Covington Police Department

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The Covington, Kentucky Police Department, located in Covington, Kenton County, Kentucky, United States, is charged with law enforcement services for a city of 40,640, encompassing 13.7 square miles (35 km²) in northern Kenton County. The department is Led by Colonel Robert Nader, Lieutenant Colonel of Operations Brian Steffen, and Lieutenant Colonel of Services Patrick Swift.^[1]

History[]

In 1817, the Town of Covington created the position "Captain of Patrol," and assigned two "Patrollers" under his supervision. The patrol area included the Town and eight miles of surrounding territory. In 1833 the first full time Town Marshall was appointed. An act of the Kentucky General Assembly in 1834 incorporated Covington as a city, and in 1842, the City of Covington appointed its first "Police Commissioner." Covington City Ordinance created the “Voluntary Night Watch" in 1843, which consisted of seventy-one reputable persons invested with police authority. In 1856 a regular citizen's police force was established. ^[2]

Organization[]

The department is currently staffed by 114 sworn officers, each assigned to one of 4 bureaus. Though several substations exist, most personnel operate out of the central headquarters, located at 1 Police Memorial Drive.^[3]

Patrol Bureau[]

The Patrol Bureau is the largest of the department's four bureaus^[4] employing over 60% of the department's sworn personnel. It is functionally divided into four shifts providing 24-hour police response to calls for service. Each shift is commanded by a lieutenant with the aid of three sergeants, all overseen by the bureau captain. The patrol bureau utilizes officers in a variety of specialty positions including bicycle patrol, canine, community relations, school resource, DUI enforcement, field training, and a Traffic Unit. The Devou Park rangers and civilian cadets are assigned to the Traffic Unit.

Criminal Investigations Bureau[]

The Criminal Investigations Bureau (CIB) consists of sworn investigators, civilian lab and crime scene technicians, two sergeants, one lieutenant, and one captain. They are responsible for the investigation of felony crimes, missing persons, and major incidents.

The detectives are assigned to one of three sub-divisions: Major Crimes, General Investigations, or D.A.R.T. Major Crimes investigates homicides, robberies and rapes. General Investigations handle assaults, burglaries, missing persons, financial crimes, and arson investigations. The Domestic Abuse Response Team (D.A.R.T.) is responsible for child abuse, elder abuse, juvenile crimes, and domestic violence.

The Crime Scene Unit is staffed by non-sworn technicians. They assist officers at major scenes by photographing, collecting, processing, and transporting evidence. These technicians also operate the department's Crime Lab, and are routinely called upon to assist lesser equipped neighboring agencies with evidence examination. The bureau also employs civilian Forensic Computer Analysts to recover evidence from phones, computers, and electronic devices.

Administrative Bureau[]

The Administrative Bureau provides the support services needed to operate a police department. Among these are: recruiting and hiring of personnel, facilities maintenance; equipment procurement, maintaining internal and external training procedures, and managing the department's accreditation process. The department maintains accreditation through the Kentucky Association of Chiefs of Police as well as the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies.^[5]

Under this bureau is the Records section, which is the repository for the agency's data. They are responsible for maintaining reports, citations, and conducting legal functions as required by law.

The LGBT Liaison Officers of the department serve as a link between the agency and the city's LGBT Community. The mission of the program is to build communication between the LGBT Community and the department through developing trust and understanding. Officers are invited to group meetings and are made available for appointments.

D-Team[]

Formerly the "Bureau of Strategic Services," the D-Team is the department's specialized enforcement unit. The D-Team focuses on the detection, investigation and neutralization of drug trafficking as well as quality of life patrol in the special housing units throughout the city. The D-Team consists of investigators supervised by a Sergeant and overseen by a captain. One investigator is part of a K9 Team which is partially funded by the DEA. The investigators are assigned to plain-clothes, street level narcotics cases, the FBI Safe Streets Task Force (focusing on combating violent street gangs, crimes of violence, and the apprehension of violent fugitives) the DEA task force (focusing on investigating middle to upper level drug trafficking organizations), and the Housing Authority of Covington.

SWAT[]

Composed of officers from various bureaus, the Covington Police Department SWAT (Special Weapons and Tactics) team was created to provide rapid response to situations beyond the capabilities of normally equipped patrol officers. The unit is a part-time team, and when not engaged in special operations or training, officers work within their regularly assigned bureaus. The team can be deployed in response to barricaded subjects, hostage situations, civil disturbances, counter-sniper operations, high-risk warrant service, and VIP security. The unit has provided support to, and been supported by, the Kenton County Regional SWAT Team, a part-time tactical team composed of members from other area police departments.

Line of duty deaths[]

• Officer Michael Anthony Partin

EOW: Sunday, January 4, 1998 Cause: Drowned

• Patrolman Donald Ronnebaum

EOW: Friday, July 26, 1968 Cause: Struck by vehicle

• Patrolman Cleophus Eifert

EOW: Friday, February 8, 1946 Cause: Gunfire

• Patrolman Harry Rose

EOW: Thursday, November 10, 1938 Cause: Motorcycle accident

• Patrolman Neil Regan

EOW: Friday, November 11, 1932 Cause: Gunfire

• Patrolman Benjamin F. Law

EOW: Monday, January 5, 1925 Cause: Gunfire

• Patrolman David B. Rogers

EOW: Sunday, May 13, 1923 Cause: Motorcycle accident

• Patrolman Frank Duncan

EOW: Friday, June 19, 1908 Cause: Gunfire

• Patrolman William McQuerry

EOW: Tuesday, June 12, 1900 Cause: Gunfire

• City Marshal John T. Thompson

EOW: Sunday, February 28, 1869 Cause: Gunfire

References[]

External links[]

• "City of Covington, KY Police Department". www.covingtonky.gov.
• "Line of Duty Deaths, Covington Police Department, KY". The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP).