Governor Wolf has named former Pennsylvania state trooper and Chester County resident, Tyree C. Blocker, as his choice for state police commissioner. While Blocker’s appointment still needs to be confirmed, it would make him only the second black police commissioner in the last 110 years.
Blocker is the second attempt by Governor Wolf to find a nominee who is acceptable to the state Senate. His first choice was Marcus Brown who failed to win the confirmation in June, after Republican senators joined with current and retired troopers to express their protest at him wearing the agency’s uniform despite not graduating from the State Police Academy in Hershey.
Many close to the decision at the time have said, however, that the decision not to confirm Brown was less about the uniform issue, but more about the desire for the State Troopers to be led by someone from within their own ranks rather than an outsider even though Brown had over 26 years experience in law enforcement.
This is why some say Blocker is the perfect choice as he has had an exemplary career as a 30 year veteran of the Pennsylvania State Troopers, retiring as a major in 2005. The momentum for the department to be led by one of their own began after the manhunt for Eric Frein, who was charged with murdering one trooper and wounding another in the 2014 nighttime sniper attack by the Pike County barracks.
Blocker grew up in Philadelphia and graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a history degree before joining the state police in 1975. Blocker has held various positions throughout the department including a stint with the Bureau of Criminal Investigations.
One issue facing Blocker is the steady decline in diversity throughout the department since 1998, when mandatory minority recruitment requirements were removed. Blocker will need to find a way to overcome the reluctance of many minorities to join a department that is 95 percent white.
“The Pennsylvania State Police is a department that is inclusive,” Blocker said. “I believe I have an advantage; I basically grew up in it. I believe it is not only the first but it’s the finest state police agency in the country. And it’s my desire and commitment to ensure it remains the finest state police organization in the country, and we will do that.”
