Omaha Police Department

Omaha Police Department

Patch of the Omaha Police Department

Badge of the Omaha Police Department
Motto To Serve & Protect
Agency overview
Legal personality Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
General nature
Operational structure
Sworn members 821
Agency executive Todd Schmaderer, Chief of police
Facilities
Stations 6
Website
Omaha Police Department

The Omaha Police Department, commonly known as the OPD, is the principal law enforcement agency of the city of Omaha, Nebraska. It is nationally accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. The OPD is the largest law enforcement agency in the State of Nebraska.[1]

The OPD has 821 sworn officers covering an area of 118.9 square miles (308 km2) and a population of 446,599 people (2014 census estimate) within city limits.

Organization

Command structure

Omaha Police Headquarters

Police Chief Todd Schmaderer has served as chief of police since 2012. He was appointed by the mayor with approval by the Omaha City Council, as are all police chiefs. There are four deputy chiefs who are responsible for the Uniform Patrol Bureau, Criminal Investigations Bureau, Police Services Bureau and the Executive Services Bureau. Below the chief in rank are four deputy chiefs, who have an area of responsibility within the department.

Rank structure and insignia

Rank Insignia
Chief of Police
Deputy Chief
Captain
Lieutenant
Sergeant
Police Officer

Omaha Police Chiefs

Name

Dates

Todd R. Schmaderer

2012–Present

David L. Baker (interim)

2012-2012

Alex N. Hayes

2009-2012

Eric W. Buske

2008-2009

Thomas H. Warren, Sr.

2003-2008

Alan F. Pepin (interim)

2003-2003

Donald L. Carey

1998-2003

Charles J. Circo (interim)

1997-1998

James N. Skinner

1989-1997

Robert C. Wadman

1982-1989

Jack D. Swanson

1981-1982

Elwin Lewis Stokes

1981-1981

Richard R. Andersen

1967-1981

Lester K. Smith

1965-1966

C. Harold Ostler

1957-1964 and 1966-1967

Harry N. Green

1954-1957

Henry Boesen

1951-1954

Fred Franks

1948-1950

Robert Munch

1947-1948

Paul Haze

1944-1947

Bob Samardick

1935-1936 and 1944-1944

George W. Allen

1932-1935

John J. Pszanowski

1928-1932 and 1936-1944

Charles VanDeusen

1924-1928

Peter Dillon

1923-1924

Marshal Eberstein

1918-1921

Michael Dempsey

1918-1918 and 1921-1923

Henry W. Dunn

1912-1918

J. J. Donahue

1899-1912

Con Gallegher

1897-1898

Al Sigwart

1895-1897

Martin J. White

1895-1895 and 1898-1899

Webber S. Seavey (Omaha’s First Police Chief)

August 1887 - June 1895

Chief History

Webber Seavey, Omaha Police Department's first chief, Founded the International Association of Chiefs of Police in 1893. In 1982 Robert C Wadman was the first Chief to be appointed from outside the ranks of the Omaha Police Division. He was Utah Deputy Commissioner of Public Safety and served until 1989. Thomas Warren, named by Mayor Mike Fahey in 2003 was the first African American to serve as Chief in the Omaha Police Department. He served until 2008.

Patrol area

The city of Omaha is divided into quadrants by the department, with a precinct in each quadrant; Northeast, Southeast, Northwest, and Southwest. Omaha Airport Authority Police Department is a separate agency and is the law enforcement agency at Eppley Airfield, a medium-hub, primary airport serving Greater Omaha and the region.

Specialized divisions and units

Like most urban police departments, OPD has specialized squads and units to deal with the differing law enforcement issues of the city. Units include:

Omaha Police Department Horse Patrol
Omaha Police Department Cruiser

History

Further information: Omaha Claim Club
OPD Badge

In 1941, the department chose a distinctive badge design. The design is still in use today.

There have been 25 deaths of officers in the line of duty. Officer Larry Minard was killed on August 17, 1970 by a bomb placed by members of the Black Panther Party. The Omaha Police Department was heavily involved in the FBI's COINTELPRO operation, and using evidence from COINTELPRO, and from the confession of Duane Peak, Panthers David Rice (now known as Mondo we Langa) and Ed Poindexter were convicted for Minard's death and were both sentenced to life. The guilt of the two has been questioned, and Amnesty International has released reports criticizing the prosecutions actions in the Rice/Poindexter Case. Rice would later die in prison.

Officer James B. Wilson, Jr. died on August 20, 1995. He was killed while sitting in his cruiser after pulling over a van with fictitious plates, out of which two of eight gang members exited the vehicle and shot him with an AK-47 and a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol.

Officer Jason Pratt died on September 19, 2003, a week after being confined in intensive care with a gunshot wound to the head. Pratt was shot in the line of duty during a foot pursuit. He was a member of the Omaha Police Department's S.W.A.T. team.[2]

On 26 August 2014, Omaha policemen accidentally shot and killed television sound technician Bryce Dion. Dion was killed while his team was filming an episode of the TV show Cops.[3]

Officer Kerrie Orozco, a 7-year veteran of the Omaha Police department, and a member of Gang Unit, was shot and killed on May 20, 2015, while attempting to serve an arrest warrant. Officer Orozco was part of the Metro Area Fugitive Task Force, and was in the process of serving an arrest warrant when the suspect opened fire, striking the officer. Officer Orozco was rushed to CHI Health Creighton University Medical Center, where she succumbed to her injuries.The suspect was also rushed to CHI Health Creighton University Medical Center, where he too succumbed to his injuries.[4] This is the first time an officer has died in the line of duty since September 19, 2003, when Officer Jason Pratt was shot and killed. Orozco was also the first female Omaha Police officer killed in the line of duty.[4][5]

Demographics

Breakdown of the makeup of the rank and file of OPD:[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://opd.ci.omaha.ne.us/about-us
  2. ↑ http://www.nonpareilonline.com/news/omaha-officer-pratt-killed-in-line-of-duty-remembered/article_ad494526-c050-5b42-96e7-c2a4b53fd22b.html
  3. ↑ Molloy, Tim. "'Cops' Soundman Mistakenly Shot and Killed by Police, Chief Says". The Wrap. Retrieved 26 June 2016.
  4. ↑ http://www.ketv.com/news/female-officer-hurt-in-shooting-near-30th-and-martin/33127572
  5. ↑ http://www.odmp.org/agency/2917-omaha-police-department-nebraska
  6. ↑ Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics, 2000: Data for Individual State and Local Agencies with 100 or More Officers

Coordinates: 41°15′19″N 95°56′06″W / 41.25528°N 95.93500°W / 41.25528; -95.93500

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