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2014 SPECIAL SESSION I


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5079
Commending Richard J. Rappoport.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, June 12, 2014
Agreed to by the Senate, June 12, 2014

 

WHEREAS, Richard J. Rappoport, a dedicated, longtime law-enforcement officer, retires as the chief of police for the City of Fairfax in 2014 after 38 years of service; and

WHEREAS, Richard Rappoport graduated from the Southern Police Institute AOC Program at the University of Louisville, earned a bachelor’s degree from American University in Washington, D.C., and later graduated from the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy; and

WHEREAS, Richard Rappoport began his career in law enforcement in 1976 with the Fairfax County Police Department, one of the largest local police departments in the Commonwealth; he rose through the ranks from patrol officer to deputy chief of police for administration, serving in the Major Crimes Division, Personnel Division, Community Services Bureau, and Internal Affairs Bureau; and

WHEREAS, Richard Rappoport became the chief of police for the City of Fairfax Police Department in 2000; under his able leadership, the 85-member department maintained low crime rates, built strong relationships with members of the community, developed innovative traffic safety programs, and participated in major task forces directed at narcotics, organized crime, gangs, terrorism, and computer crimes; and

WHEREAS, highly admired in the law-enforcement field, Richard Rappoport is a member of several peer organizations and served as chair of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Police Chiefs Committee in 2003 and 2004; and

WHEREAS, Richard Rappoport was a contributing editor of two nationally published books on protecting civil rights and recruiting women to law enforcement, and he was appointed by Governor James S. Gilmore III to the Advisory Committee on Bias Based Policing; and

WHEREAS, Richard Rappoport strives to better the community as a loyal volunteer, donating his time to numerous civic and service organizations; from 1994 to 2000, he served as a member of the executive board of the Boy Scouts of America National Capital Area Council and earned the Silver Beaver Award, the council’s highest honor; and

WHEREAS, working to impart his wisdom and experience to the youth of the Commonwealth, Richard Rappoport was a member of the Fairfax County Public Schools Professional/Technical Studies Advisory Committee and has served as an adjunct professor at George Mason University since 2010; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Richard J. Rappoport on the occasion of his retirement as chief of police for the City of Fairfax in 2014; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Richard J. Rappoport as an expression of the General Assembly’s admiration for his deep commitment to serving and protecting the members of the Fairfax community.