Pennsylvania PEN-səl-VAY-nee-ə; Pennsylvania German: Pennsilfaani), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, and Appalachian regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to the southeast, Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, Lake Erie and the Canadian province of Ontario to the northwest, New York to the north, and New Jersey to the east.

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Of the 50 U.S. states, Pennsylvania is the 33rd-largest by area and the fifth-most populous, with over 13 million residents as of 2020; it subsequently ranks ninth in population density. Nearly half the population is concentrated in the southeastern Delaware Valley, centered around the state's largest city, Philadelphia (6.25 million); another one-third live in Greater Pittsburgh (2.37 million) in the southwest. The state capital and 15th-largest city is Harrisburg; other major cities include Allentown, Scranton,   Lancaster, and Erie.

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In United States terminology, special police can mean:

• Auxiliary police, members of volunteer, unpaid or paid, part-time civilian police, security officer units, interns;

• Company police;

• Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT);

• Security police; or

• Special Law Enforcement Officers/ Special Jurisdiction Law Enforcement – used in New Jersey to supplement full-time police officers;

 

The term can also refer to limited police power granted in some jurisdictions to lifeguards, SPCA personnel, teachers, and other public sector employees which is incidental to their main responsibilities. Special Police Officers (or SPOs) can be employed to protect large campuses such as theme parks, hospital centers, and commerce centers.

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Some states, such as Maryland, New York, and the District of Columbia, grant full State Police/peace officer authority to SPOs for use in whatever area they are employed to protect. They can make traffic stops in their jurisdiction if they have had accredited training. They are also permitted to conduct traffic control and investigations pertaining to the area protected by them, while a majority of SPOs are armed with a firearm, some states permit the age for an SPO to be 18, while still they can not carry a sidearm. Special police can make a criminal arrest and run blue strobe lights on their vehicle.