Gotham City Police Department

Gotham City Police Department

Cover to Gotham Central #1. Art by Michael Lark.
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
Created by Bob Kane
Bill Finger
In-story information
Type of organization Law enforcement agency
Base(s) Gotham City
Leader(s) James Gordon (Police Commissioner)
Maggie Sawyer
Agent(s) Harvey Bullock
Major Crimes Unit

The Gotham City Police Department (GCPD) is a fictional police department servicing Gotham City, as depicted in comic books published by DC Comics, in particular those tied into the Batman books.

History of GCPD

Acting as both ally and opponent of Batman, the superhero long-established in Gotham, the GCPD has long been steeped in corruption, with numerous officers both high-and-low ranking involved in bribery and even more serious offenses such as drug-trafficking and murder.

The strongest blow against police corruption came when an increasing amount of conspiracy charges against Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb forced him to resign his position, replaced by Peter Grogan. The Falcone crime family, which has had a stranglehold on Gotham's underground for generations, finally crumbled when a series of killings shook the structure of the mafia organization. After the death of Carmine Falcone, the mob lashed out in sloppy, retaliatory crimes which, in combination with rising gang violence, severely crippled organized crime in Gotham City. Simultaneously, the ebbing presence of corrupt police officers allowed James Gordon to become the new commissioner, a man determined to eradicate crime wherever it existed.

The GCPD has had a long love-hate relationship with the city's vigilante known as Batman. Commissioner Gordon went along with him because Batman got the job done. His successor, Commissioner Michael Akins ordered the arrest of Batman and had the Bat-signal removed from the roof of Gotham Central. Corruption and rot within the police department also rose during Akins' tenure as Commissioner.

Current status of GCPD

As of DC's One Year Later, James Gordon has been reinstated as Commissioner, along with Harvey Bullock. Harvey came back on disciplinary probation after helping expose a criminal drug ring. Relations with Batman, including the Bat-Signal, have been established once more. Other characters from Gotham Central have appeared in the recent Tales of the Unexpected miniseries, featuring Crispus Allen as the Spectre. Thus far, Detective Driver has appeared in a speaking role. It is unknown what has happened to Commissioner Akins, but it is implied that, following revelations of massive corruption within the department, there has been a drastic cleaning-of-house within the department.

Kate Kane referred to Akins as police commissioner in the weekly 52 series, which reveals the events of the missing year. A later issue, however, showed a brief snapshot of Commissioner Gordon's welcome back party. The circumstances of Akins's departure and Gordon's reinstatement have yet to be explained. Maggie Sawyer is still the commander of the MCU department, and has ended her relationship with former lover Toby Raines.

Divisions of GCPD

Current roster

Name Title Role Medium Note(s)
James Gordon Police Commissioner Highest-ranking official in the G.C.P.D. Detective Comics Formerly a Police Detective,
Lieutenant then Captain.
Mackenzie "Hardback" Bock Chief of Police Former head of O.C.C.B.
(Organized Crime Control Bureau)
Carlos Alvarez Police Detective
(Robbery precinct) 		Catwoman comics
Lieutenant Bilbao Police Lieutenant Batman and Robin comics
Gerard "Jerry" Hennelly Police Lieutenant Head of the Quick Response Team
(G.C.P.D.'s renamed S.W.A.T. team) 		Took over the role from
Howard Branden.
Donald Peak Police Officer Gotham Central comics Former partner of Andy Kelly.
Rebecca Mulcahey Police Officer (Corrupt) Gotham Central comics Lover of Jim Corrigan.
Officer Xue Police Officer Red Robin comics
Nora Fields Supervisor of Gotham City's Coroner's Office Gotham Central comics Widow of Charlie Fields.
Stacy Secretary Administrative Secretary to Commissioner
James Gordon 		Gotham Central comics Civilian employee.

Major Crimes Unit

Name Title Role Medium Note(s)
David Cornwell Police Lieutenant, Major Crimes Unit Second in
command of the
Major Crimes Unit 		Gotham Central comics Commander of the second (night) shift, successor of deceased Lt. Probson.
Josh Azeveda Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Trey Hartley.
Joely "Joe" Bartlett Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Vincent Del Arrazzio.
Harvey Bullock Detective, Major Crimes Unit Detective Comics Restored to duty under severe scrutiny.
Thomas "Tommy" Burke Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Dagmar Procjnow.
Romy Chandler Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Takahata.
Eric Cohen Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Andi Kasinsky.
Nelson Crowe Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Jackson Davies.
Jackson "Sarge" Davies Detective Sergeant, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Nelson Crowe.
Vincent Del Arrazzio Detective Sergeant, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Joely Bartlett.
Associate of the Huntress.
Marcus Driver Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Josephine MacDonald.
Nicholas "St. Nick" Gage Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham PD's newest recruit who has just transferred from Coast City Police Department. He is a supporting character of Batgirl VI.
Trey Hartley Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Josh Azeveda.
Andi Kasinsky Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Eric Cohen.
Josephine "Josie Mac" MacDonald Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Marcus Driver.
Possesses the psychic ability
to find lost people and objects.
Renee Montoya Detective, Major Crimes Unit. Detective Comics Pre-Flashpoint, partnered with Crispus Allen and resigned after his death and became the Question. Retconned and re-introduced as Harvey Bullock's new partner in the New 52.
Dagmar "Dag" Procjnow Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Thomas Burke.
Detective Takahata Detective, Major Crimes Unit Gotham Central comics Partnered with Romy Chandler.
Roman Cavallo Detective, Major Crimes Unit Red Robin comics Partnered with Marcus Wise. Is Corrupt.
Marcus Wise Detective, Major Crimes Unit Red Robin comics Partnered with Roman Cavallo.
Is Corrupt.

Former members

Note: The following are either deceased or have been dismissed from the Gotham City Police Department.

Commissioners

(In tenure list)

Non-canon

Alternate Universe

Gotham City FBI

The Gotham City Federal Bureau of Investigation field office is also featured in the fictitious Gotham City . The Gotham City FBI personnel are shown using black vehicles with red emergency lights .

In other media

Live Action TV

Batman (TV series)

The 1960s campy Batman featured Neil Hamilton as Commissioner Gordon and Stafford Repp as Chief O'Hara. Both are depicted as being dependent on Batman and Robin to help solve cases. Gordon even keeps a link to the Batcave called "the Batphone" on his desk. In the early episodes it's implied that they only call them in for the so-called "arch-criminals" as the police can handle the more mundane (murder, burglary, arson, etc.). But as the show progressed, they became even more dependent on them to solve problems. This is most greatly shown in one episode, when Batman appears to be missing, Gordon laments that the police will have to solve a case "ourselves." Commissioner Gordon and Chief O'Hara would always be seen with a bunch of police officers when it comes to arresting the arch-criminals upon their defeat.

Gotham (TV series)

In the series, most of the department is corrupt, with very few honest policemen, including James Gordon, Sarah Essen, Renee Montoya, Crispus Allen, and Nathaniel Barnes.[4]

Live Action Serials & Movies

Serials

All other depictions of Batman have portrayed the Gotham City Police Department in some form or another. The 1940s Batman serials has actor Lyle Talbot in the role of Commissioner Gordon in each one. No other members of the force are shown. However, his appearance of Gordon having a feather-duster mustache was later adapted to the comics.

1989-1997 live action films

All the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher series seemed to give little depiction on the GCPD at all. In Batman, Gordon is portrayed by Pat Hingle, while the usually corrupt Harvey Bullock is replaced with William Hootkins' Lt. Max Eckhart (who is killed by Jack Napier prior to his accidental transformation). Hingle also appeared in Batman Returns, Batman Forever, and Batman & Robin.

Christopher Nolan trilogy

In the Nolan films, the GCPD acts as both an ally and an opponent to Batman, however, they play a much greater pivotal role than other depictions of the force.

Batman Begins

In Batman Begins, the GCPD plays a pivotal role throughout the course of the film, as one of the forces against Batman under the direction of the staunchly vigilante-opposed Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb (played by Colin McFarlane). While other members of the GCPD are also present, two well-known detectives among them are featured; James Gordon (played by Gary Oldman) and his partner Arnold Flass (played by Mark Boone, Jr.). While Gordon is portrayed as one of the few honest police officers in the department, Flass is portrayed as being corrupt and dealing extensively with the local mafia and Loeb, though clearly displeased with the arrival of Batman, does not seem to possess any corrupt tendencies evident in the source material.

Considering that the film captures the early appearances of the Batman, there is much fear and skepticism among the rank and file about whether the Batman exists and if he is even human. Gordon, who had met Batman before he had adopted the Batman motif, not only realizes he is human, but recognizes the necessity of his actions. Gordon continues to work with him through his early weeks in operation. Batman, who trusts Gordon, a good cop he met during his childhood after his parents murder, includes him in his plan to save Gotham from the League of Shadows' fear toxin attack on the Narrows. At the end of the film, Batman's actions have sparked a change in the city and the cops' morality, leading to Gordon being promoted to Lieutenant.

The Dark Knight

In The Dark Knight, Gordon is reassigned as commanding officer of the Major Crimes Unit (MCU), a newly formed division of the GCPD created to combat the Gotham crime syndicates and thwart terrorist attacks. Three detectives of this unit are featured; Gerard Stephens (played by Keith Szarabajka), Michael Wuertz (played by Ron Dean) and Anna Ramirez (played by Monique Curnen), among others.

Relations between the DA's office and the police, especially between Gordon and Harvey Dent, remains tense throughout most of the film, with corruption in the rank and file; and even within Gordon's unit, being a key source of this conflict in The Dark Knight, with Dent suspecting that Ramirez and Wuertz are corrupt (based on his investigations while working in Internal Affairs, immediately before his election to District Attorney). In response to Dent's "attacks" on the police department and the actions of the League of Shadows from the first film, Loeb set up the Major Crimes Unit within the GCPD to counter possible terrorist attacks as well as rid the city of its organized crime. In the Major Crimes Unit, acceptance of the Batman, though reluctant, is growing. By the end of the film, Batman is framed for the violent actions of Harvey Dent and the police force turns against him.

The Dark Knight Rises

In The Dark Knight Rises, the GCPD has successfully eradicated the city's organized crime under "The Dent Act," as most remain oblivious to Harvey Dent's crimes. Gordon remains in guilt over letting Batman taking the fall for Dent, and waiting for a chance to admit the truth to the city. Rookie MCU detective John Blake (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) becomes aware of the truth, and also has deduced Batman's identity beforehand, eventually becomes a friend and ally of Gordon and Batman, as well as serving as their liaison. Blake is also later promoted from patrol cop to detective after Gordon sees his intelligence and dedication, thus allowing him to report directly to the commissioner. Gordon's deputy commissioner Peter Foley (played by Matthew Modine), though not corrupt, is determined to capture Batman, to the point that when Batman crashes the police chase of Bane and some of his henchmen following Bane's robbery of the stock exchange, Foley issues orders for the police participating in the chase to pursue Batman instead. As a result, Bane ends up escaping while his henchmen are captured.

Bane and the League of Shadows later use explosive-laced concrete to trap most of the force underground for months until they are freed by Batman and his allies. Bane also discovers the truth of the circumstances behind Harvey Dent's death and reveals it to the GCPD and the rest of the city, thus ending the manhunt against Batman. However, this also is used by Bane to break the criminals imprisoned under the Dent Act out of prison and wreak havoc around Gotham, much to both the police and the citizens' misfortune. Eventually, the police department are instrumental of the League of Shadows' defeat, though Foley and many officers are killed in action. The GCPD, with the aid from Batman and his allies, has successfully captured the surviving League of Shadows members and Gotham's criminals, restoring order back to the city.

Blake resigns himself from the police department following Batman's apparent death and after receiving a set of coordinates left by the Dark Knight, the young detective discovers the Batcave beneath Wayne Manor.

Uniforms

The GCPD in the Nolan films is heavily modeled on the New York City Police Department. Patrol cars are painted in a modified version of a paint job used by the NYPD in the 1980s and 1990s. In a flashback scene shortly after the deaths of Bruce's parents in Batman Begins, Gordon and other officers are shown wearing sky blue uniforms, similar to those worn by the NYPD from the 1970s through the mid-1990s. In all present-day scenes, patrol officers wear black uniforms. The text on patrol officers' shoulder patches, as well as various modified versions of the logo such as the seal used on SWAT trucks, establish the force as being first established in 1820.[5]

DC Extended Universe

The GCPD appears in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Animated Versions

Batman: The Animated Series

In the acclaimed animated television series, Batman: The Animated Series, the GCPD characters are given more attention such as in "P.O.V", where the major characters of the force in the series participate in a detailed debriefing of an incident. One of the most important contributions from the animated series to the Batman universe is the introduction of Renee Montoya (first as a uniformed officer, then a detective), which would later become a first-grade character in the GCPD comic books. In the printed DC Universe, her presence was so solidly incorporated that she later retired from the Department to assume the identity of the Question.

Batman Beyond

In this animated series Batman Beyond, James Gordon's daughter Barbara Gordon (former Batgirl in Batman: The Animated Series) serves as the new commissioner.

Batman: Gotham Knight

Gordon, Ramirez, and Crispus Allen all appear in three of the shorts in Batman: Gotham Knight (which bridges the gap between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight) consisting of Crossfire, In Darkness Dwells, and Deadshot.

Gordon was voiced by Jim Meskimen, Ramirez was voiced by Ana Ortiz, and Allen was voiced by Gary Dourdan.

The Batman

On the animated series The Batman, the focus of the GCPD in the first two seasons is on Detectives Ellen Yin (voiced by Ming-Na Wen) and Ethan Bennett (voiced by Steve Harris) prior to his Clayface transformation. The corruption on the force is attributed to Chief Angel Rojas (voiced by Edward James Olmos in the first appearance, Jesse Corti in later appearances), who appeared often in those seasons. They served as recurrent antagonists in the first two seasons under Chief Rojas' leadership. However, in the Season 2 finale, Jim Gordon (voiced by Mitch Pileggi), recently appointed Commissioner, calls off the manhunt and forms an alliance with Batman to help keep Gotham safe for his daughter, Barbara. Two episodes of the cartoon series featured another detective of the Gotham City Police Department named Cash Tankinson (voiced by Patrick Warburton). Neither Rojas nor Yin has been seen since then, though one episode that take places in the future implies that sometime between now and then, Yin will replace Gordon as Commissioner and Bennet becomes Chief of Police.

Beware the Batman

The Gotham City Police Department appears in Beware the Batman. James Gordon worked as a police lieutenant and was distrustful towards Batman until he helped save his daughter from Tobias Whale and Phosphorus Rex. During the part where the League of Assassins had control over the Ion Cortex and shut down Gotham City's power, James Gordon became the police commissioner when Commissioner Correa was killed by the League of Assassins.

Batman: Year One

The GCPD appear as an opponent to Batman. During the events of Year One, Batman wasn't trusted, he doesn't have a relationship with GCPD and Gotham City doesn't consider him a hero. Although many of the GCPD officers are revealed to be corrupt, Lt. James Gordon builds a partnership with Batman.

Justice League: War

Some GCPD helicopters chase Batman, Green Lantern, and a Parademon but are unable to catch up with the trio.

Son of Batman

The Gotham City Police Department appear in Son of Batman.

Batman Bad Blood

The GCPD make a brief appearance in Batman: Bad Blood.

Alternate officers of the law

Batman (1960s TV show)

Batman (1989 film)

Birds of Prey (TV series from 2002–2003)

  • Detective Jesse Reese - Was played by Shemar Moore. Is an honest cop in New Gotham who learns of the Birds of Prey and begins to help them. He later enters into a relationship with Huntress. It is later revealed that Reese's birthname was Jesse Hawke, son of crime boss Al Hawke, who became a police officer to atone for his family's sins. This version of the GCPD does have a corruption problem (though it is unclear how bad since a few other honest officers have cameos) and appears to no longer have Jim Gordon at its head.

Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (2003 direct-to-video animated film)

  • Detective Sonia Alcana - Actress Elisa Gabrielli provides her voice in the feature; she is Harvey Bullock's partner in the film. While investigating the identity of the new vigilante Batwoman, Alcana is one of Batman's suspects. Batman rescued Alcana once from a fire set by Rupert Thorne's men nine years prior of the film. Sonia was actually one of the three women that operated at Batwoman alongside Dr. Roxanne Ballantine (whose fiancé was framed for a crime by Penguin) and Kathleen Duquesne (who wanted to end the criminal career of her father Carlton Duquesne). She later resigns upon claiming to be the only one that worked as Batwoman in order to protect the reputation of the Gotham City Police department

The Batman (TV series from 2004–2008)

  • Chief Angel Rojas — Edward James Olmos and Jesse Corti provide his voice for this show with Edward James Olmos voicing him in the first appearance and Jesse Corti later voicing him in later appearances. For Chief Rojas, The Batman is nothing less than a black eye to his police force. Believing there is no room for vigilante justice in Gotham, Rojas has made capturing the Dark Knight a top priority.
  • Detective Ellen Yin — Ming-Na provides her voice in this show. Given her name and the events of the episode, "Artifacts", she could be a loose adaptation of Ellen Yindel from Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.
  • Detective Ethan Bennett — He is a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne's. Due to a chemical created by the Joker, he becomes the first Clayface for this series. Steve Harris provides his voice.
  • Detective Cash Tankinson - He is a bumbling detective who was Yin's partner for the episode "JTV" and returned in the episode "Cash for Toys" as Bruce Wayne's personal bodyguard after he was targeted by Cosmo Krank. He is voiced by Patrick Warburton.

The Dark Knight (2008 film)

  • Detective Anna Ramirez (Monique Curnen), a corrupt police detective- although she only gave in to the mob's demands to pay her sick mother's hospital bills rather than out of more selfish motives- involved in the scarring of Harvey Dent and the death of Rachel Dawes by the Joker. She also appeared in Batman: Gotham Knight, voiced by Ana Ortiz. The commentary on the Batman: Gotham Knight DVD, indicates she might be loosely inspired by Renee Montoya. She received a head injury from Dent after he cracked her head with the bottom of his revolver. Her fate is unknown, but it's implied from Gordon that she didn't survive her trauma, though she might not have regained consciousness yet.
  • Detective Mike Wuertz (Ron Dean), a corrupt police detective involved in the scarring of Harvey Dent and the death of Rachel Dawes by the Joker. He is later killed when Dent shoots him in the head with a revolver as one of his first actions as Two-Face.
  • Detective Gerard Stephens (Keith Szarabajka), an honest police detective, if not aversed in the field of police brutality. He assists in faking Gordon's death, and is later seen guarding the Joker in an interrogation room, informing the Joker that he has been a cop long enough to distinguish between punks who commit crimes for kicks and the sick animals like the Joker who enjoy it, although he's tricked into attacking the Joker, who holds him hostage temporarily during his escape from custody.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012 film)

  • Officer/Detective John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), an earnest beat cop who was promoted by James Gordon after being attacked by Bane's forces. Originally, an orphan, he had deduced Batman's true identity as Bruce Wayne and befriended him before the attack on Gotham. After Batman "sacrifices himself" to destroy a neutron bomb, John Blake (whose real first name is Robin), is seen entering the Batcave.
  • Deputy Commissioner Peter Foley (Matthew Modine), second-in-command and close friend to Gordon. Foley is shown as being quite ambitious and initially doesn't believe an injured Gordon's assertions about Bane raising an army underneath the streets of Gotham. He is eager to capture Batman, something he believes Gordon was never capable of, even when Bane is the more immediate and obvious target, to the point that he inadvertently lets Bane escape when Batman crashes the police pursuit following Bane's robbery of the stock exchange. He is one of the few officers who was not trapped underground after Bane triggered multiple explosions in the underground tunnels. Though initially aiding Gordon and other members of the resistance, Foley later refuses to take part in the final push against Bane's forces, fearing for his own safety. However, he relents and joins in the riot between the cops and Bane's army. Foley manages to kill Bane's lieutenant, Barsad, with a submachine gun, but is then killed by automatic fire from Talia's escaping Tumbler.
  • Officer Tyler Ross (Reggie Lee), Blake's patrol partner who is trapped underground after the explosion in the sewers, and communicates with Blake during the revolution by passing notes through a sewer grate. He is shot dead by a League of Shadows mercenary when Blake is trying to pull him out of a sewer manhole cover.

Beware the Batman (2013-Present)

  • Commissioner Correa - He was the police commissioner of the Gotham City Police Department until he was killed by two ninjas of the League of Assassins upon not giving in to Ra's al Ghul's demands. Due to his death, James Gordon was sworn in as the new police commissioner. Voiced by Carlos Ferro.
  • Officer Dombrowski - A police officer that worked for the Gotham City Police Department. Voiced by James Arnold Taylor.
  • Officer O'Brien - A police officer that worked for the Gotham City Police Department. Voiced by Michael Patrick McGill.
  • Officer Rodriguez - A police officer that worked for the Gotham City Police Department. Voiced by Carlos Ferro.
  • Detective Marcie Brown - A police detective that worked for the Gotham City Police Department. Voiced by Tara Strong.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Detective Comics #819
  2. ↑ Detective Comics (vol. 2) #25
  3. ↑ Action Comics (vol. 1) #957
  4. ↑ Debra Birnbaum. "Michael Chiklis Joins Cast of 'Gotham'". variety.com.
  5. ↑ Dark Knight Rises GCPD Vehicles Reference pics
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