officer Pat Kirby, Officer K. Council

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Sergeant George Freeman

 COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

Sergeant Gutierrez receiving his certificate of promotion to Lieutenant from Police Commissioner Frank J. Battaglia 12/18/1974

COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

 Colonel Donald "Skippy" Shanahan

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Pension party for Officer McKenzie and Lt. Lorenz.  

Captain George Klanders, Deputy Commissioner Battaglia, and Captain John Barnold

 COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Donations

Donations help with web hosting, stamps and materials and the cost of keeping the website online. Thank you so much for helping BCPH. 

POLICE INFORMATION

Copies of: Your Baltimore Police Department Class Photo, Pictures of our Officers, Vehicles, Equipment, Newspaper Articles relating to our department and or officers, Old Departmental Newsletters, Lookouts, Wanted Posters, and or Brochures. Information on Deceased Officers and anything that may help Preserve the History and Proud Traditions of this agency. Please contact Retired Detective Kenny Driscoll.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

NOTICE

How to Dispose of Old Police Items

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department. Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

 

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll 

2000 - Present 

Donations

Donations help with web hosting, stamps and materials and the cost of keeping the website online. Thank you so much for helping BCPH. 

POLICE INFORMATION

Copies of: Your Baltimore Police Department Class Photo, Pictures of our Officers, Vehicles, Equipment, Newspaper Articles relating to our department and or officers, Old Departmental Newsletters, Lookouts, Wanted Posters, and or Brochures. Information on Deceased Officers and anything that may help Preserve the History and Proud Traditions of this agency. Please contact Retired Detective Kenny Driscoll.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

NOTICE

How to Dispose of Old Police Items

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.  Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

 

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll 

  1980 - 2000

 Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Wilson

Photo courtesy Officer Kenneth M. Schiminger

Officer Frederick I. Schiminger 

Officer Robert Ross ( Barney Fife) 
 Cross Street footman

Photo courtesy Agent Robert Jud

Police Commissioner Frank J. Bataglia (center) Officer Mike Arminger (left) who passed away LOD and Detective Robert Jud (right)

Officer Steve Histon 1980's

Photo courtesy Sgt. Nick Nixon

Photo courtesy Agent Robert Jud

College recognition ceremony August 14, 1981

From left to right Sergeant Alan Woods ( Legal Advisor's Office), Agent John Betso (Western District), Lieutenant Joseph Chrisiansen (Northwest District), Agent Tom Douglas (Traffic), Agent Robert Jud (IID),Agent Larry Hornstein (Tactical), Criminalist Bob Sroka 

 (Laboratory Division)

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Colonel Dick Francis

March 3, 1982

Courtesy Joe Wiczulis

In 1982 Officer Marion Wiczulis, Traffic Enforcement, works an unmarked cruiser. The Traffic car was the only one to have white wall tires and red lights, which were approved by Colonel Dick Francis at the time.

Courtesy Joe Wiczulis

Photo courtesy Deputy Commissioner William Rochford

Police Union Meeting 1983

Deputy Commissioner William Rochford, seated at the first chair left side.

Photo courtesy Officer Don DeWar

Officer Don DeWar after graduation with his Mom & Dad

Don joined the department after 4 years in the Military but left the department after one year to continue his college education which he had begun while serving in the department and graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice. He reentered the US Army Reserve and retired after almost 37 years. He ran in 2006 for Baltimore City Council 1^st District and lost by a very slim margin and hopes to run again. A real success story for one of our very own.

Officer Juan Rodriguez early 1980's Dogde Aspen 

Photo courtesy Lt. Robert Wilson

1983 - Lt. Wilson  Snow Storm in Baltimore followed by looting and activation of National Guard

Photo courtesy Det. Lou Trimper

Det. Lou Trimper with Govenor William Donald Schaefer July 11, 1993

Officer W.Hackley photo

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Kevin Lenahan, Bill Gordon, Tim Longo

(Below) Jeff Rosen, Tim Longo, Bill Gordon

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Marty Beauchamp, Bill & Barb Gordon

1995

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Sergeant William Gordon in the lobby museum of the Headquarters Building

(Below) Sergeant William Gordon in Washington DC durring Police Week 1998

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Baltimore Police Deputy Commissioner

Mike Zotos is pictured in the center 

Courtesy Officer Paul Williams

Officer Paul Williams receiving his Certificate of

Retirement, along with his beautiful wife Mary,

Colonel Leon Tomlin and Lt. Tim Longo. October 21,1996

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Civil War Wedding

This maybe an 1860’s wedding party but look closely at the girl in the white dress and the guy standing next to her with the white beard.. The Bride is Teddi Bittenger, supervisor of the B of I unit and the Groom is Major Robert DiStefano.

The wedding party:

Seated in front row, L to R: #1 Blue Dress - Sharon Woolridge, wife

of Al; #2 Red Dress - Sheila Crochetti, wife of Rus; #3 Teal Dress -

Pat Ortega, wife of Julio; # 4 Floral Skirt, white blouse, Imogene

Yaste, wife of Pastor Yaste.

Standing, L to R: # 1 Al Woolridge, retired as a Sergeant to supervise the

Printrak System; #2 Freda Waters Birchett, supervisor of the mainframe

computer for the BPD, wife of Officer Tom Birchett and dear friend of Teddi and Maid of Honor. #3 Officer Tom Birchett, a dear friend and Best Man

#4 Rus Crochetti, a civilian BCPD supervisor; #5 Teddi; #6 Major Robert DiStefano; #7 BPD Detective Julio Ortega; # 8 Major DiStefano’s son's and then girlfriend, "Star", Pastor Dixon Yaste, he and his dear wife are both departed.

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Mr. & Mrs. Robert DiStefano

April 20. 1996

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Major DiStefano was married in the Old South Mountain Inn in

Boonsboro, it served as a field hospital during the battle of South Mountain, just before the Battle of Sharpsburg, or Antietam.  Major DiStefano is the gentleman with the white beard, and his best man Officer Tom Birchett is second from the left, all except the man in red are BCPD cops.  The minister is wearing the red of a Confederate Lieutenant of Artillery, he is also wearing the collar insignia of a chaplain, they served double duty in the Confederate Army.  Behind them, across the road, is the Dahlgren Chapel, Dahlgren was an admiral in the Union Navy during the Civil War, and he invented the Dahlgren Gun, and was named: "The Father of Naval Ordnance."   Major DiStefano is dressed in an authentic reproduction uniform of Confederate General James "Old Pete" Longstreet.

Left to Right : Sergeant Al Woolridge, Officer Tom Birchett, Russ Crochetti, Major Robert DiStefano, Officer Julio Ortega, Pastor Yaste

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Major Robert and Teddi DiStefano, Lieutenant William and Betty Stone.

Lt. Stone was dressed as Matthew Brady for the occasion!

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Officer John DiStefano

Officer W.Hackley photo

Honor Guard in Washington D.C. for POLICE WEEK1998

Police Officer Ron Starr, member of the Baltimore Police Honor Guard,
Posing with the restored 1968 Chevrolet Police Car
During a ceremony at the Baltimore Police Memorial June 2004

Detective Jeff Hidy: ‘God’s in the miracle business’

Jeff Hidy, a detective with the Baltimore City Police Department headquarters security, has battled three different cancers in the last year and a half. “I’m here because I’ve laid things in the Lord’s hands,” Hidy said .

BALTIMORE - Detective Jeff Hidy breathes deeply from the one and one-third lungs he has remaining and declares this “a blessed day.” He utters the phrase at every opportunity from a mouth that never loses its delighted grin. Blessed day, indeed. For Hidy, every day on earth feels like a bonus.

The lung cancer? “It’s like I had a cold,” he says.

The brain tumor they found 30 days later? “Big as a fist,” he says. “Want to see the scar?”

The pain in his leg that turned out, six months ago, to be bone cancer?

“I wouldn’t worry about it,” the first doctor told him.

By this time, owing to history, Hidy had learned a certain cautionary skepticism. He’d worry, all right. Two years ago, when he had a soft, annoying cough that wouldn’t go away, the doctor told him, “Jeff, I guarantee you don’t have lung cancer.”

“Just the same,” said Hidy, “I’d like to get a chest X-ray.”

The X-rays said the doctor was wrong.

“It doesn’t look good,” the doctor said.

“Trust in God; he’ll take care of it,” Hidy said.

A month later, when he was getting chemotherapy for the lung, he told a doctor, “I feel a little spacey. Something’s not right. The cancer couldn’t be in my brain, too, could it?”

“No,” said this doctor. “But why don’t we get an MRI, just to make sure?”

They operated on Hidy’s brain the next day and removed a tumor the size of a small fist.

“See the scar?” says Hidy. He takes off his uniform cap and displays an 18-inch scar quite visible amid a recovering sprinkle of hair.

“Spot balding,” Hidy says. “My wife calls me Spalding. Like the tennis ball, yeah.”

A 15-year veteran of the Baltimore City Police Department who lives with his wife, Karen, in Middle River, Hidy utters every syllable with sheer joy. He beat the lung cancer, and he beat the brain tumor, and he’ll beat the bone cancer, too, he says.

“A blessed day,” he declares again. “All credit to the Lord. He just keeps carrying me. Satan gave me the tumors, but the Lord carries me through. Plus, I give some credit to the doctors, too.”

He is an upbeat man in a profession that can play decidedly downbeat. The cops see the worst of human nature, and deal with it. Sometimes, it’s all about approach.

“I’ve always been blessed,” Hidy, 50, was saying the other day. He sat in the lobby of police headquarters, near the base of the Jones Falls Expressway, and greeted almost all police employees walking past by their first names.

“In 10 years on the street,” he said, “I never had to shoot at anyone, never had to use my nightstick, never even used Mace. My partner used to say, ‘If Jeff locks somebody up, there shouldn’t even be a trial.’ I treated people the way I’d want them to treat my mother. And I got respect 95 percent of the time.”

Then there was that other 5 percent.

“Well, one time a woman came at me with a knife,” Hidy remembers. “I was responding to a domestic call. She came down the stairs at me with a steak knife. She could have hurt me. I didn’t want to shoot her. She just needed to be calmed down, and I just talked calmly and said I’d try to help her. I was really happy that I could.

“See, every threat level’s different. Anyone’s a liar who says they’re not scared out there. But, as a police [officer], you work your way through your fears. One time this girl hit me with a flashlight. It was Christmas. She was scared, and she went right into a corner and huddled in fear.

“I told her, ‘Listen, my Christmas present to you is, I’m not going to arrest you. But I want you to go to a hospital for help.’ And we got her treatment. That was a blessed day, a very blessed day.”

The phrase tumbles out of him reflexively. He is a deeply religious man at a highly vulnerable time of his life, and this is his comfort.

“I tell people,” he says, “ ‘If the Lord could look out for a bonehead like me, imagine what he’ll do for you.’ I tell this to people all the time. Don’t be scared.”

It is a fact that not everyone who prays gets healed. Hidy’s a man of faith, but he’s not blind.

“But God’s in the miracle business,” he says.

Hidy feels he’s been the recipient of two miracles so far: in his lung and his brain. Now, on his off days from work, he’s getting chemotherapy for the bone cancer. The smile never leaves his face, nor the phrase from his lips: a blessed day, he says.

It’s a blessing just to be around such optimism, and such a man.

COURTESY BOB SMITH BPD PHOTO SUPERVISOR

*BALTIMORE POLICE MOUNTED UNIT*

Courtesy Major Robert DiStefano

Colonel Dick Francis, Major Gill Karner, Captain Robert DiStefano

Officer Vince Cole

COMMAND STAFF 1990's

.

SERGEANT ROBERT "Bob" FISHER

1985 Assigned to Tactical Section 

CAPTAIN GARY D"ADDARIO

Captain Garry D'Addario 

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

Courtesy Det Ken Driscoll

Sgt. Sonny Dickson

Photo courtesy Lieut. Doug Baumgarten

Officer Doug Baumgarten  1989

Photo courtesy Lt. Juan Rodriquez & Sgt. Linda Rodriquez

Juan Rodriguez and Linda Rodriquez
The first husband and wife promoted to the Rank of Sergeant on the same day
in the history of the Baltimore City Police Department. June 8, 1994.

(below) Their certificates of promotion to Sergeant

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar with the Baltimore Raven's Cheerleaders

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar with the Super Bowl Trophy

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar with Mick Jagger

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar with Hulk Hogan and  Randy Savage

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar with President George W. Bush

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar with Jay Leno

Photo courtesy Officer Bill Edgar

Officer Bill Edgar & Chris Rock

Officer Larry Fasano and Officer John Doesburgh

Officer W.Hackley photo

 Sergeant Fred Roussey (now Lieutenant) and his wife Charlene with Police Commissioner Edward Norris, at the wreath laying National Law Enforcement Officer's Memorial, Washington, DC.

Lost their son "Jamie" LODD March 8, 2000

Officer Alan Keitz

Officer Edward Doyle-Gillespie

Courtesy Officer James McCartin

Officer James McCartin

Courtesy Officer James McCartin

 Officer James McCartin

Courtesy Officer James McCartin

Courtesy Officer James McCartin

Officer James McCartin with the Emerald Society's van

Officer Larry Fasano

Lieutenant Johnny Paradise

Lieutenant J. Russell

Served 1979-2005

Officer Roan Everett

Donations

Donations help with web hosting, stamps and materials and the cost of keeping the website online. Thank you so much for helping BCPH. 

POLICE INFORMATION

Copies of: Your Baltimore Police Department Class Photo, Pictures of our Officers, Vehicles, Equipment, Newspaper Articles relating to our department and or officers, Old Departmental Newsletters, Lookouts, Wanted Posters, and or Brochures. Information on Deceased Officers and anything that may help Preserve the History and Proud Traditions of this agency. Please contact Retired Detective Kenny Driscoll.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

NOTICE

How to Dispose of Old Police Items

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department. Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

 

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll 

1940 - 1960

COURTESY JOSEPH PEIGHTEL

Photo courtesy Norma Spencer Johnson

 
COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN
Officer John Smith Southern District

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN

Officer Barton Rictor and Officer Sherman Riggin

Officer Winard Starkey

March 24, 1940

Courtesy Bernie Wehage

Officers Cochran and Moran at the corner of Katherine and Wilkins Ave
Southwestern District Radio Car Number 72 on 8 April 1949

31 Aug 1954

 

Officer William Pillsbury
Central District
North Ave and Charles Street

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN

Officer Garry Keil Western District April 24, 1940

Police Give “Royal Suite“

To Frolicsome Great Danes

1945
The above suspect James Smiley (15 Years Old) was arrested and held in Baltimore
He is wanted in Michigan for the Murder of his Foster-Mother Mrs. Edna Smiley
She adopted him as a child, they recently argued and he killed her with a .22 Cal. Rifle

Baltimore Police

Don New Chapeau

It may not have been designed by Schiaparelli, but Patrolman Paul E. Harman of the Central District Police Station likes his new chapeau. The dark blue octagonal cap which Patrolman Harman and all-district men on the Baltimore Police force donned at 4 pm on 7 Oct 1944, that replaces the oval-topped cap which has been the style here for a little more than 30 years. “all the men like’em” Patrolman Harman, a native Baltimorean who lives at 3212 Matson street, said, “They’re neater, lighter and they won’t blow off as easily as the old ones.” “Besides, my wife likes mine. She says it’s more becoming, and brother, that’s good enough for me. That a woman ought to know about hat’s she buys enough!” NOTE: In 1886 they went from the "Derby type hat" to the Bobby/Helmet cap, wearing a black bobby/helmet in the winter, and a grey/silver bobby/helmet in the summer. The Bobby/Helmet was worn for approx 28 years from 1886 until 1914, when they switched to the cap just before the above (current cap) it looked similar to today's cap; but was round/oval, that cap was worn from 1914 until 1944 (7 Oct 44) when they switched to the 8 point cap... the current cap of today has been worn since 1944.

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN

19 April 1950 Dukeland Wilkins Ave

Officer Richard Klima, Northwest District, July 4, 1940

 Sergeant Examination September 28, 1940

 Officer George Waldhauser, Officer R.J. Matter, Officer H.C. Beyer, Officer A.J. Schoenhoff, Officer Walter Kuzmaul, Officer Joseph Rehak, Officer John Thierauf

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN

Patrolman Howard Collins

January 2, 1941

 

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN 
 Garbage Strike

January 4, 1941

 

 

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN

Lieutenant Edward Burns, Southwest District

February 6, 1941

***********************************

1942

 

Photo courtesy Bob Poist
Officer Edward Poist

DOB: 9/6/1905

DOD: 9/16/1956

Graduated from Baltimore Police Academy 1942

Officer of the year 1955

**********************

1943

COURTESY OFFICER JAMES McCARTIN

Officer Milton Gardner, Officer Harry Scott, Officer James Butler

June 12, 1943

An Instructive Address to the Assistant Buyers Club

By Inspector Joseph H. Itzel

December 1944

A particularly instructive and factual address carrying many little-known facts having to do with the activities of the Baltimore Police Department was delivered on November 30 by Inspector Joseph H. Itzel before the Assistant Buyers Club. A digest of his remarks is given herewith It is a privilege and pleasure indeed to address the members and friends of the Assistant Buyers Club of Baltimore's Retail Stores, in representing your law enforcement agency. In these critical days when the question of law enforcement on the home front is of such major importance, may I take this opportunity to thank you and express my appreciation for the spirit of friendship, cooperation and your interest in your Police Force? We hope you will know us better and become more intimately acquainted with our problems and activities. While it has not been my good fortune to meet you all personally, nevertheless I do feel intimately associated with you through my acquaintance and friendship with my good friend Mr. James P. Burnside, your president. The Police Force is maintained by municipal funds and under the control of the State. This system is in force in only three of the ten largest cities in the country-Boston, St. Louis and Baltimore. The first (non-paid) "VOLUNTEER CONSTABULARY" of Baltimore was created in 1729, the citizens having been driven to this exigency by the alarming depredations of a swelling lawless element. The first "SALARIED WATCH AND PATROL" was created by the Maryland Legislature in 1784. From 1784 to 1860 the Force had been under the control of local officials. In 1860 the Legislature enacted a law placing the department under State control. Today, for the first time, we have a man from the ranks-Honorable Hamilton R. Atkinson, a former Police Inspector. You must remember that police work today covers a broad field of highly specialized pursuits, and to direct as a Police Commissioner must, he must understand them. He must have special qualifications. He must have developed a broad concept of police work, must have an administrative ability, foresight, integrity and physical vigor, professional training and show leadership over a large group of subordinates. The Commissioner has demonstrated successfully this responsibility. It is impossible to encompass within the scope of this summary all of his achievements since taking over command of the Police Department fifteen months ago. Reference, however, is made to several outstanding improvements which are characteristic of Commissioner Atkinson's administration.

JUVENILE PROTECTIVE BUREAU

On January 17, 1944, the Commissioner established the Juvenile Protective Bureau for the purpose of attempting to curb juvenile delinquency and to exert a measure of protective influence in preventing delinquents acquiring court records. Through its instrumentality, the juvenile case is placed in the proper channel for adjustment when necessary and both child and parent are counseled along corrective lines to prevent a repetition of the complaint.

The following is a breakdown of cases showing the activities of the Juvenile Protective Bureau from the Bureau's inception to September 30, 1944:

Involving adults ………………….....14

White Males ..………………….. ..428

White Females…………………….80

Colored Males………………….. .301

Colored Females...........................166

Total….............................................989

Under 10 years…………………...256

10 to 15 yrs. Inclusive……………686

16 to 20 yrs. Inclusive……………..33

Adults……………………………....14

Total……………………………….989

During 1943 throughout this nation 3,785 serious crimes were committed each day-this meant that one out of every twenty-one American homes was a victim of the crime toll. But tragic as that is, it is not our greatest tragedy. The real tragedy in these figures is found in the rising number of youthful offenders. Arrests of boys under seventeen years of age have increased thirty percent since the outbreak of the war. All of our war casualties are plainly not battle casualties. The most positive view is, that we should quit trying to cure juvenile, delinquency by correction and begin curing it by prevention. Prevention means giving juvenile wholesome things with which to occupy his or her time. The seriousness of the problem of juvenile delinquency is more clearly seen when it is noted that compared with arrests in 1941, the figures for 1943 throughout the United States show that arrests of girls under 21 years of age increased 130.4 percent. Juvenile delinquents have created the greatest problem. In 1943 over two thousand persons. under seventeen years of age were sentenced in this nation and the greatest part of these were boys. These figures indicate that the factors contributing to delinquency are still very powerful and point to the need for each community to intensify its efforts to stop the rising tide of delinquency and juvenile crime. All of the constructive influence which an aroused community can provide are urgently needed to combat this menace to our internal strength. Youth today is seeking sympathetic response, recognition, security and new experiences. Any worthwhile youth program cannot overlook the fundamental human desires, for our failure to satisfy all or any of them is a barrier to the development of good citizens. Young people know what they like and the great majority of them adhere to decent things. We must strengthen the "HOME" in every way possible for the primary responsibility for the care and protection of our boys and girls and this must rest within its four walls. Youth is our greatest national asset. We dare not waste it. The watchword should be that of ALERTNESS AND CONTINUOUS UNITY OF ACTION

Too many American communities and fathers and mothers are trying to blame the war for the prevailing, growing and menacing wave of juvenile delinquency. Parents concentrate altogether too much energy and thought on making money. They have no time for their children and little influence over them. It is adults who raise or lower moral standards-children merely reflect the change. After the war, all that can be shown for the big paychecks will be a wrecked home. A sympathetic understanding of the problems confronting these children is necessary. This protective element is paramount in our Juvenile Protective Bureau. Our mission will be fulfilled. No father or, a mother has a right to evade their responsibilities.

This department is keenly aware of the great responsibility which, by law, rests upon it to protect from harm the lives, liberty and property, day and night, of more than one million persons in their homes and their livelihood. We are severely taxed with many burdens, and one of the principal problems is a crime. In the face of a considerable influx of people and an acute housing shortage, it would seem to be especially gratifying, and indeed, incredible that decrease of 8.09% (796 cases) serious crimes was reported in 1943 as compared with 1942. Arrests in 1943 show a percentage of 50.8%.

I respectfully submit statistics of serious offenses reported in 1943 as compared with the number in 1942.

Offense                           1942         1943

Aggravated assault…… 165              179

Manslaughter………… ...   8                   6

Murder………………… 108                  96

Rape…………………… 79                   95

Carnal knowledge……...13                   14

Larceny……………...6,505              5,314

False pretense……..... 339                 325

Embezzlement…………72                    46

Robbery………………588                   682

Burglary……………..1,898               2,225

Forgery………………....62                    59

RADIO CARS IN 1943

The radio cars (patrol service) covered 2,479,106 miles during the year and responded to 112,558 calls, as compared with 118,454 in 1942. Members of this division made 10,356 arrests for various offenses including 19 murder; 1,308 for common assault; 153 for assault and cutting; 84 for assault and shooting; 18 for assaulting officers in the performance of duty; 155 burglars; 5,468 cases involving breach of peace; 130 for carrying deadly weapons; 440 for larceny; 106 drunken drivers and 25 for purse snatching. The cars responded to 4,415 accident calls, 3,230 alarms of fire, recovered 386 stolen automobiles and 62 bicycles; removed 454 persons to hospitals and rendered first aid to 25 victims of gas and other poisons.

BOY’S CLUBS

On June 22d, 1944, one of the achievements of our Police Commissioner Hamilton R. Atkinson, as the dedication of the first Police Boys' Club at the Southwestern Police Station. Some 425 youngsters ranging from 8 to 18 years of age had signed up for membership when the new clubrooms were opened by the Police Commissioner, State and City officials. The club is open five days a week from 4 to 9 p.m. The membership is divided into groups competing against one another in athletic contests. They have a program of self-government and select their own representatives to enforce the club rules. There is a library, a completely equipped machine shop for woodwork with metal work equipment to follow. Another club is now being established in the Eastern Police Station.

AUXILIARY POLICE

In December 1941, our Police Commissioner organized an "Auxiliary Police Force," a unit of Civilian Defense Organization, to help make up for the number of active police that would be drawn off to assist in the war effort. More can be found HERE

Newspaper article dated Feb.21, 1944 indicating that 22 Baltimore Police Officers have given their lives in the line of duty

Courtesy Mike O'Hara (Grandson)
P/O Eugene "Mike" O'Hara
Served with Baltimore Police Department for 30 years

Above Sergeant Henry M. Sinski supervisor of the evidence collection unit in 1948

Photo courtesy Tom Bolvari

Original newspaper article reporting the promotion of Lieutenant Thomas J. Keyes to the rank of Captain and being assigned to the Traffic Division in 1948

 

Below pictured Thomas J. Keyes as Deputy Commissioner sitting at his desk.

Photo courtesy Tom Bolvari

Deputy Commissioner Thomas J. Keys sitting at his desk.

Photo courtesy Tom Bolvari

Photograph of President LBJ that was personally autographed to Thomas Keyes with best wishes and signed by the President of the United States.

ABOVE,  July 8, 1949, following the hanging of

Ray Arnold Woods for the murder of

Baltimore Police Officer Joseph Benedict,

Alfred H.Fischer (officer with the badge)

witnessed the hanging and helped transport

the body to the morgue

Lieutenant John Rollman

BPD METER MAIDS 1950'S

Photo courtesy Lt. William Bowen
Captain Elmer Z. Bowen (1954)

 
 Photo courtesy Officer Melvin Howell

Courtesy Bernie Wehage

Officer Melvin Howell

Photo courtesy Office Melvin Howell

Photo courtesy of Officer Melvin Howell

Officer Melvin Howell

Courtesy Officer John Brazil

Courtesy Officer John Brazil

 JULY 6, 1955 

Courtesy Officer John Brazil

 Officer John Bazil

Officer John Brazil's display of his dad's police equipment. 

Photo courtesy James Robertson

Photo courtesy James Robertson

COURTESY OFFICER WILBUR BARTELS

Sergeant Milton Kniese making a phone call to his station from the call box located at Morton and Oliver Sts., around 1957 

COURTESY RET. SERGEANT NICK CAPRINOLO

Courtesy Bernie Wehage

Photo courtesy Officer Jim Mitchell

Photo courtesy Officer Jim Mitchell

 Photo Courtesy James Redding

Officer Clyde Redding escorting a prisoner

Officer John W. Franks, Northern District

1ST.Black Baltimore Police Officer is marked on the back of this original photograph. We only include it here, because he was an officer, and deserves to have his photo displayed, and displayed here. That said, the hat device is a Baltimore hat device/badge, with a slight difference. His badge is also very similar to the Baltimore badge but also has some differences. His uniform is one of a Baltimore City Officer, having Northwestern collar pins, but the buttons do not appear to be Baltimore Police Buttons. The Hat he is wearing is an 8 point hat, Baltimore Police started wearing Bobby cap/helmets in 1886 then switched to a round/oval hat in 1908, they wore the round/oval hats until 1944 (8 Oct 44), so this photograph was taken after 1944. There is another photo of an officer from behind, dated 1926, it could be this officer, he appears a little younger, and is wearing the round/oval hat. It is possible therefore that he was an auxiliary or special appointed officer of the Baltimore Police Department. No date was indicated in the photograph. All that said, we know he was not the first Black Police Officer as that distinction was held by Violate Hill Whyte, Lt. Whyte joined the department at the age of 40 in 1937, and retired in 1967. She worked Northwestern, and Pine Street's Western District from 6 A.M. until 6 P.M. every night, never missing a single day work, in 30 years, in fact, after retiring in 1967 she continued working for approximately a month and a half to two months while she finished some projects she was working on. Sadly Lt. Whyte passed away in 1980 in a Nursing home on Keswick Ave. God Bless her, she was an amazing lady, and outstanding police, she said two things that I thought were the reason she was who she was, first she said, "I am not afraid of work!" and another things she said, "Being first means nothing, unless you are also your best!" Now this to me was interesting, as the first Police Department in the United States was, Boston; followed by Baltimore, (Some argue New York was second/they're wrong LOL). In Boston the first Irish Police Officer was, Bernard "Barney" McGinniskin, he went on to be one of the best Irish Police in a heavily populated Irish city, had he been the first and been terrible at his job, it would have only brought more negative thoughts for future Irish Police Officers, and those that had negative feeling toward Irish Police in the first place. So what Lt. Whyte was saying,”Being the first means nothing unless you are also one of the best?"   I studied statement analysis, and pay close attention to one's words, and in this Lt Whyte, wasn't taking full credit for "HER" ability, she wasn't saying, "Unless I am the best!" which would have been taking full credit, (credit she deserved), this told me, she would have been modest, soft-spoken, maybe even a bit shy. I talked to those that knew her, and my beliefs were verified. Lt. Whyte was that of a soft-spoken, modest, hard-working police; she didn't seek attention for her actions, and in fact, her actions often spoke louder than her. She couldn’t call herself the best, but we can, and will, "she was the best", and as she said, "Being first means nothing unless you are also the best!" She was recognized for her hard work, and dedication to duty... before she was recognized for the color of her skin, or where it ranked in seniority among other officers in the Baltimore Police Department.

 

 Courtesy Bernie Wehage

 

Officer U.B. Huff Traffic Division

Mother's Day breakfast May 10, 1959
Amateur K-9

PHOTO COURTESY OF HIS DAUGHTER BARB (WOLFE) BUSSELLS

 

Donations

Donations help with web hosting, stamps and materials and the cost of keeping the website online. Thank you so much for helping BCPH. 

POLICE INFORMATION

Copies of: Your Baltimore Police Department Class Photo, Pictures of our Officers, Vehicles, Equipment, Newspaper Articles relating to our department and or officers, Old Departmental Newsletters, Lookouts, Wanted Posters, and or Brochures. Information on Deceased Officers and anything that may help Preserve the History and Proud Traditions of this agency. Please contact Retired Detective Kenny Driscoll.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

NOTICE

How to Dispose of Old Police Items

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department. Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

 

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll 

  1800 - 1900 

We can’t all be heroes; Somebody has to sit on the curb and clap while they go by!

1866

 

Issac, brother-in-Law of Augustus and Joseph.(below)

Information provided by Richard Johnson a family member presently living in Glen Burnie, Maryland.

 

 

Apr 25, 1937

Baltimore's Police Department--A Checkered Career

LEON JACOBSON  The Sun (1837-1987);pg. 60

Baltimore’s Police Department – A Checkered Career
Corruption of Force in the Know-Nothing. Led to Abuse, and State Intervention
Free Elections Assured After Writing and Intimidation of Voters of Earlier Day
By Leon Jacobson
The anomaly of a local police force, maintained by municipal bonds, began under the control of a state agency obtains in only three of the 10 largest cities in the country – Boston, St. Louis and Baltimore. This gives rise to an especially particular situation here, with General Charles D Gaither’s third term as police Commissioner coming to an end in May. His successor will be appointed by Gov. nice, who was rejected at the polls by the city in 1934 and who was carried into office only on the both of Baltimore County. The beginning of state authority over the city police dates back to the most disgraceful era in local history. From its origin in 1784 to 1860 – the police force had been under control of local officials. By that time, however three or four decades of ebullient politics and contaminated it and that body had become so corrupt and ineffective that the state was compelled to assume authority over it. In 1863, the legislature enacted a law created a board of four police commissioners, but subsequent legislation made the commissioners appointed of by the governor and, later, establish a single Commissioner in place of the board. Gen. Gaither, appointed by the late Gov. Ritchie in 1920, was the first single head.

MOBTOWN RIDING
Sporadic writing and mild violence especially around election time had by 1825 already one for the city the soubriquet Mobtown. But the Mobtown epoch in local history is generally considered to have lived and died contemporaneously with the know nothing party, because it was not until the introduction of this party locally that politics found the lowest depths of depravity, and democracy, here at least met its greatest challenge.
Preaching and anti-alien, at the Catholic doctrine, the know nothings known also as the American party first appeared here as a secret order in 1852, probably in the month of October. The time, however, was not yet ripe for such a movement to make an impression, the old parties being too entrenched for this newcomer to edge into the field. But the temper of Pre-Civil War politics was rapidly melting the national solidarity of the old parties and as the weekend nationally, so they did it locally. The know nothings, appealing to the considerable anti-alien sentiment latent in the city and counties, made the most of the situation.

VICTORIES IN 1854
In 1854 – their mayoralty candidates one in Cumberland and Hagerstown; in 1855 – they added Annapolis and Williamsport. In 1856, they completed their meteoric rise. The city and 13 hour of 21 counties were now arranged in their column. With his first taste of success – the party had discarded its secrecy and division into covert councils and had reorganize itself in the clubs bearing such candidly prophetic names as the plug uglies, tires, rough skins, bloody tubs and black snakes. In educating the public, these clubs recognized no law. It became their duty to stuff the ballot boxes and terrify the opposition. Their methods – or rather there implements – of persuasion – were shoemakers awls – slingshots – truncheons – mortar lives – pistols and muskets. Scores of dissidents were hustled into damp sellers until the balloting was over. They were beaten and robbed in the process. Others were forcibly intoxicated and was to the polls to vote the right way. (Note there is a rumor that Edgar Allan Poe was one of those forced to intoxication and made the boat at several voting boxes is said this is what led to his death)
Incendiarism was not infrequently practiced. The opposition’s pre-election meetings were with sleep broken up. After one election – eight were reported killed, 150 injured. Not only men but little boys were said to have gone around armed with guns during periods of political excitement. In one instance, a small cannon was brought into play. In this manner, half of the electorate was deprived of its right to vote.

WHAT WERE THE POLICE DOING ALL THIS WHILE?
Prior to 1856 – they had put forth some effort to quell disturbances and preserve order. But they had been unable to cope with the situation for two reasons. First, the other parties had been employing an election tech make just as diabolical as the know nothings, albeit with somewhat more discretion and conscience: and second – they had not been properly upheld by the magistrates in the discharge of their duty.

FREQUENT ARRESTS
In one year – the police commanded by one Capt. Brown of the Western district – arrested one man more than 100 times – only to have him released in each instant by the magistrate. Police officers at the time claimed that they would arrest from 25 to 50 miscreants in one night – but their prosecution would go to naught and their prisoners of their homes. Perhaps no single event or person was more characteristic of the debasement of the day than one judge stump of the criminal court. He was notorious for his loose habits and disregard of the conventions of civilized society and the dignity of a court. He was frequently picked up by the Nightwatch for his convivial habits. His judicial career and it ultimately with impeachment.

END OF POLICE
After 1856 police intervention became an impossibility and order of far-off abstraction. In that year a know nothing mayor was elected and the force soon became permeated with partisan politics. The police, who previously had been making an attempt, how-ever futile, to enforce the law, now became tools in subverting it. The first hint of form occurred just before the state elections in 1857. The near – anarchy attempted every election had been adversely affecting local business. The riding and disorder had secured hundreds of County merchants away from the city and the local tradesmen were determined not to lose out again. Consequently, they combined with those of the electorate who did not participate in party politics and presented being deprived of their vote and argued Governor Ligon, a Democrat, to take measures toward ensuring a peaceful election.

MAYOR REFUSES
Moved by his sense of duty and, undoubtedly, also by his animosity toward know nothing mayor salon – the governor acquiesced. He came to Baltimore and, by letter, invited the Mayor to cooperate with him in the enforcement of all during the approach and election period. The mayor refused blatantly, informing the governor that local law enforcement was his business and not the concerns of the state. The governor, disregarding the mayor’s reply, proceeded at once to make military arrangements for the maintenance of peace. He ordered Maj. Gen. John H. Stuart, of the first light division, to hold his command ready for service: Maj. Gen. John Spears Smith was ordered to enroll six regimens of not less than 600 men each. To arm the equipment this forest – 2000 muskets were barred from the governor of Virginia. At the same time governor Ligon issued the following proclamation; “Having been credibly informed by a large and respectable number of citizens of Baltimore that serious apprehensions are and entertained that the approaching general election is threatened with extreme violence and disorder in this city, sufficient to terrify and keep away from the polls many peaceable voters, unless the civil arm is vigorously interposed for their protection… And having solicited his (Mayor’s) cooperation… And having received from him no favorable response… I hereby proclaim that I have directed the proper military officers to enroll and hold and readiness their respective corpse for active service at once, and especially on the approaching day of election…”

SPECIAL POLICE
But the military range the governor did not prosper, for in his own words, “that class of citizens who military service is mainly to be expected exhibited first, indecision, and, at last, unwillingness to respond to the call which had been made upon the community.” As a result, the mayor agreed to appoint 800 special policeman among the members of the two major parties (he refused, nevertheless, to choose half the number from the ranks of the Democrats). But nothing came of it. The special police were powerless without the support of the regular force. Those who were to conscientious were told to leave the polls – as they had no business there. Many of them tendered their resignations to the mayor before the day was over.

ROUGHING VOTERS
What is the election was with neither riot nor bloodshed, but fraud and intimidation rendered it anything but democratic. The roughs at the polls employed a regular system of signals to indicate the reception to be accorded the voter. For example, as the gator approach, he was solicited by a party heeler and, if he were voting the Know Nothing ticket, the healer would try out: “clear the way: let the voters come up.” But, if he were to decline the Know Nothing ticket, the healer would shout: “meet him on the ice” and the voter would some really be pushed away from the window and into the street. When men were assaulted, the police either arrested them or tried to persuade them to leave the polls. The assailants met with almost no opposition. But deliverance from these chicaneries was not far off. The state election of 1859 signal the decay of the know nothing party. The know nothings carried the city by large majority. But the counties discussed it with the state of affairs in the city, revolted and went into the Democratic column, the result being the legislator for the first time in several years was decisively not Know-Nothing.

BALTIMORE POLICE
One of the first matters to engage in the legislation attention was the question of a proper police force for Baltimore: in one of the first acts passed was one taking control of the police away from the mayor and placing it in the hands of the board of four commissioners elected by the legislature. By 1860, the know nothings had outlived any definite principles accept an attempt to obtain public office. In the local election of that year, they made their last stand. But, we can by internal wrangling’s and missing the aid and comfort of a friendly police force, they were forced to retreat never to reappear on the local political front. The Civil War came the following year and claimed the energy of those turbulent spirits who had been keeping the city continually in a state of warfare.

NOT ALONE
Baltimore was not alone in surrendering control of its police to a state agency. Many another city was also afflicted by the seething politics of the middle decades of the 19th century: and many another police force was given to corruption. As a consequence, it became the fashion of the day to relinquish authority in favor of the state.
State control had been justified mainly on the grounds of police were primarily occupied with the enforcement of laws passed by the legislator and intended to operate uniformly throughout the state. Therefore, it has been argued, they are not agents of the municipality, but rather of the state whose laws they are under oath to execute.
On the other hand, the argument is advanced that since the municipality pays for the maintenance of the police force, it should retain supervisory power over it. In most instances, nevertheless, with the restoration of water, authority has been returned to local hands. But not so here. Probably, because the behavior of our police during the last 77 years has not been so bad as to warrant a change, and probably also because a change is not in itself a guarantee of improvement.

 

 Baltimore Flood

1868 - Friday, July 24, 1868 - The Baltimore Flood overtook the city. In a crisis the bravery of Commissioner Carr in rescuing the victims of the catastrophe, became a matter of national fame. Harper's Weekly, at the time, in a long article on the floods, quoted the following editorial notice from the Baltimore Sunday Telegram, of July 26, 1868: "It is a true saying, that in times of great public calamities, some men rise to the position of a greatness, and such was the case with Police Commissioner James E. Carr. He at first sight apprehended the character of the calamity, and he immediately sent for boats and organized a sufficient force of policemen to manage them. He soon had work enough to do. He led the van in his boat in places of great peril, and rescued women and children preventing them from drowning in a flood the likes of which Baltimore has never seen. The part most difficult to explain, is the rapidity with which the streams rose. The Patapsco River at Ellicott City and Jones Falls, rose at the rate of five feet in ten minutes; the water came down those streams like a great wave on the sea-short. The river at Ellicott City rose ten feet before a drop of rain had fallen there, and was at one time forty feet high. In this city the rise was so rapid that a gentleman entering a cigar store from a dry street returned with a lighted cigar to find himself knee deep in a rapidly rushing stream. A passenger car, while crossing a street, was caught by the flood, and with its passengers was swept several blocks toward the river. The market men were caught at ' their work, and only had time to get on their benches and stalls for safety, and these were washed away with their occupants. Terrible as was the catastrophe in Baltimore, it was much worse in Ellicott City. Had it occurred at night the loss of life that it must have caused is fearful to contemplate! It was about ten o'clock in the morning when the water first rose above the banks of Jones Falls, and began to flood the low streets of this city. Slowly, at their beginning, the floods covered Harrison street, but in a moment they rushed down Harrison street, increasing in volume at each minute, until the bed of the street was filled with a swollen and powerful stream, whirling on in its surface the shattered remains of ruined homesteads, wrecks of furniture, and, in fact, almost everything in ordinary and common use. When it reached Baltimore Street the stream divided into three currents. One rushed like a torrent to the right, the other to the left, and the third ran with more slowness down the center of the market. Above the roar of the vortex could be heard the shrieks of women and children, and the cries of men for help, as they were whirled along with the furious current. Even carriages, with their occupants, were caught up and carried along. For some hours after the awful scenes of destruction had begun in the center of the city, the greater part of the population of the upper portions, kept indoors by the pouring rain, had no idea of the dreadful occurrences below. An extra edition of the Evening Commercial, published at about two o'clock, gave them their first intimation of the disaster. When the flood first appeared on Harrison Street the police busied themselves aiding the residents of the street to carry their household goods to places of safety. In a few moments, however, they were obliged to turn their attention towards rescuing the people themselves. Alarms were rang, and men called in from all the stations, to the scene. Numerous boats were promptly ordered from the wharves by the Police Commissioners, and were hurried to the inundated district. They were manned by experienced boatmen and police men. Most of the boats were launched from the Holiday Street Theater, and were sent thence, under the direction of Commissioner James E. Carr, through Calvert, North Holiday, and other streets, for the purpose of removing families and furniture to places of safety!!!

 

  Apr 29, 1861

PROHIBITING THE DISPLAY OF FLAGS The Sun (1837-1989); pg. 2 Prohibiting the display of flags. At this very critical juncture of opinions on Bunting, the pulling down of an American flag by order of the board of police is an act which a little preserve ingenuity may distort into an atrocious, not to say flag-itious, offense. But the times require good men to be true and reasonable. We are very sorry to find some disposition prevalent to deal unjustly and mischievously with this matter. We can say, with the knowledge of the fact, that our excellent board of police have done several things which none could regret the obvious propriety of doing more than they. Yet in all they have done. Where is the man among us who will say he has suffered the privation of any civil right at their hands? Just think for a moment of the wonderful preservation of the general peace and order of the city seem to tearfully exciting times of the last few weeks. Think how the turbulent elements of the city have been subdued. Think how few Outrages have disturbed our sense of right and justice, when the inflamed populous were bent on securing arms by any means. Think of the mild but effective restraint exercise over the whole community one passion and resentment stirred the whole city to go forth and make war upon the Pennsylvania volunteers at Cockeysville, and happy termination of that affair and sending out to them an abundance of food to relieve their family shooting condition. And think about this is the worst that can be said of that good old Baltimore, which they so lustily abuse in the North, which, as it comes to its senses, will be induced to do us justice, while the South can really have no good cause of complaint against us.But to the flag affair. Our citizens know very well that those whose taste for the display of flags is so exceedingly susceptible. Enjoyed the opportunity of giving the nation Bunting to the breeze on the fall of Sumpter. For several days sympathy with the administration and hostility to the south was expressive in this way at several places in the city and did some newspaper offices. Then came the sad affair of Friday, the 19^th, after which, and suddenly, the Confederate flag was in the ascendant, and the emblem of the Southern Confederacy was everywhere, while the national flag was voluntarily retired. But our readers are not all where that one a rush was made upon the corners of the Minutemen to pull down the American flag, the first man who appeared to stop the lawless movement was Mr. Davis, one of the board of police, and to at once resisted their purpose. The flag remained, and was removed voluntarily and that leisure by the Minutemen themselves, under the unpleasant feeling that seemed to associate their sympathies with those who had shed the blood of our own citizens.And a word here upon the Confederate flag demonstration. That was by no means what it has been supposed to be – a secession demonstration. It was an exhibition of that feeling which still pervades pretty nearly this whole community – an unwavering devotion to southern rights. And the mistake still prevails the north that the union men of Baltimore are in different to southern rights: if this is not an egregious mistake, we have misunderstood at her own citizens.The southern rights demonstration, through the exhibition of respect for the southern flag, was apparently all but universal until a few days ago when it was ascertained that a union flag was to be hoisted at two or three places in the city. The fact was one to be seriously considered apart from any disposition to oppose the hoisting the United States flag. It was a question of the same importance, had it been a white sheet, with the same probable result the belief was consistently entertained by the commissioners of police that if they did not prevent the movement or take down the flag, a mob would have attempted it, a desperate riot would have ensued, and the peace of the city have been murderously and possibly overwhelmingly destroyed. Accordingly, true to their office, and the impartial execution of their duty, they issued an order that flags of every description should be withdrawn during the session of the legislature. When that order was issued, there were nothing to be seen but the Confederate flag and the arms of Maryland. Instantly all these flags were withdrawn: but the flag of the union was run up on Fells point and on federal Hill, and the collection of men had rallied to defend them and defy the police. Then it was that the police authorities insisted upon compliance with their orders. The union flags were taken down, and the peace maintained and that good peaceful citizen will not admit that it is far better for the display of flags should be temporarily suspended, rather than the piece of the city be so needlessly disturbed?Amputations against the police are easily made, and sensor is a flippant thing when reason is an abeyance. But peace and good order we enjoy is worth 10,000 times over the display of a flag. Men can cherish their peculiar views, and maintain their associations without Bunting, at least during a period of great domestic excitement. 

Voters and police assemble outside a barbershop turned polling place. Before the Civil War, election violence was so prevalent that wags often referred to Baltimore as "Mob Town." This early twentieth-century image suggests that elections still attracted a police presence.

 

 

Baltimore Police Lieutenant circa 1860's

J. Thomas Arthur was born on 4 April 1840 in County Clare, Ireland. He was in Baltimore by 1864 (above)
Officer Arthur served in Baltimore City's Police Department at the Central Station.
In the photo, Officer Arthur is the older gent seated on the right side of the picture. (below)
The photo of the Central Police Department was taken about 1890. Notice the details, brass lamps and sconces, polished furniture with turned legs ... there's even a telephone on the desktop at the left.

 

OFFICER JOHN WEITZEL DISPLAYING SECOND ISSUED BADGE 1860

17 September 1910

Why The Control Of The Police Board Was Given To The State

Inasmuch as there has recently been some talk of restoring the complete control of the Police Department of Baltimore back to the state. It might be an opportune time to recall the reason the appointment of police Commissioner was committed to the state the first time. In 1860 the police commissioners were appointed by the Mayor and City Council under a law authorizing them “To Establish Night Watch or Patrols and to erect Street Lamps.” Soon after the enactment of this old law the police force became a political machine in the hands of the Mayor. In the 1850s, when the “Know Nothings” were in control of the city and the various societies known as “Blood Tubs,” “Plug Uglies,” “Rednecks,” “Pioneers,” “Spartans,” “Regulators,” “Black Snakes,” “Tigers,” “Eubolts,” “Rip Raps,” “Ranters,” “Little Fellas,” etc., ran riots on election days, the police became an element of the mob. In 1837 a city reform association was organized and issued an address to the people, in which it was declared that there was no reasonable and sufficient security in Baltimore for persons, property or franchise.

The Central Reform Committee in 1859 declared that the police, with a very few honorable exceptions, openly sympathized with the rioters at the November election and in almost every case arrested those who were assaulted by ruffians. The Reform Convention of 1859 appointed a committee to draft loss to reform the city government. The committee was composed of William H. Norris, Philip Francis Thomas, I. Nevitt Steele,, S. Teakle Wallis, and Nielsen Poe. The election of 1860 was carried by violence, but the legislature unseated the whole city delegation, and, at the request of the city for the preservation of peace and good order, enacted the  Jury Law and the Police Law – the latter drafted by Mr. S. Teakle Wallis. That law, passed at the urgent request of the city, took the appointment of Police Commissioner from the city and confided it to the state, where it remained until 1978.

The act of 1860, chapter 7 – which reorganized the police force, retained a singular provision, which it is believed was not in the original draft as written by Mr. Wallis. It is as follows: “provide, also, that no black Republicans or endorser or approver of the Helper Book shell be appointed to any office under said board.” This law created four Commissioners, to be elected by the Legislature, the first board being named in the bill – namely, Charles Howard, William H. Gatchell, Charles D. Hinks and John W. Davis. The board appointed Col. George P. Kane Marshall of the police

The Board of Commissioners continued with four members until 1874, when it was reduced to three. The board was Democratic until 1897. In 1896 the first Republican Legislature was elected, and two Republican Commissioners, Mr. Johnson and Mr. Heddinger, were appointed. From 1897 to 1900 the board was Republican. In 1900, at the request of the city, the appointment of the commissioners was committed to the Governor, where it would remain until 1978. The reason for the change was to put the responsibility for the character of the board upon the Governor. The responsibility of the Legislature was not personal and constituted no restraint. A strong effort had been made in the Republican Legislature of 1898 to give the appointing power to the Governor. A Republican caucus nominated Mr. Frank C. Wachter for Commissioner, but because of divisions in the party the election did not take place, and Mr. Schryver, the only Democrat on the board, held over.

At this session a number of different bills to give the appointing power to the Governor were introduced. Senator S. A. Williams, of Harford County, introduced one of them, and this, we believe, was supported by Senator Putzle, then representing one of the city districts. An amendment was offered by Senator Wescott, of Kent County, giving the appointment to the Mayor of Baltimore. This was rejected all three of the city senators – Putzle – Dobler and Strobridge – voting against it, although all were Republican, and there was at the time a Republican Mayor. Governor Crother, then Senator from Cecil County, introduced two bills for the appointment of the Commissioner by the Governor. One of them provided for a bi-partisan board, two Commissioners from each party. But all the bills failed.

The Reorganization bill of 1900, which was passed by the Legislature, was introduced by a city Senator and was voted for on its final passage by the two city Senators who were present – to wit, Senators Brian and Moses.

The record here presented is given to show that the appointment of Police Commissioners was first taken from the Mayor and City Council and put with the Legislature at the request of the city. It was then taken from the Legislature and given to the Governor upon the initiative of the city and by the action of the representatives of the city in that Legislature. There was never in this connection any assault by the counties upon the home rule of the city. As it is, while the appointing power is at Annapolis, the Police Commissioners must under the law be “three sober and discreet persons, who shall have been registered voters in the city of Baltimore for three consecutive years next preceding the day of their appointment.” 

 

Photo courtesy Mrs. Karen Kidd
Detective Albert Gault