Four new police officers will soon begin patrolling Falls Township.
The Falls Township Board of Supervisors on Monday approved the hiring of new officers to help fill vacancies in the Falls Township Police Department. Supervisors Chairman Jeff Dence administered the oath of office.
With the hiring of Garret Potter, Bruce Quarles III, Natalie Bonilla-Pena and Philip Smythe, the department is now at 47 total officers, six shy of being fully staffed, according to Operations Lt. Christopher Clark.
Originally from Lafayette Township, N.J., Potter currently lives in Levittown. He is a full-time student at the Temple Police Academy, Ambler, with an anticipated graduation in October. Potter earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Rider University. In 2022 he joined the United States Marine Corps as an active-duty commissioned officer, a role he held until the end of his service obligation in 2025.
Quarles, of Bristol Township, has been employed as a Bucks County Correctional Officer since January 2025. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Widener University. In 2017 Quarles joined the United States Army Reserves and currently holds the rank of sergeant with his unit, which is based out of Reading.
A Puerto Rico native, Bonilla-Pena is a Bensalem Township. She has been employed as a fire service EMT by the City of Philadelphia since September 2023. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Pennsylvania State University.
Smythe, of Bristol Township, has been employed as a Bucks County Correctional Officer since July, 2022.
All four newly hired officers will be participating in an orientation phase after which they will engage in ride-alongs and training opportunities before beginning the Delaware County Community College Police Academy on July 7.
