Pennsylvania State Police

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Pennsylvania State Police
Patch of Pennsylvania State Police
Wordmark of the Pennsylvania State Police
Abbreviation	PSP
Agency overview
Formed	May 2, 1905; 119 years ago (1905-05-02)
Preceding agencies	Pennsylvania State Constabulary Pennsylvania State Constables (1905–1937) State Highway Patrol (1923–1937) Pennsylvania Motor Police (1937–1943)
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction	Pennsylvania, U.S.
Pennsylvania State Police Troops
Size	46,055 sq mi
Population	12,972,008 (2022)[1]
General nature	Civilian police
Operational structure
Headquarters	Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Troopers	4,740 (as of 2023)[2]
Civilian employees	1,850 (as of 2015)[2]
Agency executive	Colonel Christopher L. Paris, Commissioner
Areas	4
Troops	16
Facilities
Stations	90
Airbases	6
Helicopters	6 Bell 407GX
Airplanes	2 "High Wings"
Website
Pennsylvania State Police website

The Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) is the state police agency of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, responsible for statewide law enforcement. The Pennsylvania State Police is a full service law enforcement agency which handles both traffic and criminal law enforcement. The Pennsylvania State Police was founded in 1905 by order of Governor Samuel Pennypacker, by signing Senate Bill 278 on May 2, 1905. The bill was signed in response to the Great Anthracite Strike of 1902. Leading up to the Anthracite Strike, private police forces (the coal and iron police) were used by mine and mill owners to stop worker strikes. The inability or refusal of local police or sheriffs' offices to enforce the law directly influenced the signing of Bill 278. The Anthracite Strike lasted from May 15 to October 23, 1902, and was ended with the help of Theodore Roosevelt, the sitting president at the time.

PSP enlisted members are referred to as "Troopers". Up until 1963, married men were not allowed to apply to the state police, and active troopers had to seek permission from their superior officer to get married. As of 2021, the state police has approximately 4,547 State Troopers and more than 1,850 civilian support staff.^[3]