Gastonia Police Department

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Gastonia Police Department
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MottoProtect, Serve and Enhance the Quality of Life for All
Jurisdictional structure
Legal jurisdictionMunicipal
Operational structure
HeadquartersGastonia, North Carolina
Sworn members180
Agency executive
  • Rob Helton, Chief of Police
Facilities
Boats1
Website
Official website

The Gastonia Police Department is the police department of the City of Gastonia, North Carolina. With 176 officers and 38 civilian staff (full and part-time), Gastonia PD serves a city with a population of about 70,000 people.

History[]

Gastonia's first policeman and Chief when Gastonia incorporated in 1877 was Oliver W. Davis, a beard-wearing, billy-swinging constable who owned most of the land that Gastonia is situated on today.

Early day policeman duties: administering the law, collecting the town's taxes, official cotton weigher and street overseer, lighting street lamps each night and extinguishing them the next morning.

The highest policeman salary in the years between 1877 and 1900 was $30 a month. Local law enforcement took great strides forward in 1899. I.N. Alexander, the Police Chief, was given a room in the Town Hall for his office and a telephone was installed.

In 1920 Chief J.E. Orr was paid $175 a month and patrolmen were paid $135 a month. Two motorcycles were purchased by the City for the Police Department in 1920.

A 1921 Dodge Touring car was purchased by the City for the Police Department in 1921. A.B. Hord was the daytime driver and Robert L. Rhyne, a fireman & assistant policeman, was the nighttime driver.

The first Gastonia Police Officer to lose his life in the performance of duty was Chief O.F. Aderholt in 1929 during the Loray Mill Strike. Three city policemen: Tom Gilbert, Arthur Roach and C.M. Ferguson, Sr., were wounded by gunfire but later recovered.

Two-way radios were installed in patrol cars in 1938 for the first time.

On April 1, 1946, Gastonia Police Officers were granted, for the first time, one day off each week. Working hours were reduced from 56 to 48 per week. E.E. Rankin, Desk Sergeant, was the first Gastonia Police Officer to attend the F.B.I. Police Academy in Washington D.C. from April 8-June 8, 1946.[1]

Today officers with the department are issued the Smith & Wesson M&P chambered for .45 ACP. Prior officers were armed with the Heckler & Koch USP chambered for .45 ACP.

Controversies[]

On October 13, 2021, Gastonia Police Department officers answered a call about a homeless veteran with a service dog. The veteran, Joshua Graham Rohrer, suffers from a VA-diagnosed service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder after his deployment to Kuwait and Iraq from October 2004 to November 2005.

According to the Army Times,[2] when the veteran failed to produce his ID fast enough, the officers "slammed him up against the car and [...] put cuffs on him", causing his VA-issued 2-year-old Belgian Malinois to enter a defensive behavior, "licking and trying to calm down" the veteran, which led one the GPD officers to taze the service dog. [3]

Despite a North Carolina statute on Service Animals,[4] the officers denied the veteran's request to have the dog accompany him. When the veteran was released the next day, the veteran faced "more insensitive treatment" by BPD officers, who "laughed at him and continually told him how horrible of a person he was".

After being released, the veteran spent two days looking for his service dog that was abandoned by GPD officers with "taser prongs dangling off her body". He eventually found that his VA-issued service dog has "been hit by a car and killed".

GPD has failed to issue any statement regarding the arrest and loss of animal.

Special units[]

Beyond patrol functions, the Gastonia Police Department provides the following services:[5]

  • Full-time units:
    • K-9s
    • Street Crimes
    • Citizens On Patrol
  • Special Situations Unit (duties in addition to patrol)
    • SWAT Team
    • Bomb Squad
    • Underwater Search and Recovery (USAR) Team
    • Hostage Negotiators
    • Snipers

Fallen officers[]

Since the establishment of the Gastonia Police Department, six officers have died in the line of duty.[6]

Officer Date of Death Details
Chief of Police Orville Frank Aderholt
Friday, June 7, 1929
 Gunfire
Patrolman John Hazel Smith
Sunday, September 5, 1937
 Vehicular assault
Patrolman S. C. (Preacher) McKenzie
Wednesday, August 13, 1941
 Automobile accident
Patrolman Bryant Kirn Birt
Saturday, July 29, 1944
 Automobile accident
Patrolman Charlie Vestel Murphy
Tuesday, August 1, 1944
 Heart attack
Patrolman James Edward (Red) English
Thursday, November 11, 1948
 Gunfire

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Gastonia Police History page". Archived from the original on 2008-05-17. Retrieved 2008-04-29.
  2. ^ "'She was just doing her job': Homeless vet loses service dog during arrest for panhandling". 27 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Gastonia homeless veteran arrested, service dog tased". 24 October 2021.
  4. ^ "Service Animals". 27 May 2021.
  5. ^ Gastonia Police Teams page
  6. ^ The Officer Down Memorial Page

External links[]

Retrieved from ""