Page 30 - PCPA Winter 2023 Bulletin Magazine

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PA CHIEFS OF POLICE ASSOCIATION
CODY | EXECUTIVE Q & A WITH CHIEF PATRICK MOLLOY
OF THE ABINGTON TOWNSHIP POLICE DEPARTMENT
the Abington Township Police
Department have adopted the motto
“To Protect and Serve with Pride”,
along with the established goals,
objectives, policies, and procedures.
Our core values are professionalism,
respect, integrity, dedication, and
esprit de corps.
3.  Tell us about the township of
Abington, PA.
Abington Township is approximately
16 square miles with 60,000
residents. Our latest census
reports that we are comprised of
approximately 85% white residents,
13% black residents, and 2%
Asian and Hispanic. We have two
major hospitals in our jurisdiction,
Abington Jefferson Health, and Holy
Redeemer Hospital. We also have
Penn State University (Abington
Campus) as well as the Abington
School District operates one high
school, one middle school, and
seven elementary schools. We are
also home to the Willow Grove Park
Mall, the Keswick theatre, and a
mix of residential and commercial
businesses.
4.  How does Abington PD build
community involvement and
awareness?
Our department has had a strong
commitment to the principles of
community-oriented policing, dating
back to the early 1990s when
Chief Kelly committed to many of
the programs that we have here
today. I refer to our programs as
the alphabet soup of community
policing. DARE, PAL, YAP, SRO’s,
ACT (Abington Community Task
Force) VIPs, (Volunteers in Policing)
CAPT (Citizens and Police Together)
We are proud of all of the work that
we do with our community, and we
know that we have a responsibility to
focus on our youth and do everything
that we can do to mentor them and
divert them from the criminal justice
system when appropriate. We know
that we cannot do this job properly
without the support, consent, and
involvement of our citizens.
5.  How does Abington PD work
with the school district to
help keep students safe?
The Abington Township Police
Department and the Abington
School District have a great
relationship. We have been used as
a model by the FBI when it comes
to active shooter training and other
programs that we have in place
to have regular training and drills
with the administration, staff, and
teachers. We have had two school
resource officers assigned to our
high school and junior high school
since 1998. And our DARE program
has been in place since 1994 and is
presently in each of our 8 elementary
schools and our parochial schools.
The Superintendent and I speak
regularly, and work cooperatively
on issues related to juvenile
delinquency, crime, and violence.
The SRO’s, our DARE officers,
and many others in APD feel as
though they are an extension of
the Abington School District staff/
family. I could not be prouder of our
current school resource officers who
are there to protect and serve those
students but are also there because
they want to provide mentorship to
those who lack mentors in their life.
6.  Can you tell us about your
testimony at a recent
Pennsylvania Senate hearing
on the challenges facing law
enforcement today?
I had the opportunity to testify before
the Pennsylvania Senate with Chiefs
Dave Splain and Chief Mike Vogel. I
was encouraged by how responsive
the committee was to our concerns.
Like many law enforcement
professionals and citizens alike
throughout the Commonwealth,