Chief of Police - Jane Castor

Jane Castor is the driving force behind the department’s 50% reduction in crime in the last six years. She helped develop and execute the department’s Focus on Four Crime Reduction Plan that changed the way officers police in the City of Tampa. The innovative plan required officers to shed the age-old mentality of just responding to 911 calls and replaced it with a proactive mentality to solving and preventing crimes. The result is a safer city.
 

Read more of Chief Castor's Biography

Assistant Chief John Bennett

Assistant Chief of Police- Operations

Assistant Chief John Bennett has led the department in crime reduction by cutting the crime rate 34% in District II. He is a progressive commander who embraces the latest technology for fighting crime and improving the City of Tampa. Under his leadership, his team analyzes crime trends, devises daily attack plans and then deploys resources to solve and prevent crime.

Read Assistant Chief Bennett's full biography.

Chief Bennet directs all police patrol operations and the Media Relations Office.

Assistant Chief Marc J. Hamlin

Assistant Chief of Police - Investigations & Support

Assistant Chief Marc Hamlin has served as the Commander of the Special Support Division since June of 2008. He oversees all major events in the city, directs all hurricane preparation, and runs all the specialty squads including the Tactical Response Team (TRT), Hostage Negotiation, Bomb and Dive Teams, Aviation, Marine Patrol, Traffic, DUI, Canine and Mounted Patrol. He ensures these specialized resources support the department’s mission to reduce crime and improve the quality of life for our citizens.
Read Assistant Chief Hamlin's biography.

Assistant Chief Hamlin  oversees the Investigative and Special Support Divisions of the Tampa Police Department.  His command includes a wide spectrum of services such as criminal investigations, narcotics, gangs, traffic division, personnel and training, records, evidence and property, forensics, special events, emergency management and specialty teams such as the Tactical Response Team, Air Service, Marine & Mounted Patrols. Chief Hamlin manages the department’s annual $139 million dollar budget. 

Major Sal Ruggiero

Commander - District One

After serving the majority of his career in District 1, Major Sal Ruggiero now leads the same district as a Major. District I covers South and West Tampa. Ruggiero spent 15 years in Patrol and seven as a supervisor of the street level drug squad known as QUAD. He also served in the plain-clothes unit called SAC, a supervisor of the Firehouse Unit and a Field Training Officer. He also has served on the City of Tampa Human Right’s Board.

Major Ruggiero is working hard to continue the community partnerships to reduce crime and improve the quality of life for the residents his officers serve. The daily interaction with the citizens, neighborhood watch groups and activist is the key to continuing the Tampa’s crime reduction. With the partnerships, District I will continue to be a safer place to live and work.

Ruggiero is originally from East Providence, RI. He has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Administration of Justice from Roger Williams College and a Master of Arts Degree in Organizational Management. He and his wife Linda have three children, John Amanda and Genevieve.

Major Ruggiero commands District One which includes South Tampa, West Shore & West Tampa. He is responsible for patrol operations as well as specialty operations such as SAC Squads, QUAD Squads, and the district property crime detective squad.

Major John Newman

Commander - District Two

Major John Newman serves as the Commander over District II, which has led the department in crime reduction throughout 2009. Captain Newman began his career working in District II working as the Sulphur Springs beat cop 24 years ago. Now, he leads the same district that encompasses Sulphur Springs, Seminole Heights and New Tampa.

During his career, Newman has served in Patrol, QUAD, Narcotics, Criminal Intelligence Bureau, Legal and Internal Affairs. He worked five years in an undercover capacity in Narcotics. For the last 20 years, he has been on the Honor Guard as the bugler and also served six years on the Tactical Response Team.

Newman is from Brick, NJ. He holds a Bachelor of Arts of Degree in Criminal Justice and a Master of Arts Degree in American Studies. He and his wife Dawn, of 25 years, have two daughters, Ashtin and Rebecca who attend University of South Florida.

Major Newman commands District Two which includes North Tampa & Tampa Palms. He is responsible for patrol operations as well as specialty operations such as SAC Squads, QUAD Squads, and the district property crime detective squad.

Major Gerald Honeywell

Commander - District Three

Major Gerald Honeywell oversees District Three, which includes East Tampa, Ybor City, and Downtown Tampa. He is responsible for all operations including patrol and plain-clothes units such as Street Anti-Crime (SAC) squads, Quick Uniform Attack on Drugs (QUAD) squads, and the District Latent Investigation Squad. Under his leadership violent crime in East Tama, a once economically and socially challenged neighborhood, has been lowered significantly.

Major Honeywell is actively involved in strengthening the partnership between police and citizens to improve the quality of life in East Tampa. Aside from, serving on both the Mayor’s East Tampa and Ybor City Task Forces, he frequently visits neighborhood schools to mentor at-risk teenagers. As a part of his outreach efforts, he established a youth organization to help mold juveniles into successful and productive citizens. Major Honeywell also serves as the spokesperson for Tampabaygangs.com, an interactive gang prevention website, that warns school age children about the dangers of associating with gangs.

After serving four years in the United States Coast Guard, Major Honeywell started his career in law enforcement with the Tampa Police Department in 1982. Throughout his tenure with the department, he has held supervisory positions in all three districts and QUAD. Major Honeywell previously oversaw the day to day operations in District One before transferring to District Three.

He is a lifelong Tampa resident, a graduate of Jefferson High School and Tampa College. Major Honeywell is married to Judge Charlene Honeywell and the father of two children. He attends Bible Based Fellowship Church, where he also holds several leadership positions within the organization.
 

Major Thomas Wolff

Commander - Criminal Investigations Division

Major Thomas Wolff was a natural leader early on in his career where he was a Field Training Officer in District I and then was assigned to the Tampa Police Academy training new officers. Major Wolff returned to the streets after he was promoted to Sergeant where he supervised squads in all three uniform districts. He also worked to ensure the department’s compliance with CALEA standards. In March of 2002, he was promoted to Lieutenant and worked in uniform patrol in both District I and District II. After his promotion to Captain in 2003, he was assigned to District II where he commands the patrol officers north of Busch Blvd to County Line Road in New Tampa. He is proud of the accomplishments the officers working for him have achieved. They have continued to reduce crime in their sector each year, which helped the department achieve over a 50% reduction in crime.

Major Wolff was born in New Jersey and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice and a Master’s Degree in Criminology from the University of South Florida. He and his wife Kimberly, of 23-years, have two sons, Thomas and James.

The Criminal Investigations Division consist of the Major Crimes Bureau, Narcotics Bureau , Communications Bureau and Gang Suppression Unit.

Major Sophia Teague

Commander - Special Support Division

As the Commander of the Special Support Division, Major Sophia Teague ensures all specialized squads focus on the department’s mission to reduce crime.  These squads make up the Special Operations Bureau that includes: Aviation Unit, Special Teams, Traffic Squad, K9 Squad, Mounted Unit, Marine Unit, DUI Squad, Special Incident Management Unit.  Major Teague also oversees the Support Services Bureau that includes: Personnel, Training, Evidence Control, Supply, Records, Extra Duty Office, Honor Guard, Chaplin, Police Explorers & Police Athletic League.

During her 25-year career, Major Sophia Teague has served the department in Patrol, Field Training, QUAD (Quick Uniform Attack on Drugs), Criminal Investigations and the Administrative Division before being promoted to Major in November of 2005.  She commanded District 1 and District 2 before moving to her current assignment.

Always striving to make a difference in the community and the State of Florida, Major Teague has authored a statute to protect Neighborhood Crime Watch Members from harassment while working with police to keep their community safe ( FL Statutes 843.20 - Harassment of Participant of Neighborhood Crime Watch program )

She has also authored two amendments. One closed a big loophole in the luring and/or enticing a child statute  and the other allows Police Explorers on patrol protection under the statute that covers battery on a law enforcement officer.

She is a graduate of Saint Leo University with a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice and Master’s in Business Administration. She also attended the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Senior Leadership program. Major Teague and her K9 partner Snoop are members of FDLE’s CART (Child Abduction Response Team). She is also an active bloodhound trainer and handler for the department and serves as committee chairperson for Police Explorer Post 275.