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Is meant to introduce you
to the Kansas City Missouri Police Department, our mission, and values, how
we're structured, and a little splash of our history. We have a memorial
dedicated to our fallen officers. There's also a warm welcome from our Chief.
So enjoy your stay at KCPD and learn a little about us as an organization.
A
little KCPD History
A CENTURY OF SERVICE AND LAW
ENFORCEMENT
1874- Today
 Your police department had its beginning April 15, 1874, when the Board
of Police Commissioners, with George Caleb Bingham (famed Missouri artist) as
its president, appointed Thomas M. Speers to fill the office from April 15,
1874, to May 4, 1895. No chief since that
time has held the office as long as Chief Speers. Chief Clarence M. Kelley, who
in 1973 resigned to become the second permanent Director of the Federal Bureau
of Investigation, was head of the Kansas City Police Department almost twelve
years and was second in the length of time he served the citizens of Kansas
City. Both of these men were far advanced in their talents and actions in the
field of law enforcement, capable of giving the most to the citizens of Kansas
City for the dollars spent and the manpower available.
Since the appointment of Chief Speers, Kansas City has been served by thirty-four
men as head of the department. A search into history of the background of each
of these men soon reveals that each had an outstanding gift of leadership and
responsibility that suited them for the important office they filled.
In front of the Police Headquarters Building, 1125 Locust, stands a statue of
a police officer cuddling a small child in his arms. The monument in itself
relates a story,
but a closer look reveals one hundred and eight names engraved in the stone -
men who gave their lives in upholding the oath they took at the time they
became police officers. These men gave everything with the hope that their
sacrifice would make the city a better place to live. If space permitted, each
name would make a story well worth telling.
Communication has always been most important to the efficiency of any police
department. With this knowledge, Kansas City has always been one of the first
to adopt better and faster communication with the officer in the field. In
approximately 1902, the Gamewell Communication System was adopted. This was an
electric police alarm box operated on telegraphic principles by which a patrol
officer could send prearranged messages to headquarters by operating certain
switches. This method was very primitive when measured by today's standards,
but was a revolutionary advancement when it was first put into use.
In 1931, the police radio was initiated. The first of these was an AM radio
that could be used for communication from a police dispatcher at the
Headquarters Building to the police cruiser in the field. Again, these were an
improvement over anything up to that time, but suffered the drawback of the
officer being unable to voice a reply to the dispatcher.
 The big advancement in communication by the Kansas City Police Department was
in September, 1935, when two-way radios were installed in the first twelve
patrol cars. The mobile broadcasting stations had a power of 7.5 watts. The sets
were installed under the rear seats of the cars and were powered by special
generators in no way dependent on the regular battery. Each car was equipped
with an antenna about "ten feet high resembling a fishing pole."
Officers were given instructions in law governing the use of radios and issued
a third-class operator's license.
Today each officer has a radio or walkie-talkie near him at all times when he
is in the field. This is operated through the modern FM equipment. In addition
to the radio equipment, the officer has the use of a computer, stored with
information at his fingertips at all times. Through this computer, the officer
is in communication with every major law enforcement agency in the United
States.
Another important tool needed for fast, efficient police work is proper fast
transportation. In the early history of the department, the city was divided
into beats. These beats were covered by a patrolman walking and observing. In
the late 1800s, Chief Speers hired James McManamin to ride a big bay horse
about the city, patrolling and serving papers. Young McManamin proved so satisfactory
that other mounted patrolmen were put on the city's streets. The mounted patrol
grew until its number reached forty-five. This method of patrolling was phased
out on Labor Day, 1929, when it was found that horses were too expensive
compared to more modern methods of transportation. |