Howard County Police Department

The Howard County Police Deparmtent (HCPD) is the primary law enforcement agency servicing 272,452 persons within 252.04 square miles of Howard County, Maryland.

Authority
The agency itself is nationally accredited through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. All HCPD officers are fully certified, sworn law enforcment officials. The authority originates with an act of legislation performed by the Maryland General Assembly.

Organization
The current chief of police is William McMahon. The HCPD divides the county into two districts, northern and southern. The agency is comprised of the following sections
 * Patrol
 * K-9
 * Aviation
 * Tactical
 * Bike Patrol
 * Criminal Investigations (CID)
 * Traffic Enforcement
 * Youth Services
 * Communications
 * Volunteer Police Auxilary Force