Officers from North Lebanon Township and North Cornwall Township were sworn in on Dec. 19, as three municipalities will officially see the colors of a new regional police force patrolling the streets starting in 2025.
Officers from both departments were sworn in Thursday afternoon by Court of Common Pleas Judge Donna Long Brightbill to officially become officers of the Lebanon County Regional Police Service. The 24-strong force will cover the townships of North Lebanon, North Cornwall and West Lebanon from January 1.
The new regional department will improve the safety of residents and the officers who serve these communities, according to future regional police chief Tim Knight.
“Currently, both departments are operating on one-man shifts, and this will prevent this from happening,” said the current North Lebanon Township police chief. “It will also be safer for residents because we will have more people to respond to emergencies when necessary.”
Officers from North Lebanon Township and North Cornwall Township were sworn in on Dec. 19, while three municipalities will see the colors of the new Lebanon County Regional Police officially patrolling the streets starting in 2025.
Its coverage area, including western Lebanon, includes 26.75 square miles and a combined population of 21,385. The proposed consolidated departments would be overseen by a committee of five members: two supervisors from each of North Lebanon and North Cornwall, and one member from the general community.
According to Knight, the officers will work 12-hour shifts. The department will have four platoons of five men, with each team having a supervisor.
“It’s going to be a busy time for us to start because we’re getting four new officers into the department,” he said. “Luckily we do have field training officers, and we have already prepared for that.”
Before the January 1 start date, officers from both departments will “jump in each other’s cars” and get to know the jurisdictions and communities of North Lebanon, North Cornwall and West Lebanon Townships. Knight said he doesn’t anticipate any problems as the merged department handles the new communities they will be sworn into serving.
“Both of our departments have good, experienced officers, and I think they can handle that well,” he said.
Regionalized police
During the swearing-in ceremony on Dec. 19, Brightbill praised the new department and said police regionalization appears to be “the wave of the future.”
“I’m very happy about this, and I commend you, and the supervisors as well, because you’re leading the way, quite frankly,” she told the officers being sworn in.
The Lebanon County Regional Police Department is the second regional police department to be formed in Lebanon County. On May 27, the police departments of Annville Township and Palmyra Borough were officially merged into the West Lebanon Regional Police Service.
Knight said he has consulted with West Lebanon Police Chief Alex Winters during the process of getting Lebanon County Regional Police up and running.
The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development reports that there are more than 35 regional police departments representing 125 municipalities in the Commonwealth. According to the department’s website, most regional divisions were created to strengthen existing police services, including investigative, patrol and special services.
“Years ago it was much harder to get a job in law enforcement,” Knight said. “Now there are a lot more departments hiring, so there are a lot of officers who can choose where they go, and a lot of the officers want to go to larger departments with favorable scheduling.”
The charter calls for North Cornwall and North Lebanon to split the total cost of the regional force 50-50 if it is formed. Knight said the merger added additional officers to both municipalities without increasing costs.
“The (police) budget for the municipality of North Lebanon has been 51% in recent years,” Knight said. “The budget for this year has gone down to 39% for the police, so I think this will also benefit taxpayers in the future.”
The new department has already applied for three state grants and has been approved for $150,000 from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. The approved state grant will largely go toward body-worn cameras and new car cameras.
Officers from North Lebanon Township and North Cornwall Township were sworn in on Dec. 19, while three municipalities will see the colors of the new Lebanon County Regional Police officially patrolling the streets starting in 2025.
Other municipalities, including Myerstown, have expressed interest in also joining the newly formed regional police force. Knight said representatives from Myerstown recently attended a regional police commission meeting, although a coverage agreement has not yet been finalized before the department launches Jan. 1.
By early 2024, a regional division between North Lebanon and North Cornwall Townships was more of a concept. But now both municipal officials expect more officers to take to the streets from 2025.
A copy of the regional police charter can be found on the North Lebanon Township website at northlebanontwppa.gov.
Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or at X at @DAMattToth.
This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Regional police officers from N. Lebanon, N. Cornwall are sworn in
