South Whitehall Township, PA

South Whitehall Township Police Department Right-to-Know Law Request Policy

It is the policy of the South Whitehall Township Police Department to provide public records in accordance with the Right-to-Know Law (65 P.S. §§ 67.101-67.3104). This policy outlines the proper procedures for requesting records from the South Whitehall Township Police Department. Questions about this policy should be directed to the Right-to­-Know Officer for the South Whitehall Township Police Department:

Frank Lombardo, Chief of Police
South Whitehall Township Police Department
(610) 398-0337

Note: A resolution revising the South Whitehall Township Right-to-Know Law Policy was adopted by the South Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners on Wednesday, July 16, 2025. The resolution can be found here. The link to the Township Administration page can be found at the top of this page.

Requests

To download a copy of the Right-to-Know request form for the Police Department, please click on the following link:

↪ SWTPD Right-to-Know Form

Police Department open records requests shall be in writing and directed to the Chief of Police at the South Whitehall Township Police Department at 4444 Walbert Avenue, Allentown, PA 18104. Written requests shall include the date of the request, the name and address of the requester, and a clear description of the records sought.

Open records requests may be submitted by e-mail (pdrtk@swtpd.org), mail, facsimile 610-391-9471, or in person during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. with the exception of holidays and official office closings. The requests shall include a name and address to which the Police Department should address its response. The Police Department will not accept oral or anonymous requests for records.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Under the Right-to-Know Law, INVESTIGATIVE REPORTS (i.e. incident reports and police reports) are exempted from the definition of a “public record.” Therefore, any such request may be denied.

Responses

The Chief of Police shall review all written requests for access to public records. As soon as possible, but no later than five (5) business days after receiving a written request, the Chief shall respond in a manner consistent with the Law.

Criminal history information is not accessible under the Law, but may be obtained through submission of a Request for Criminal Record Check (Form SP 4-164) available on the Pennsylvania State Police website. All such requests will be referred to the State Police. SWTPD does not retain investigative/administrative records for other agencies and will deny such requests.

Police Department employees shall cooperate with record requests while taking reasonable steps to protect original documents from theft or alteration. All personal phone numbers, operator IDs, and Social Security numbers will be redacted.

Appeals

If a request is denied or deemed denied, the requester may file an appeal within 15 business days of the response or presumed denial. Appeals should be directed to: