A LIFE IN THE LAW
LONGTIME COUNTY DETECTIVE LOOKS BACK ON 56 YEARS IN DELCO LAW ENFORCEMENT
As Jack Kelly looks ahead to celebrating Thanksgiving this week, he is grateful for so many things, especially his beloved wife, Ginger, their two sons, Ken and Kevin, daughters-in-law Kate and Tish, and their five grandchildren, Erin, Riley, Porter, Quinn and Chase.
Looking back, he’s also grateful for his 56 1/2-year career in law enforcement, and his family in blue.
“I feel like I just started yesterday,” said the 80-year-old Aston retiree, a self-described “by-thebook” lawman whose career began in 1961 as a military police officer in the U.S. Army.
Not long after his discharge from the service, Kelly went to work as a full-time officer with the Radnor Police Department and 26 years later, the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division – all posts that provided countless opportunities for him to help others, as well as form friendships on and off the beat that continue to this day.
In the nearly three months since Kelly retired as a sergeant with CID, he and Ginger have vacationed in Ireland and London, spent several Sunday afternoons watching their grandson, Chase, play soccer, and even caught a Josh Groban concert at the Wells Fargo Center.
‘It’s good to be occupied,” Kelly said.
And while it’s taken him some time, Kelly is pretty much accustomed to his new rhythm.
“The first couple weeks were horrible, not being at the office,” admitted Kelly. “And I still miss seeing the people I am used to being with. But as far as settling down, it’s all good. It was time for me to start another chapter, to be with my family.”
His retirement had been a topic of conversation with his wife for the last two years.
“She knew how much I love the job,” he said. “I have been very fortunate with my health. But I knew if I didn’t leave that I was going to die at my desk, and that’s not something I wanted to do.”
In early summer, Kelly just picked a date: Aug. 31.
That was it. No second thoughts.
“I accomplished my lifetime dream of being in law enforcement,” he said.
Kelly chuckled as he spoke of the few times he’s forgotten that he is retired and started getting his work clothes ready for the next day. Recalling his years in the Army and then with Radnor, he said the transition from
“The first couple weeks were horrible, not being at the office. And I still miss seeing the people I am used to being with. But as far as settling down, it’s all good. It was time for me to start another chapter, to be with my family.”
— Former CID Sgt. Jack Kelly on his retirement
ing a uniform to civilian clothes as a detective, left him a bit fashion-challenged.
“I used to get my clothes out at night. A couple times my wife would catch me and say, “What are you doing? Then I would remember,” he said.
Gone, too, are the days that Kelly feels the need to keep his cell phone with him at all times.
“The best thing that happened was going to Ireland and London. It helped me to start to break my habits,” he said. “My wife looking ahead and planning that trip was a blessing in disguise.”
A fortuitous newspaper ad
Born in Philadelphia, Kelly’s family moved to Delaware County when he was about 8 years old. He attended both St. Joseph Grade School in Collingdale and Holy Cross Grade School in Springfield. He’s a graduate of Upper Darby High School, Class of 1958.
Kelly was 23 when he tried to become a Pennsylvania State Police trooper, his true dream job since he was a young boy. Growing up, whenever he would play cops and robbers with his friends, he said he always wanted to be the good cop, never the bad guy.
“My biggest thing in life was the Pennsylvania State Police. That is what I wanted to do,” he said. “It was something about them, the semi-military. I liked the uniform. I liked what they stood for.”
Kelly said he passed all the requirements for the state police except one.
“I lacked military experience,” he said.
When a state police sergeant came to his family home in Westbrook Park and broke the news, Kelly said, “I was devastated.”
The next day, Kelly called the draft board.
“I wanted to know where I was on the list,” he said.
A woman on the other end of the phone told him he could volunteer for the draft, so that’s what he did. Though he only had to serve for 24 months to fulfill his duty, Kelly signed up for 38 months.
“That was the only way I could guarantee to be an MP,” he said.
Within a month, Kelly was in basic training at Fort Jackson, S.C. Two months later, he was in military police training at Fort Gordon, Ga. His first assignment took him to Korea, where he spent 13 ½ months. Later, he was stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., for a little more than a year.
When he was discharged and returned home in 1964, he held a few odd jobs.
“The state police wasn’t hiring at the time,” Kelly said.
But the Radnor Township Police Department was hiring. Kelly had seen an ad in the old Philadelphia Bulletin newspaper.
‘I didn’t even know where Radnor was,” he said.
Kelly applied for and got the job. By then it was 1966. He and Ginger had been married for three years, and their first born, Ken, was 2 years old.
No lows, just some imperfect days
Four months into the Radnor job, Kelly said he got a call from the state police saying that a new class had opened.
“Wow,” Kelly thought at the time. But the husband and father had responsibilities he didn’t have when he was 23. After talking it over with his wife, he opted to stay with Radnor.
“It was in the best interest of the family,” he said. “And I was happy at Radnor.”
Kelly noted that he initially trained for Radnor with Pennsylvania State Police satellite schools in Delaware and Montgomery counties. He was on the job two years when he attended the Pennsylvania State Police Academy in Hershey, training for eight weeks.
“Though I was never a cadet, it was the best of both worlds,” he said.
During his time in Radnor, Kelly rose through the ranks from officer to detective to sergeant.
“In Radnor,” Kelly said, “I loved the job so much. There really were no lows, even though every day is not a perfect day.”
In 1974, he was appointed to the department’s newly formed Tactical Squad, one of four officers selected by department supervisors. In 1977, he was tapped by the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office to serve on loan with its Fugitive Motorcycle Task Force, focusing on the outlaw Pagans and Warlocks biker gangs. That on-loan position lasted about 14 months.
When he returned to Radnor in 1978, he was promoted to detective.
In 1982, he graduated from the prestigious FBI National Academy, a member of its 131st session. The education, plus the opportunity to meet men and women from all over the world was a “priceless” experience, he said. After 27 years, Kelly left Radnor in 1992 to join CID, which is the investigative arm of the District Attorney’s office. When he was approached and asked if he was interested, Kelly responded, “I can start yesterday.”
It was an opportunity he could not pass up.
He was hired by former D. A. William H. Ryan Jr. and later served under former district attorneys including the late Patricia Holsten; Pat Meehan, G. Michael Green and Jack Whelan, both now Common Pleas Court judges; and current D.A. Katayoun Copeland.
During his nearly three decades with CID, Kelly again rose through the office ranks, ultimately attaining the position of sergeant. For more than 20 years, Kelly worked in the Child Abuse Unit, and in 2013, took command of the Delaware County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
While every case was important to him, Kelly said he was especially proud of his role in putting child predator John Jackey Worman behind bars for life.
Over the years, Kelly said he saw some awful things, but nothing compared to Worman.
“I will never forget it,” he said. Kelly still keeps in touch with the victim who first brought the
“As one of the hardest working, upstanding and committed investigators I know, Sgt. Kelly will be greatly missed, and there is no question that his years of dedicated service have made Delaware County a safer place to live, work and raise a family.”
— Delaware County District Attorney Katayoun Copeland
Worman case to his attention.
During his last few years with the county, Kelly was assigned to the Special Investigations Division.
“As one of the hardest working, upstanding and committed investigators I know, Sgt. Kelly will be greatly missed, and there is no question that his years of dedicated service have made Delaware County a safer place to live, work and raise a family,” Copeland said.
“I had a good run,” Kelly said. “I haven’t had any lows, career-wise. I wouldn’t allow it.”
Schedule-free
For his work on the Worman case, he was recognized by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. It was one of many commendations he earned over the years. Other included the American Legion Award and the Women Against Rape (WAR) Victims’ Rights Award.
When WAR first started getting involved in his investigations, Kelly admitted he was resentful. But he quickly saw the benefits of their training and the successes of teamwork.
“Cops can’t do everything,” he said.
To anyone considering a career in law enforcement, Kelly offered, “Be positive. That’s what it is all about.”
For the most part, Kelly said he tried not to bring the job home with him. His wife wasn’t always on board with that philosophy.
Kelly credited the support of his family for any professional success that he enjoyed.
“Cops say they work shift work. But the wife works shift work, too. The whole family,” he said.
Kelly first saw Ginger at a skating rink in Philadelphia. They formally met at the Great Leopard rink in Chester.
“I met an angel when I met her,” he said. “She has always been there with me, for me … We have been blessed. I don’t know why I’ve been as lucky as I’ve been, really.”
Next month, Kelly is planning to take a trip with granddaughter, Quinn, to South Bend, Ind.
“I have to start watching what I promise, because my middle granddaughter just said, ‘I’d like to go to a basketball game.’ I said sure before I asked where. When I asked, she said, ‘Notre Dame.’”
If all goes as planned, on Dec. 2, they will be in the crowd as the University of Notre Dame and the University of Connecticut, the first- and second-seeded women’s NCAA teams, take the court.
“If I was still working I would not have been able to tell her yes right away,” Kelly said. “I would have had to check my schedule first.”