Gotham City Police Department

The Gotham City Police Department has, for some time, has had a history of corruption until the current commissioner, James Gordon, came to power. Even so, there are still many officers, both in high and low positions, involved in various criminal activities - ranging from bribery to drug-trafficking and murder. Nevertheless, several members of the GCPD has proven to be a formidable allies of the Bat Family and other superheroes, as well as formidable opponents when the relationship is adversarial. Gordon has been committed to halting the internal corruption of the GCPD as well as eradicating crime wherever it exists in his city, which may be part of why he has tolerated, and even aided the Gotham vigilante known as Batman, aka The Dark Knight. Under Commissioner Gordon, the GCPD has had an uneasy truce with Batman. Although not liking the idea of a vigilante, Gordon has gone along with him because Batman did work towards the same goals as him. Batman's history of no killing is one of the primary reasons Gordon has not taken harsher steps in trying to curtail Batman's activities. He even had a Bat Signal placed on the roof of the GCPD 12th Precinct in order to contact Batman when necessary. Batman has gone along with this truce, recognizing that having the police as an ally rather than an enemy makes his mission easier, as well as having respect for Gordon's hard stance against corruption and crime. When Commissioner Gordon was removed as commissioner, three commissioners were instated with an appallingly short lifespan. One of them, Sarah Essen, was assassinated by the Joker (ex-commissioner Gordon caught the Joker by shooting him in the leg after the assassination). Gordon was later reinstated as commissioner until his retirement. His successor Michael Atkins, ordered the arrest of Batman and had the Bat-signal removed from the building. During this time, corruption in the police rose once again, showing how vital Commissioner Gordon in the war against crime in Gotham. After Atkin was removed as commissioner, Katherine Kane (aka, Batwoman) was the police commissioner. Currently, James Gordon is once again commissioner and the GCPD's relationship with Batman, including the Bat-Signal are again in place. There are several divisions in the GCPD, including: Other Gotham City Police of note include Detective Nicolas "St. Nick" Gage, Coroner Supervisor Nora Fields, Detective Specialist Jamie Harper (an associate of Tim Drake), and Officer Xue. It also should be noted that Commissioner Gordon's daughter, Barbara Gordon, was the first Batgirl (before becoming Oracle after being shot by the Joker and losing the use of her legs).
 * Homicide Division - led by former private investigator Jason Bard. This was the division run by James Gordon before he became commissioner.  This division focuses primarily on murders and serious non-metahuman crimes in Gotham.
 * Major Crimes Unit - Inspired by the success of the Metropolis SCU, led by Captain Maggie Sawyer (who formerly led Metropolis's Special Crimes Unit). The MCU often deals with supervillains meta-humans. Capt. Sawyer is, in particular, quite capable in leading police forces to take down even powerful metahumans.  She had a close working relationship with Dan Turpin before Turpin was apparently killed by Darkseid. Despite her aggressive stance against metahumans, believing the police are more capable of fighting crime than vigilantes, she does have a positive attitude about certain heroes, like Superman and the others in the Super Family (Steel, Supergirl, etc.) Notable members of the MCU include Detective Harvey Bullock, Lt. David Cornwell, Detective Sergeant Vincent Del Arrazzio (an associate of the Huntress), Detective Joely "Joe" Bartlett, Josephine "Josie Mac" MacDonald (Detective and 'psychic'), and Detective Renee Montoya (at this time, an associate of Vic Sage, aka The Question).  There are also a number of corrupt officers in this division, however.
 * Quick Response Team - The GCPD's SWAT unit, led by Lt. Gerard "Jerry" Hennelly.