Sworn, elected peace officers — the people’s peace officer, serving Pennsylvania communities since 1664.
The Pennsylvania State Constable is one of the oldest law-enforcement offices in the Commonwealth — older than any police department in the state. A constable is a sworn peace officer, elected by the voters of their borough, township, or city ward, who serves a six-year term and holds statewide authority to enforce the law.
Constables are independent elected officials. They answer directly to the people who elect them and to the courts they serve — not to a chief, mayor, or council. Their office, powers, and duties are set out in Chapter 71 of Title 44 (Law and Justice) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes.
As officers of the court, certified constables carry out the orders of Pennsylvania’s Magisterial District Courts and Courts of Common Pleas, and stand ready to keep the peace in every corner of the Commonwealth.
Constables perform judicial duties for the courts and keep the peace as sworn officers. Their day-to-day work includes:
Serving writs, warrants, complaints, subpoenas, summonses, and orders of eviction and judgment issued by the courts.
Executing arrest warrants and, as peace officers, making lawful arrests to uphold the law across the Commonwealth.
Securely transporting defendants and prisoners between courts, correctional facilities, and hearings.
Providing security at Magisterial District Court facilities and maintaining order in judicial proceedings.
Keeping the peace at polling places — a duty constables have carried out for Pennsylvania voters for generations.
Serving as accessible, locally elected peace officers who answer directly to the communities that elect them.
Modern Pennsylvania constables are trained and certified through the Constables’ Education and Training Program, administered by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) under its Constables’ Education and Training Board. A constable who has not completed training cannot perform judicial duties or be paid by the courts.
Comprehensive instruction in law, procedure, use of force, defensive tactics, and court duties, required before performing judicial duties.
Mandatory firearms training and certification for any constable who carries a firearm in the performance of their duties, with annual re-qualification.
Annual continuing education keeps certified constables current on statutes, case law, and best practices.
PCCD background checks determine eligibility for firearms certification, keeping standards high across the program.
The office of constable arrives in the colonies with early English rule — keeping the peace in Pennsylvania’s earliest settlements, decades before any organized police force existed.
Constables serve as the primary peace officers of Pennsylvania’s boroughs and townships, executing court process and safeguarding elections as the Commonwealth grows.
Act 44 establishes the Constables’ Education and Training Program under PCCD, bringing modern, standardized training and certification to the office.
Constable law is consolidated into Title 44 (Law and Justice), Chapter 71 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes — the modern legal foundation of the office.
Elected constables continue to serve every region of Pennsylvania — the people’s peace officer, three and a half centuries on.
Have questions or want to learn more about Pennsylvania State Constables? We’re here to help — reach out anytime.