Charles H. Ramsey was appointed Police Commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department on January 7, 2008, by Mayor Michael A. Nutter. He retired in January 2016 after serving 8 years as Commissioner and leading the fourth largest police department in the nation with over 6,600 sworn members and 830 civilian members. Commissioner Ramsey brings over forty-six years of knowledge, experience and service in advancing the law enforcement profession in three different major city police departments, beginning with Chicago, then Washington, DC, and now Philadelphia.
During his eight years as Police Commissioner in Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Police Department made significant progress in driving down violent crime in the city. With a renewed focus on evidence-based policing initiatives, organizational accountability and a neighborhood-based policing strategy, Philadelphia has seen nearly a 20% reduction in violent crime and a 37% reduction in homicides. In 2014, Philadelphia experienced its lowest violent crime rate since 1985.The end of 2015 marked the first time since 1969 the City of Philadelphia had fewer than 300 homicides for three consecutive years.
Commissioner Ramsey has been at the forefront of developing innovative policing strategies and leading organizational change for the past 24 years. He is an internationally-recognized practitioner and educator in his field, and is the Immediate Past President of both the Police Executive Research Forum and the Major Cities Chiefs Association. He is the only law enforcement professional to have served as President of both prominent organizations at the same time and is the only police professional to receive the Leadership Award from 3 major law enforcement organizations; the FBI National Executive Institute, Police Executive Research Forum and the Major Cities Chiefs Association. In December 2014, following several high profile incidents involving police use of force, President Barrack Obama chose Commissioner Ramsey to serve as co-chair of the President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. In recognition for his contributions to the field of policing and public safety, he has been awarded Honorary Doctorate Degrees from four universities.