Montgomery County Police Department

The Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD), officially the Montgomery County Department of Police (MCP), is a nationally-accredited agency and the primary law enforcement agency of Montgomery County, Maryland, providing the full spectrum of policing services to the entire county.

Established in July 1922, the MCPD is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and in addition to its primary duties, it also provides aid and assistance to other police departments including the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia, and in neighboring jurisdictions such as the District of Columbia, Howard County, Baltimore City, and Prince George's County as requested by authority.^[5][6][11]

History

The MCPD's first chief with several policemen on the MCPD's first day of operations in July 1922.

MCPD policemen at Rockville in 1927.

An MCPD policeman in 1929 on a motorcycle.

An MCPD policeman in 1929 on a motorcycle.

MCPD policemen at Silver Spring in 1952.^[12]

An MCPD car at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in 1968.

An MCPD corporal with an elephant at a carnival in 1971.

Firemen and an MCPD policeman rescue a person during flooding in 1975.

MCPD officers directing traffic in 1981.

Two MCPD officers provide security at the annual "Battle for the Kings Trophy" football game in September 2008. They are wearing the black uniform that was introduced in 2008.

1922–1955: Founding and expansion

The MCPD was established in early July 1922, absorbing some responsibilities from the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) through Chapter 259 of the Acts of 1922. At the time, the department was designated to consist of three to six officers that were appointed to two-year terms by the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners, with one officer designated as the chief. In 1927, the department was enlarged to twenty officers by Chapter 299 of the Acts of 1927.

From 1922 until 1935, the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners designated one police officer from within the MCPD's ranks to serve as its chief. In 1935, through Chapter 9 of the Acts of 1935, the regulations were changed so that the chief could be appointed from any source, at the discretion of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. In 1948, when Montgomery County transitioned to a charter government, the responsibilities of appointing chiefs for the MCPD was transferred to the Montgomery County Executive.^[5][6]

In 1927, the MCPD had 20 policemen.^[4] In 1931, the MCPD had 27 policemen,^[13] and by 1939, the MCPD had 35 policemen.^[13]

From 1927 to 1954, the MCPD was headquartered at the lower level of the Montgomery County Courthouse.^[4]

By 1955, the MCPD had 177 policemen.^[13]

Over the course of several decades, the MCPD would eventually grow to over a thousand officers.^[5][6]

1976–1979: DiGrazia and departmental politics

In 1976, the title of the head of the MCPD was changed from superintendent to chief.^[14] Also that same year, Robert J. DiGrazia, a former Bostonian policeman, became the MCPD's chief, intending to brings new changes to the department.^[15] However, he became unpopular with many officers in the department as they believed he was too sharply critical and demanding of them.^[16] As a result, he was removed from his position by the county executive in December 1978.^[17][18]

1979–1991: Crooke and modernization

In 1979, a computerized fingerprinting system was installed for use by the MCPD.^[14] Also that year, Bernard Crooke became the MCPD's chief. He would serve in that capacity before dying in 1988.^[19]

By the 1980s, the MCPD had 750 officers,^[19] and by September 1991 it had 849 officers.^[20]

1991–1999: Mehrling and the NAACP

On September 24, 1991, Clarence Edwards became the chief of the MCPD, becoming the department's first African American chief as well as the first African American chief of a Maryland county police department. However, in December 1994, Edwards was relieved of his position by Montgomery County Executive Douglas Duncan, who had taken office that same month, a move which angered the local chapter of the NAACP. Edwards was succeeded by interim MCPD chief Carol A. Mehrling, who joined the MCPD on March 29, 1971. On February 2, 1995, Mehrling was chosen by Duncan to be the MCPD's fourteenth chief, becoming the department's first female chief. The MCPD was, at the time, the second-largest police department in the United States to be headed by a woman.^[21][22]

On February 17, 1997, the local Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) body voted overwhelmingly in passing a resolution of no confidence in Mehrling's abilities as chief, claiming that she was not doing enough to defend MCPD officers against accusations of misconduct and abuse by the NAACP. As a result of these allegations, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) launched an investigation into the operations of the MCPD. On November 17, 1998, Mehrling announced that she would retire from the MCPD and did so on February 3, 1999, with Thomas Evans becoming the acting chief.

Throughout much of the 1990s, the MCPD faced numerous allegations of abuse, excessive force, and misconduct, including fatal officer-involved shootings in Wheaton and Silver Spring in April 1999 and March 1999, respectively. These accusations resulted in the U.S. Justice Department investigating the department for three years.^{[23][5][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32]}

1999–2003: Moose and the Beltway sniper attacks

On August 2, 1999, Charles A. Moose became the fifteenth MCPD chief, during a time when the MCPD was nearing the end of a three-year-long U.S. Department of Justice investigation into allegations of misconduct and abuse committed by its officers.^[23]

By the end of 1999, crime in Montgomery County was lower than at the start of the decade, with total violent crime down 16 percent, rapes down 23 percent, robberies down 8 percent, aggravated assaults down 19 percent, and overall crime down 9 percent.^[33]

On January 14, 2000, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was signed between the U.S. Department of Justice and the MCPD regarding abuses and misconduct committed by the latter. The agreement detailed how the MCPD was to address and correct the misconduct and abuses committed by its officers.^[34]

On March 12, 2002, John A. King, on Moose's recommendation, was unanimously approved as the MCPD's assistant chief by the county council, after Alan G. Rodbell retired on December 23, 2001 to fill a law enforcement job position in Arizonan city of Scottsdale.^[35]

In October 2002, several of the Beltway sniper attacks occurred in Montgomery County. Moose and the MCPD played a major role in the ensuing investigation. In June 2003, Moose resigned amid controversy over a book he helped author alongside Charles Fleming, that detailed Moose's experiences during the Beltway sniper attacks. The county government objected in stating that the MCPD chief was not allowed to profit privately from official duties; the book itself was released on September 15, 2003.^[36][37]

2003–2004: O'Toole and the search for a new chief

After resigning as the MCPD's chief in June 2003, Moose was succeeded by William C. "Bill" O'Toole, who served as the MCPD's acting chief until a new chief could be found.^{[38][39][40][41]}

2004–present: Manger, downsizing, and a new headquarters

On January 30, 2004, J. Thomas Manger, formerly of the Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD), became the sixteenth MCPD chief.^{[42][43][44][45]}

On October 5, 2007, ten MCPD officers were charged in a "double-dipping" probe. The accused officers were alleged to have improperly billed Grady Management, a Silver Spring real estate firm, for more than 8,900 hours for which they also were compensated by the police. The accused improperly earned more than $200,000.^[46]

From its founding until 2008, the MCPD wore khaki-colored uniforms.^[12] However, in 2008, the MCPD switched to its current black-colored uniforms. These uniforms are usually worn with a ballistic vest on top of the uniform's shirt, with the word "POLICE" embroidered onto the back. However, formal uniforms for ceremonial occasions are still khaki and olive-colored.

In 2010, the MCPD shot and killed a hostage-taker at the Discovery Communications building in Silver Spring after he attempted to chase after his hostages when they attempted to flee.^[47]

The MCPD's total number of personnel declined from 2010 to 2012.^[10] In 2010, the MCPD had 1,629 policemen, but by January 2012 it only had 1,159.^[8][9][10]

Until 2012, the MCPD was headquartered at 2350 Research Boulevard in the county seat of Rockville. In 2012, the MCPD moved its headquarters from Rockville, where it had been headquartered for forty years, to the Montgomery County Public Safety Headquarters, located at 100 Edison Park Drive in Gaithersburg, Maryland, located around four miles from the former MCPD headquarters. The process of transferring the MCPD's headquarters to its new location took around two years at a cost of 108.5 million dollars. The MCPD shares the building with other county agencies, such as the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) and Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security. The MCPD's 1st District station was also consolidated into this new headquarters. The building which houses the headquarters, located near Lake Placid, was built in the 1960s and was originally used by the National Geographic Society, and later by General Electric (GE). The building was leased to the county government before a purchase date of 2014 was finalized.^[48][49][50]

On the evening of January 30, 2014, an MCPD officer shot and killed his son at their home in Gaithersburg as the latter was stabbing the officer's wife, who later died.^[51][52]

In December 2015, an MCPD policeman was struck and killed by an automobile being driven by an inebriated person.

2014: Interstate 270 closure

On the morning of March 11, 2014, personnel from the MCPD, Maryland State Police, Rockville City Police, and Prince George's County Police Department, acting on a report, set up a roadblock on across all twelve lanes of Interstate 270 (I-270) and walked car to car with weapons drawn. The incident brought hundreds of vehicles and thousands of motorists on the interstate to a standstill as dozens of police officers conducted vehicle-to-vehicle searches at gunpoint for bank robbers.^[53][54]

Controversy

A controversy over the tactics used by the MCPD ensued, with reports of officers walking down I-270 between stopped cars with weapons drawn, telling people to get back in their vehicles, and demanding commuters pop their trunks without any explanation why. One woman was reportedly shouted at by police with weapons drawn after she'd opened her car door to throw up, having gotten motion sickness from sitting in her vehicle for an extended period of time. Chief Thomas Manger defended the MCPD's actions, stating that they were justified under exigent circumstances.^[55] Don Troop, a man who witnessed the incident, told the Washington Post that a group of officers made its way to his car and other cars around him. "They were just walking along saying: 'Pop the trunk! Pop the trunk!'" Troop said he overheard a man in a truck next to him call out to another motorist: "The police are looking for bank robbers." A short time later, about nine officers approached his car — including state troopers, county police officers, and at least one plainclothes officer. Among the commands given to motorists by officers were: "stay in your car", "pop the trunk", "get your hands on the steering wheel", and "get you hands up where we can see them", according to Troop. Corporal Aaron Smith, a pilot flying a Prince George's County police helicopter dispatched to assist stated that he "saw that they were searching traffic and going vehicle to vehicle."^[56] MCPD spokesman Captain Paul Starks described the incident as a "systematic check of trunks and rear hitches" of detained vehicles.^[57]

2014: School bomb threats

In April 2014 and May 2014, the MCPD responded to several bomb threats called against public high schools in the county by a Canadian teenager from Ottawa, Canada.^[58] In all three cases, the threats were determined to be baseless after the schools in question were evacuated and searched for any explosives, in which none were found.^{[59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68]}

Organization

The MCPD is divided into four bureaus and the Office of the Chief.^[69]

Headquarters

The MCPD is headquartered at the Public Safety Headquarters at 100 Edison Park Drive, Gaithersburg, Maryland, near Lake Placid. It was formerly headquartered at 2350 Research Boulevard in the county seat of Rockville.

Office of the Chief

The Office of the Chief is responsible for the day-to-day activities of the MCPD. This section also contains Community Services, Internal Affairs, Legal and Labor, Media Services, and Stress Management.

The current chief of police is J. Thomas Manger, who has held the office since January 30, 2004.^[39] He is the MCPD's 16th chief.^[70][39]

Until 1976, the MCPD's head policeman was known as its "superintendent", after which it was changed to its present title of "chief".^[14]

Field Services Bureau

The Field Services Bureau contains the general policing districts and the Special Operations Division.

Special Operations Division

The Special Operations Division (SOD), consists of the K-9 Unit, Emergency Services Unit, Police Community Action Team, Special Events Response Team, and Tactical Unit.

Investigative Services Bureau

The Investigative Services Bureau is responsible for providing specialized police services such as (but not limited to) the following: Criminal Investigations Division (CID), Auto Theft, Fraud, Family Crimes, Major Crimes, and Special Investigations Division.

Management Services Bureau

The Management Services Bureau is a largely non-sworn, civilian support bureau. It contains Animal Control, Emergency Communications, Budget, Personnel, Training, and other support services.

Districts

• 1st District, Rockville
• 2nd District, Bethesda
• 3rd District, Silver Spring
• 4th District, Wheaton
• 5th District, Germantown
• 6th District, Montgomery Village

Fleet

The Montgomery County Police Department utilizes a fleet of second-generation Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors, Dodge Chargers, Chevrolet Impalas, Dodge Magnums, Harley-Davidson Police Edition motorcycles, and others. The vehicles use LED lightbars with blue "steady-burn" diodes.

The MCPD also uses Lenco BearCats for emergency situations that require an armored vehicle.

Vehicle		Type	Country	Notes
	Dodge Charger	Cruiser	United States (origin)  Canada (manufacture)	Both first generation and second generation variants are used.
	Lenco BearCat	Armored car	United States
	Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor	Police car	United States (origin) (manufacture)

List of chiefs and superintendents

No.	Chief		Rank	Life	Tenure	Notes
1		Charles T. "Chas" Cooley[71][72]	Chief[71][72]	1869 – July 7, 1930 (aged 61)[71]	July 4, 1922 – July 1924[71][72]	The first chief of the Montgomery County Police Department. Originally from Frederick County, Maryland. Fought as a soldier in the Spanish–American War.[71]
2		William L. Aud[72]	Chief[72]		July 1924 – July 1926[72]	Was the Sheriff of Montgomery County from 1917 to 1919.[73]
3		Alvie Arville Moxley[72][74]	Chief[72]	June 16, 1876 – June 14, 1963(1963-06-14) (aged 86)[74]	July 1926 – January 1935[72]
4		William A. Garrett[72]	Chief[72]		July 1935 – February 1939[72]
5		Charles M. Orme[13][72]	Chief[13][72]	March 7, 1892 – July 14, 1970(1970-07-14) (aged 78)[13]	February 1939 – June 1940[13][72]	Fought as a soldier in World War I. Served in the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office as a deputy from 1925 to 1939. Under his tenure the MCPD grew from 35 policemen to 177 policemen.[13]
6		Andrew M. Newman[72]	Chief[72]		August 1940 – February 1943[72]
7		Leslie H. Carlin[72]	Chief[72]		February 1943 – December 1946[72]
8		Charles M. Orme[13][72]	Chief[13][72]	March 7, 1892 – July 14, 1970(1970-07-14) (aged 78)[13]	December 1946 – March 1955[13][72]	Fought as a soldier in World War I. Served in the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office as a deputy from 1925 to 1939. Under his tenure the MCPD grew from 35 policemen to 177 policemen.[13]
9		James Stephen McAuliffe, Sr.[75][76][72]	Colonel[75][76][72]	January 16, 1907 – October 31, 1996(1996-10-31) (aged 89)[75][76]	April 1955 – April 1971[75][76][72]	Was the 11th policeman hired by the MCPD.[75][76]
10		Kenneth Winstead Watkins[72]	Colonel[72]	October 21, 1923 – April 14, 2001(2001-04-14) (aged 77)	1971–1976[72]	Was the last policeman to serve as the MCPD's head when it was still known as "superintendent". After his retirement, it was changed to "chief".
11		Robert J. DiGrazia[14][72]	Chief[14][72]		November 1976 – December 1978[14][72]	Former Bostonian policeman.[14]
		Donald E. Brooks[72]			December 1978 – April 1979[72]	Became acting chief after Chief Robert DiGrazia was relieved.
12		Bernard D. Crooke, Jr.[19][77][72]	Chief[72]	1933 – February 23, 1988 (aged 54)	April 1979 – February 23, 1988[72]	Former MPDC officer.[19]
		Donald E. Brooks[72]			February 23, 1988 – September 1991[72]	Took over the duties of chief after Chief Bernard D. Crooke died.
13		Clarence Edwards[22][72]	Colonel[22][72]	(1940-02-14)February 14, 1940 – present[22]	September 24, 1991 – December 1994[22][72]	First African American chief of the MCPD and a Maryland county police department. Former U.S. Park Police (USPP) officer for 21 years, joined the USPP in September 1963. Also served in the Maryland-National Capital Park Police.[22]
14		Carol Ann Mehrling[5][21][28][72]	Chief[5][21][28][72]	1949 – June 14, 2015 (aged 67)[5][21][28]	1995 – February 3, 1999[5][21][28][72]	First female chief of the MCPD, at the time the second-largest U.S. police department headed by a woman. Served as interim chief from 1994 to 1995. Joined the MCPD on March 29, 1971.[5][21][28]
		Thomas Evans[28][29][72]	Chief (acting)[28][29][72]		February 1999 – August 2, 1999[28][29][72]	Served as the acting chief after the retirement of Carol A. Mehrling on February 3, 1999.[28][29]
15		Charles Alexander Moose[72]	Chief[72]	1953–present	August 2, 1999 – June 2003[72]	U.S. Air Force commissioned officer;[78] led the MCPD during the Beltway sniper attacks of October 2002. Former chief of the Portland Bureau of Police.
		William C. "Bill" O'Toole[38][39][40]	Chief (acting)[38][39][40]		June 2003 – January 30, 2004[38][39][40]	Served as the acting chief following the resignation of Charles A. Moose in June 2003, also served as the MCPD's assistant chief. Retired on August 1, 2006.[38][39][40]
16[39]		J. Thomas Manger[42][43][44][45]	Chief[39][42][43][44][45]		January 30, 2004 – present[39][42][43][44][45]	Former Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) officer; served as the FCPD's acting chief before becoming its chief. Graduate of the FBI National Academy.[39][42][43][44][45]

Ranks

Rank	Insignia	Notes
Chief of police		The rank insignia for the MCPD's chief is a gold-colored U.S. eagle, similar to the silver ones worn by colonels in the U.S. military.[79]
Captain		The rank insignia for an MCPD captain are two gold bars, similar to the two silver bars worn by captains in the U.S. Army. They are usually worn embroidered on soft epaulets.
Lieutenant		The rank insignia for an MCPD lieutenant is a single gold-colored bar, similar to that worn by second lieutenants and ensigns in the U.S. military.[80]
Sergeant		The rank insignia for an MCPD sergeant are three gold-colored chevrons. They are metallic pins and are worn on the shirt collar of uniforms.[81]
Corporal		The rank insignia for an MCPD corporal are two gold-colored chevrons. They are embroidered onto black cloth rectangles and worn as epaulettes, as well as metallic pins and worn on the shirt collars of uniforms.[82]

Historical ranks

Rank	Insignia	Notes
Chief of police (2002)		During the tenure of Chief Charles A. Moose, the MCPD chief's rank insignia consisted of two five-pointed yellow stars, similar to the silver ones worn by major generals in the U.S. military.

Patches

Patch	Dates of usage	Notes
	1930s–1955
	1955–1972
	1972–1979	Patch used by the MCPD during much of the 1970s. It was the last patch to feature the old Montgomery County coat of arms before it was redesigned in 1978.
	1979–present	In 1978, the Montgomery County coat of arms were redesigned by the British College of Arms, and thus, a new patch incorporating the new design was adopted the following year. The patch is five inches in height.

In popular culture

• The Montgomery County Police Department is featured in a chapter of the 1996 novel, Unintended Consequences.
• The Montgomery County Police Department is briefly featured in the 2001 episode of The X-Files television show, "Essence".^[83][84]
• The Montgomery County Police Department is featured prominently in the 2003 television film D.C. Sniper: 23 Days of Fear, where they are shown investigating a string of murders committed by a sniper in the county.
• The Montgomery County Police Department is featured in the 2005 comedy film The Pacifier.^[85]
• The Montgomery County Police Department is featured in the 2010 comedy film Red.^[86]
• The Montgomery County Police Department is featured in the third season episode "Gerontion" of the television show Homeland,^[87] where they investigate a double murder committed by an Iranian man at a house in Bethesda.^[88]

See also

• List of law enforcement agencies in Maryland
• Montgomery County Sheriff's Office

Notes

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Police of Montgomery County, Maryland.

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• Official website
• Montgomery County Police Department on Facebook
• Montgomery County Police Department on Twitter
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Wayback Machine (archived December 22, 2003)
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Wayback Machine (archived February 29, 2000)
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Wayback Machine (archived January 28, 1999)
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Wayback Machine (archived December 3, 1998)
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Wayback Machine (archived January 14, 1998)
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Wayback Machine (archived January 21, 1997)
• Montgomery County Police Department at the Officer Down Memorial Page

Law enforcement agencies in Maryland
State	State Police Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services - Division of Correction Transit Administration Police Transportation Authority Police Maryland Natural Resources Police
County departments	Anne Arundel Baltimore County Howard Montgomery Prince George's
Municipal departments	Aberdeen Annapolis Baltimore City Police Department Bel Air Bowie Cumberland District Heights Frederick Greenbelt Hagerstown Havre De Grace Landover Hills Laurel Ocean City Rockville Salisbury Seat Pleasant Takoma Park University Park Upper Marlboro
Sheriff's offices	Allegany Anne Arundel Baltimore City Baltimore County Calvert Caroline Carroll Cecil Charles Dorchester Frederick County Garrett Harford Howard Kent Montgomery Prince George's Queen Anne's St. Mary's Somerset Talbot Washington Wicomico Worcester
Universities	Bowie State University Frostburg State University Salisbury University Towson University University of Baltimore University of Maryland, Baltimore County University of Maryland at College Park Baltimore City Public Schools Police

Montgomery County, Maryland
Washington metropolitan area
Administration	Montgomery County Police Department Montgomery County Public Schools Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service Montgomery County Sheriff's Office
Landmarks	National Institutes of Health Shady Grove Adventist Hospital Walter Reed National Military Medical Center White's Ferry
Culture	Flag of Montgomery County Maryland SoccerPlex BlackRock Center for the Arts
Sports	Washington Spirit Bethesda Big Train Rockville Express Silver Spring-Takoma Thunderbolts
Education	Colleges Montgomery College Universities at Shady Grove High schools Bethesda-Chevy Chase Blair Blake Churchill Clarksburg Damascus Edison Einstein Gaithersburg Johnson Kennedy Magruder Montgomery Northwest Northwood Paint Branch Poolesville Quince Orchard Rockville Seneca Valley Sherwood Springbrook Watkins Mill Wheaton Whitman Wootton Private Avalon School Barrie School Brookewood School Cristo Rey Good Counsel Holy Child Holy Cross Georgetown Prep The Heights Montrose Christian St. Andrew's Stone Ridge
Transportation	Air Montgomery County Airpark Public transportation Metrobus Metrorail RideOn Highways Capital Beltway Inter-county Connector Interstate 270 Interstate 370 Roads Clopper Road Connecticut Avenue East-West Highway Georgia Avenue Germantown Road Great Seneca Highway New Hampshire Avenue Norbeck Road Old Georgetown Road Quince Orchard Road River Road Rockville Pike Sandy Spring Road University Boulevard Veirs Mill Road