By Jen Samuel
Daily Local News, West Chester, Pa.
OXFORD. Pa. — Chester County residents have petitioned President Donald J. Trump to stop the disbandment of the Oxford Borough Police Department.
Despite the public protest of more than 100 residents this summer, in August, Oxford council members voted 5-2 to dissolve the community’s 100-year-old, accredited local law enforcement force, which was established in 1926. The move authorized the borough to seek to merge services with the Southern Chester County Regional Police Department, based 15.5 miles away from Oxford in New Garden.
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Council members Raul Juarez-Lara and Amanda Birdwell both voted “no.”
Voting “yes” were Council President Kathryn Cloyd, Vice President Bill Fitzpatrick, and members Michael Brandt, Melody Boston-Griffin and Robert Ketcham.
Southern Chester County’s regional force, composed of member municipalities New Garden and West Grove , operates from headquarters on Route 41 about 3 miles from the Delaware state line. The regional department provides contracted services with Avondale. This Landenberg -area police station is a 21-minute drive east-northeast of Oxford Borough. It was founded in 2017 under the leadership of Chief Gerald Simpson who has since retired. Chief Joseph Greenwalt has led the regional force since 2022.
Oxford Mayor Philip Harris didn’t respond to multiple requests for an interview this month.
This past summer, the mayor told the Daily Local News that the borough wouldn’t need to keep its police station at 57 N. 4th St. The mayor said it was too big of a space to become the borough’s substation for Southern Chester County Regional Police Department . He said two officers from regional would be stationed in Oxford at all times to ensure there was 24-hour policing. However, it was unclear where suspects would be processed or where an officer would go for an emergency if spat on or if he or she came into contact with any toxic substance.
Prior to the council’s vote to disband the Oxford Police Department , the force employed 16 officers. Several officers have found employment since then. For the remaining officers, it has been months of negotiating between the borough, the Chester County Fraternal Order of Police , the Southern Chester County Regional Police Department and the Oxford Police Association .
“We have finalized the severance terms for six officers,” said Robert McCarron , president of the Chester County Fraternal Order of Police , on Tuesday. “The three officers transitioning to the regional office will retain most of their seniority and other benefits.”
Chester County Fraternal Order of Police is still working on a severance package for Chief Samuel Iacono , McCarron said.
Prior to the council’s August vote to disband the historic borough police force, Councilwoman Birdwell told the public that she was voting “no” because she was alarmed by the extreme effort to push this objective through despite the outcry from the public.
Appeal to the White House
Some residents are still holding onto hope to save the Oxford Police force. The department officially disbands on New Year’s Eve, Dec. 31.
Local leaders of the Save Oxford Police movement, including East Nottingham residents John Rogers and Missy Rogers and Oxford residents Danny Graham and Sherry Graham , wrote the president on Oct. 15 asking for the White House to step in and save the historic department from disbandment.
Their letter reads:
“Mr. President you say you are fully against ‘Defund-the-Police,’ we have a serious issue in Oxford Pa. Probably related to our joke of a Governor … Shapiro. We need you to send someone here to see what is going on. Our council Representatives are refusing to listen to their constituents adamant objections over their decision to disband our 100-year-old police department and giving it to a regional police (agency). We need help before it’s too late. December 31, 2026 , at 11:59 p.m. our police dept. is removed and at midnight it will be taken over by Southern Chester County regional police. While 11 highly trained long-time police officers lose their jobs. Please send representatives to help us. We are sick of our local police dept. being defunded and taken away.”
The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment by deadline.
Governor Josh Shapiro also didn’t respond to a comment request as of press time.
‘Voice of the people’
Danny Graham of Oxford said criminals will know there isn’t a local police force in the borough anymore.
“We can’t fight this by ourselves. We need the people behind us. We need numbers,” Graham said.
Graham said he’s calling for peaceful demonstrations to pressure council members who voted to disband the police department to resign.
“We want the voice of the people heard,” said John Rogers of East Nottingham. “The voice of the people is to retain our police just the way they are.”
He said the council majority has a clear agenda to eliminate the local police department. “The end justifies the means, that’s the way they’re working,” Rogers said.
Rogers said the borough has the money to fund the police. The council reported to the public over the summer that the cost of maintaining its own law enforcement agency was unsustainable, equating to more than half of its annual budget.
Oxford’s 2026 budget was approved last year for approximately $5 million with $2.04 million assigned to police operations.
“The money is there,” Rogers said.
“To all the Oxford officers, we support you 100%. You can’t talk. We can. And we’re going to be your voice,” Graham said.
Chesco vantage point
“Chester County’s heroic members of law enforcement do a great job at protecting and serving our communities. Our state troopers from the Embreeville and Avondale barracks really do a terrific job of covering such a large territory effectively. Our municipal police officers at a more local level also deliver great results for our residents,” said Chester County Commissioner Eric Roe .
“I was disappointed to hear that Oxford intended to disband its local police department, but I am confident that Oxford’s residents will continue to have great coverage, either by a regional police department or by the state police. Safety is one of the many reasons people choose to live in Chester County,” Roe said. “Having such responsive and professional police here is largely why our county is so attractive to young families like mine.”
Chester County Commissioner Josh Maxwell didn’t respond to a request for comment on the municipal vote to disband the Oxford police force. Wednesday, he told the Daily Local News that no one had contacted him directly from the community on the matter.
“I do believe those decisions should be made by the local community,” said Chester County Commissioner Marian Moskowitz, “those who are directly impacted.”
To connect with staff writer Jen Samuel, send an email to jsamuel@dailylocal.com.
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