Pennsylvania courts, federal courts, and the legislature have repeatedly affirmed the authority and accountability of constables as law enforcement officers. The materials below are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney for guidance on specific legal questions.
528 Pa. 460 — Pennsylvania Supreme Court — 1991
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that constables are law enforcement officers classified within the executive branch of government.
"The constable is a police officer."
No. 10-836 — U.S. District Court, W.D. Pa. — 2012
A federal court held that a Pennsylvania constable exercising arrest authority acts under color of state law and is subject to constitutional accountability — the same standard applied to municipal police officers.
173 A.3d 1162 — Pennsylvania Supreme Court — 2017
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court reaffirmed that constables are members of the executive branch because their function is law enforcement.
Constables' "function is law enforcement."
No. 1203 MDA 2018 — Pennsylvania Superior Court — 2019
A Pennsylvania appellate court held that constables retain common law arrest authority for breaches of the peace that predates and supplements their statutory powers.
No. 01 CV 2281 — C.P. Lycoming County — 2002
A court held that courts of common pleas lack authority to supervise or discipline a constable performing core peace officer duties, because those functions are executive, not judicial.
Various dockets — Philadelphia courts — 2018–2022
Across five or more separate proceedings — impersonation charges, firearms charges, and emergency lights — every charge against Constable Wiggs was dismissed, quashed, or resulted in a not-guilty verdict. A Court of Common Pleas ordered PSP to return Wiggs's marked police vehicle and both of his firearms.
641 MDA 2023 — Pennsylvania Superior Court — Feb. 6, 2025 (en banc reargument PENDING)
A 3-judge panel ruled 2-1 on whether constables may equip their vehicles with emergency lights. The dissenting judge agreed with Wiggs: a legislature that authorizes constables to direct traffic cannot deny them the lights that allow motorists to recognize that authority. The full Superior Court has granted reargument. This matter is pending and the panel decision is not final.
MJ-04305-TR-0002039-2023 — Philadelphia MDJ — Oct. 19, 2023
A second Pennsylvania constable was found not guilty of improper emergency lights under the same statutory basis used to prosecute Wiggs in Philadelphia in 2022.
General Constable Powers and Authority
The core statutory grant: warrantless arrest for felonies and breaches of the peace, warrant execution, civil process service, prisoner transport, courthouse security, election duties, and traffic direction.
Traffic Direction
Names constables alongside police officers and sheriffs: no person may willfully fail or refuse to comply with any lawful order or direction of a uniformed constable.
Concealed Carry Exemption
Explicitly exempts constables from the requirement to obtain a license to carry a concealed firearm in performance of their duties.
Peace Officer Definition
Includes any person with a duty to maintain public order or make arrests — constables satisfy this definition on plain text.
Act 227, P.L. 361, May 2, 1905
When Pennsylvania created the State Police, the legislature granted them "the powers and prerogatives conferred by law upon...constables of this Commonwealth." Constable authority is the original statutory baseline from which the State Police derives.
Philadelphia Police Powers
Philadelphia police hold "all the powers conferred by law upon constables of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania." Constable power is the foundation, not a derivative, of Philadelphia's police authority.
The following primary sources informed this site's legal content. These documents are provided for reference and informational purposes only.
Case summaries on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney for guidance on specific legal questions.