Constables

[railroadfuzz]

What's the primary duty and function of a Constable's office? Are they like a Sheriff's office? What about in counties where there is both a Constable's and Sheriff's office?

[steelcityk9cop]

Depends what state you are talking about.....they are all different.

[txinvestigator1]

Depends what state you are talking about.....they are all different.

Yep.......denial, confusion, despair, :p

[oscarmitre]

Yep.......denial, confusion, despair, :p

You forgot paranoia - or did you?....you might have deliberately left it out to confuse me. Yes, that's it, you did it deliberately Tx! You left it out so I'd post something about it. I'm onto you...and the black helicopters, them too...where's that tinfoil hat I had a moment ago.... :D

[txinvestigator1]

You forgot paranoia - or did you?....you might have deliberately left it out to confuse me. Yes, that's it, you did it deliberately Tx! You left it out so I'd post something about it. I'm onto you...and the black helicopters, them too...where's that tinfoil hat I had a moment ago.... :D

Get a new hat here... http://zapatopi.net/afdb.html

ROFLMAO. :p

[oscarmitre]

Get a new hat here... http://zapatopi.net/afdb.html

ROFLMAO. :p

Hah! Another plot! What if I make a tinfoil hat and it hands over control of my mind to the men with the black helicopters??? Noooooooooooooooo.... :D



Oh on the Constables (desperately trying to atone for aiding and abetting the thread hijack) I understand that their powers and duties differ almost on a regional basis. At least I think that's right. I belileve in the north-east they are different to, for example, Texas. Anyway it's an interesting question because although in Australia a police officers is really a Constable we don't have an officer who performs the duties of a Constable in some parts of the States.

[Wombat311]

Anyway it's an interesting question because although in Australia a police officers is really a Constable we don't have an officer who performs the duties of a Constable in some parts of the States.

Sounds similar to our Sheriff's office. Sort of. I think.

[mcsap]

In PA, constables are elected officials. They have authority to serve subpoenas, do prisoner transports and to arrest people who have a warrant. They do not have the authority to do traffic stops or to initiate an arrest. They get paid only for actually serving a warrant or a subpoena or for the transport. If they try to serve paper and don't find the person , they get nothing.

We make GOOD use of them to take people off of our hands who have warrants.

They are not law enforcement officers and must supply ALL of their own equipment.

[oscarmitre]

Sounds similar to our Sheriff's office. Sort of. I think.

I did think of them because I think they do civil service as well - what we used to call "Local Court". When I worked in the bush we were all involved in Local Court work. I received a Warrant from the Sheriff in Adelaide once ordering me to go and arrest a house. Had a hell of a job getting it back to the cells :D

(It was a warrant to seize a house from the unlawful occupiers).

[Odin]

What's the primary duty and function of a Constable's office? Are they like a Sheriff's office? What about in counties where there is both a Constable's and Sheriff's office?

In Texas I believe their main purpose is to serve process and evictions, carry out law enforcement tasks for magistrates, etc. I'm sure they do a variety of things that most people will never know about unless you're involved in some way.

Around Dallas it appears that they have decided to become revenue machines. The outfitted themselves with marked patrol cars, complete with pretty light shows, and now they run traffic arbitrarily when and where ever they choose. It seems like the local police would do that, but apparently that's what the Constables feel they need to do around here. Maybe there's a shortage of papers to be served or something?

[tgis81]

In PA, constables are sworn law enforcement officers. The constable is elected and he/she may appoint deputies. PA Constables have on view power of arrest, as well as when in possession of a warrant. In PA the citizens can arrest for a felony in their presence, but constables and police can arrest for any felony or misdemeanor they see. Constables in PA transport prisoners and are paid by the case (whether civil process, criminal warrant, transport, summary warrant, etc.). They are able to assist police or other law enforcement. They do have to buy all of their own equipment, just like most part time police officers must do. They can enforce any statute of the crimes code, fish and boat code, but not the vehicle code. They have their own mandated basic and continuing training which is run by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (the same agency who trains Deputy Sheriffs). Most of the constable's duties are very similar to the sheriff's duties in PA. However, some President Judges of certain counties limit their constable's powers.

Tony

[mcsap]

COnstables in PA are elected officials. They serve legal papers and can also make arrests on a pre-existing warrant anywhere in the state. They cannot initiate new charges but for anything from a parking warrant up to murder, they can cuff and stuff someone and haul them in.

They ONLY get paid for sucessfully serving papers or warrants. They must provide ALL of their own equipment and be trained by the state. They could be considered a self employed independent contractor.

We use them a lot when we arrest someone on warrants we can hand them over to the constable who than can charge them a fee plus mileage for every warrant , tkae them to jail etc. This frees us up to go back on patrol. If we serve the warrant, we cannot add any fees.

[steelcityk9cop]

Just to add to what MCSAP said….. Constables even supply their own vehicles. They CAN NOT mount emergency lighting to it…they can not add a siren. They can not stop cars…. They can not apply for an arrest or search warrant…. They can not charge anyone criminally for an indictable offense. A constable has no investigative power….and I don’t care what some 50 year old statute says. Constables don’t roll on calls…. Don’t back anyone up… they can’t, they are not police officers by definition.

I’ve cited, investigated and even arrested Constables for doing the most asinine stuff…. The arrest was for one who liked to pull women over in the middle of the night and identified himself as a police officer.

[tgis81]

No, I don't see constables as police officers because we are not employed by police departments or a sheriff's office, BUT if you want to go "by definition", their powers do fit these definitions:


PA Rules of criminal procedure Rule 103 (definitions)
Police officer: any person who by law is given the power to arrest when acting within the scope of the person's employment

Title 75 Vehicle code (even though constables are not permitted to enforce it)
section 102 (definitions)
police officer: a natural person authorized by law to make arrests for violations of law

I'm not really sure what 50 year old statute you are referring to in regards to investigations, but in terms of the arrest power of a constable... that has been established since The Constable's Law of 1897 section 45 "arrest of offenders on view" (which you can now find under title 13 section 45 "arrest of offenders on view"). Its exact wording is:
The policemen and constables of the several boroughs of this commonwealth, in addition to the powers already conferred upon them, shall and may, without warrant and upon view, arrest and commit for hearing, any and all persons guilty of a breach of peace, vagrancy, riotous or disorderly conduct or drunkenness, or may be engaged in the commission of any unlawful act tending to imperil the personal security or endanger the property of the citizens, or violating any ordinances of said borough, for the violation of which a fine or penalty is imposed.
1897, June 4, P.L. 121 section 1.

that grants the power of arrest, therefore meeting the above definitions...
once again though, I'm not claiming that a constable is a police officer, I'm merely stating that if one wanted to argue that constables don't meet the definition of "police officer", look no further than the above sections that I listed and make your own decision on who fits the definition. Personally, I think the definitions are too general and need to be amended to include language such as "employed by a criminal justice agency (police dept. or sheriff's office) as a sworn officer" or something along those lines. But the definition as it stands now, is very broad and may cover more people than those who are actual police officers. We are told to apply the definitional sections of each title as they are written. Well, apply the definition for "police officer" for the PA Rules of Criminal Procedure and/or the PA Vehicle Code (title 75). Constables have, however, been referred to in case law in ways such as:
"simply stated, a constable is a peace officer charged with the conservation of the peace, and whose business it is to arrest those who have violated it"
id.at 470, 598 A. 2d at 990
In 1996, the courts defined a constable as:
a public officer who "is chosen by the electorate or appointed for a definite and certain tenure in a manner provided by law to an office whose duties are of grave and important character, involving [a] function of government, and to be exercised for the benefit of the public for a fixed compensation paid out of the public treasury"
commonwealth v. spano, 451 Pa. Super. 226, 679 A. 2d 240 (1996)
Ahh, what the heck, one more? ok.
"As a peace officer, and as a process server, a constable belongs analytically to the executive branch of government, even though his job is obviously related to the courts. It is the constable's job to enforce the law and carry it out, just as the same is the job of district attorneys, sheriffs, and the police generally"
In re Act 147 at 470, 598 A. 2d an 990.
And if you are interested in a 1998 case from the United States Court of appeals for the Third Circuit, search for:
No. 97-3460 Mark Abbot, Appellant v. Laurie J. Latshaw, Albert Diehl, Dennis George, Robert Stafford and Donald Sarsfield
This US court decision recognizes the constable in the case as a "law enforcement officer" and "clearly invested with the power and authority of the state". Also it qualifies constables under immunity, and holds him to the same restrictive constitutional amendments that only apply to government officials.

On the subject of certain constables being investigated/arrested...
I truely hope they were convicted if they had done wrong. But just because other constables have done stupid things, that has no bearing on what the rest of us do or how we conduct business. I'm glad one who was impersonating a police officer was arrested... we don't need that type of person in that position at all. Holding all constables to the same reputation of some (who obviously don't belong in law enforcement) is overgeneralizing now isn't it? That would be comparable to me watching the news, seeing a police chief arrested by PSP for involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, then automatically holding every police officer statewide to that man's reputation. I'm sure none of the good officers would want that. I take the same stance as one of the good constables. I work hard to show people that I'm not the same as those people who ruin our name. I have attended police academy here in PA and am finishing my BS in criminal justice next semester, then on to masters, unlike some constables who may have never finished high school. Please don't just throw me in under the title and stereotype me.
Oh and we do back up the police here - only because there are several one man shifts and when we are out serving warrants and an officer calls for assistance from the next police dept. (which may be 30 min away) they are more than happy to hear us respond over the radio when we are in the area.
It seems like every county does things a little different with constables, but the information I post are PA state ststutes that apply to all PA State Constables. Whether or not a particular county limits its constable's powers is up to them, but it does not mean that they are limited everywhere.

ok... sorry... probably typed waaaay too much on that one :p

Thanks for reading if you stuck with me. I appreciate everyone who is responding on this subject!

Tony

[scarlet_tunic]

I'm not sure how the American constables work, but in Canada a police officer is a constable, at the lowest ranking. In the RCMP, the next level is corporal, then staff-sargent, etc....Municipalities with City Police have a similar ranking system. In Canada, we also have Special Constables, which is sort of a lower level of constable (in the way that they have fewer responsibilities). I was a Special Constable for the summer, and basically they are a municipally appointed member with some provincial responsibilities. (Confused yet?) In laymans terms, they don't have Criminal Code (federal) duties. They are allowed to enforce all bylaws of the municipality, while enforcing some provincial laws, such as speeding, seatbelts, commercial transportation laws, etc.

Hope this helps a bit, from a Canadian's perspective anyways.