Rockledge Police Department Chief John Gallagher recently shared his appreciation for a successful first year serving the Borough.

Chief Gallagher, who came to Rockledge from Narberth, highlighted the Borough’s new foot patrol program, traffic enforcement, the purchase of new equipment, and increased training,

From his Facebook post:

THANK YOU, ROCKLEDGE, FOR A GREAT YEAR!

I started in Rockledge as the Police Chief a year ago today. It has truly been an honor. I’d to thank all of the residents, business owners, elected officials and Borough staff for welcoming me and supporting our officers this past year, and what a year it has been.

We instituted our new foot patrol program that included the signing of police logs at ten different locations along our business corridor. We returned to covering school posts during the 2022-2023 school year and conducting more security checks at the playgrounds to do our best to keep the children in our community safe. We stressed officer visibility to deter crime and other unacceptable conduct, like disturbances, disorderly conduct and loitering.

We increased traffic enforcement with daily vehicle stops and periodic traffic details. We heightened security for our great traditional events, like the Annual Car Show & Fall Festival and the July 4th Parade & Fun Festival, with help from our partners in the Abington, Cheltenham, Philadelphia and Septa police departments. We coordinated and hosted the first annual Legacy Run for St. Cecilia’s School with assistance from the Public Works team, and who could forget the fun we had on Christmas Eve with our friends in the Rockledge Fire Co. for Santa’s Sleigh Ride during what was surely the coldest night of 2022.

We joined with the Delaware Valley Intelligence Center to ramp up situational awareness by getting information about crime along the city border and in other municipalities that could possibly impact the Borough. We now attend the Fox Chase Town Watch Assoc. monthly meeting to share intelligence about issues that affect the Rockledge-Fox Chase community, so that we’re better prepared to combat crime and address other public safety concerns.

Sadly, we had to say goodbye to our former Borough Manager, Grace Metzinger, but, eventually, we welcomed our new one, Bryan Poster. Grace, Bryan and Joyce Hines, the Administrative Assistant, have been such a big help to me this past year. Mayor Jim Caffrey and Councilman Dave Sheppard worked endlessly this past year to secure necessary equipment, and get much needed repairs inside the police station completed as soon as possible. Thanks to both of you for dedication, effort and loyalty.

To raise morale for our officers and invest in them, we purchased new firearms with attached flashlights and optics to improve the officers’ accuracy and confidence while on patrol. We recently had state-of-the-art camera technology installed in our vehicles with Axon mobile video recorders. For the career development of our personnel, we encourage them not only to take the training that they need to meet state requirements, but also register for classes, seminars, symposiums and conferences that they’re interested in, as well.

Additionally, we returned our officers to the area training standards by enrolling them at the Municipal Police Academy at Montgomery County Community College, so that they can attend classes with their colleagues from police agencies within this county. Networking with other local officers promotes comradery in this profession.

Furthermore, we worked with the Civil Service Commission and Borough Solicitor Joe Bresnan to give a test to fill vacant full-time officer positions. We hope to see those new hires very soon. We’re continuing to recruit part-time officers to bolster our department.

Finally, and most importantly, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of our officers who have done such a tremendous job this past year. None of these achievements would’ve been possible without them. I’m proud to lead these officers, but even more proud to work alongside them each day.

Overall, if these are the results after only our first year, then I can’t what to see what the future brings for this great department and our wonderful community. Again, thank you, as always, for supporting the Rockledge Police Department. We couldn’t have done it without the citizens whom we so proudly serve.

Have a safe and happy rest of summer!

John Gallagher
Chief of Police
Rockledge Police Department

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