Mayor-elect Cheryl Parker has appointed Kevin Bethel as the new Philadelphia Police Commissioner, the current chief of security for the School District of Philadelphia.
Bethell, also a former deputy commissioner of the city Police Department, will replace interim Commissioner John M. Stanford Jr.
Parker made the announcement during a press conference held at City Hall. “We believe our next commissioner will lead our department into a new day and a new era of public safety and community engagement.”
Bethel (60 years old) addressed the attendees with a few words, highlighting the importance of improving the relationship between officials and society. “I’m proud to be a police officer, but we’re not your enemies. We’re here to serve.”
“We have our problems and we can solve them. But I say to men and women, give us the opportunity to do this, to serve you in this field. Give us the opportunity to be what you want us to be.”
Bethel also talked about his approach to tackling crime in the city. “I can sit here and tell you that I would never lock up a 10-year-old because he came to school with scissors.”
“But I can also tell them that I would lock up someone who walks into a store and robs someone with a gun, or someone who kills people on our streets. “Our job is to enforce the law.”
Philadelphia’s next police commissioner joined the department in 1986 and served in multiple roles, including deputy commissioner for 29 years. He left the organization in 2015 to work in the juvenile justice system.
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Later in 2019, Bethel was named the school district’s chief of security. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Chestnut Hill College and a master’s of science in public safety administration from Saint Joseph’s University.
