Nassau County, New York, on Long Island, has been ranked by U.S. News and World Report as having the lowest crime rate in the U.S. The Nassau County Police Department (also referred to as the Nassau Police and Nassau County Police and abbreviated as NCPD) is the law enforcement agency of Nassau County.
History
In 1925, concerned about rising crime rates, the County Board of Supervisors voted to create the Nassau County Police Department, replacing a scattered system of constables and town and village police departments. Some jurisdictions declined to join the police district, however, and have opted to maintain their own independent police forces to this day (i.e.: the Port Washington Police District). Consisting initially of Chief of Police (later Commissioner) Abram Skidmore, 55 officers (absorbed from the Nassau County Deputy Sheriff's) and a fingerprint expert, the force grew to 450 officers by 1932 and reached 650 officers by the time Skidmore retired in 1945.
The expansion accelerated dramatically following World War II with the rapid suburbanization of the county. It reached 1,000 officers in six precincts by 1950. A seventh precinct was opened in 1955 and an eighth followed five years later. In the early 1970s, with crime and civil disorder in neighboring New York City and other cities a major concern, the force was boosted to its greatest strength, nearly 4,200 officers. Since then, it has declined to around 2,600, and it remains one of the largest county police agencies in the United States.
In 1989 officers were equipped with 9mm SIG Sauer P226 semi-automatic pistols to replace older .38 Special revolvers.
Nevertheless, the department's reduced size has been a source of controversy, with the village of Mineola exploring the idea of seceding from the police district and establishing its own police force. On December 5, 2006, however, the village's voters decisively rejected the proposal, 2,936 to 1,288.
In October 2011, the Nassau County Legislature voted on a budget that had the effect of closing three of the eight precincts. In March 2012 the Levittown station was chosen to be the first to be reduced to a "Community Policing Center" followed by the 5th Precinct in Elmont, and 6th Precinct in Manhasset. All previously closed Precincts have since reopened.
The department is headed by a civilian commissioner, appointed by the county executive. On January 24, 2018, County Executive Laura Curran appointed Patrick Ryder, the former commanding Officer of the Asset Forfeiture & Intelligence Unit, as Commissioner. On February 26, 2018, after being unanimously confirmed by the Nassau County Legislature, Ryder was sworn in as Nassau County police commissioner.
In April 2019 the county announced an agreement had been reached between the Democrat County executive and Republican-controlled County legislature, and on April 10, 2019, the 6th Precinct in Manhasset and the 8th Precinct in Levittown were reopened, restoring the department to its original 8 precinct Size.
The NCPD's guiding philosophy is that it is a "service-oriented" police department, promoting the concept of the community as client, and the police as provider. (For example, officers will come to a citizen's home to take a crime report or complaint, rather than ask the citizen to come to the precinct.) Sociologist James Q. Wilson used the Nassau department as the exemplar of this approach in his classic 1968 study, Varieties of Police Behavior.
Equipment The department has historically been known to quickly embrace new technologies. The Marine Bureau began in 1933 with the gift of an 18-foot Chris Craft mahogany speedboat from the residents of Manhasset Bay. The Aviation Bureau followed a year later with the gift of a Stinson airplane from wealthy county residents. The aircraft was grounded by World War II, but the air unit was revived in 1968 with the purchase of four helicopters to assist in pursuits and medical evacuations. The elite Highway Patrol Bureau, which covers the Long Island Expressway and the Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway and includes motorcycle officers, was founded in 1935. All police vehicles are now equipped with computer keyboards, and, since 1973, air conditioning.
In addition to these units, the department also maintains many features, such as a Detective Bureau, a police academy, a mounted unit, an arson/bomb squad, a hostage negotiation team, a citizen-based auxiliary police program, a bureau of special operations (SWAT and anti-crime combined) and an Emergency Services Unit (ESU), that are usually found only in the police departments of large cities. The department also adopted its own system for computerized tracking of crime information, formerly known as NASSTAT, but now called Strat-Com. All homicides and auto-related fatalities are investigated by the NCPD, regardless of whether or not they occurred in the police district.
Traffic safety is a major department priority, given Nassau's relative lack of public transportation and its perpetually clogged roads and highways. A unique feature of the department is its Children's Safety Town, an actual village built to 1/3 scale that includes paved streets, two intersections equipped with traffic signals, an overpass, two tunnels, a simulated railroad crossing and 21 buildings. Managed by the department's Traffic Safety Unit, it allows the NCPD to teach traffic and bicycle safety to grade schoolers under controlled conditions.
In July 2025, the department went a step further and opened its "Training Village," a model neighborhood that aims to train officers based on realistic scenarios. The village has about 10 buildings, including a warehouse, gas station and grocery store. The idea for the village came about when the department realized that classroom and academy-based training wasn't adequately preparing officers for the unpredictable realities of daily police work. The village allows trainers to stage a wide variety of incidents, from active shooter and hostage situations to more routine disturbances.
In 1989, concerned about the increasingly heavy weaponry being carried by criminals, the NCPD was among the first police departments in the country to trade their venerable 6 shot .38 Smith & Wesson revolvers for the 15-round, nine-millimeter SIG P226 semi-automatic pistol. In 2009, the department announced it is switching over to the SIG P229 and SIG P226, chambered for .40 S&W with the Double Action Kellerman (DAK) trigger and integral accessory rail as the new standard firearm. In September 2023, the NCPD began transitioning to the Glock Model 45, chambered in 9mm. Also, officers are re-equipping with expandable batons to replace the straight wooden nightstick.
In 1995, the NCPD became the largest police department in the country to that time, and the first in New York State, to allow its officers to work a steady 10- or 12-hour shift, rather than a rotating 8-hour shift commencing at a different time each week. In early 2007, the NCPD announced that 207 marked patrol vehicles would be equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) devices, allowing "live" views of the location of all active units.
In late 2006, the department undertook "Operation Gotcha," deploying a new technology that scans the license plate numbers of passing vehicles directly into a mobile crime computer, allowing the immediate apprehension of drivers operating vehicles with expired licenses, suspended registrations or with outstanding arrest warrants. The technology allows the scanning of literally thousands of plates in a single shift.
Firearms SIG Sauer P226 DAK and SIG Sauer P229 DAK, both in .40 S&W—officers have their choice and both weapons replaced older 9mm SIG Sauer P226 pistols. SIG Sauer SIGM400 Glock 45 9mm
Police vehicles In the 1990s, the department exclusively used Ford Crown Victorias and Chevrolet Caprices as their main patrol cars. Mounted units used Chevrolet Suburbans.
In 2003, the department switched to the 2000–2005 Chevrolet Impala 9C1. The Ford Crown Victoria was still purchased, albeit in smaller quantities. The department favored the "CVPI" due to the rear-wheel drive and V8 configuration. The department switched back to the Crown Victoria in 2006. Few Impalas are still in service in 2019.
Model year 2006–2010 Dodge Chargers were tested for highway patrol use. The Dodge Charger was a performance leader; however, due to maintenance costs, the department did not use many and few are still in service as of 2018.
The department tried Chevrolet Tahoes in 2010 and they were given to certain sectors. The vehicle proved to be a strong patrol car with good all-weather capability and was a valuable asset during Hurricane Sandy. The Chevrolet Caprice 9C1 was tried out in 2014 and was given to precincts and highway patrol.
The mounted unit operates Chevrolet Tahoes and Suburbans. Highway patrol utilizes the Ford Police Interceptor, Ford Crown Victoria, Chevrolet Caprice and Dodge Charger. The Auxiliary Police unit uses a variety of ex-marked Nassau County Police cars, the majority of which being Ford Crown Victorias and Chevrolet Impalas.
Nassau County Highway Patrol now utilizes 2021-2022 Dodge Chargers and Late model Chevrolet Tahoes for patrol.
Nassau County ended up switching to the Ford Utility Interceptor as their main choice for RMP. Today, the Ford Utility Interceptor is the most widely used car in the fleet.
Recruitment The Nassau County Police Department (NCPD) recruits candidates for Law Enforcement positions by administering the Nassau County Civil Service application for the position of Police Officer. Candidates will then be required to pass a written examination prior to beginning the hiring process.
It also serves as the hiring authority for law enforcement positions in certain villages and special districts within Nassau County that have their own independent police forces, which are:
Brookville Centre Island Floral Park Freeport Great Neck Estates Garden City Hempstead Kensington Kings Point Lake Success Lynbrook Malverne Muttontown-Upper Brookville Old Brookville Old Westbury Oyster Bay Cove Port Washington Rockville Centre Sands Point
Applicants must successfully complete the hiring process with the NCPD in order to be appointed. Preference is usually granted to town or village residents. If there are more positions to be filled than eligible residents, non-residents will then be considered. (Though many jurisdictions require successful applicants to become residents once they are hired.) Applicants with no prior law enforcement experience in New York State commence training at the Nassau County Police Academy, alongside recruits for the NCPD and other county agencies. Some jurisdictions exempt applicants with prior service as police officers in New York State from attending academy training.
The cities of Glen Cove and Long Beach conduct a separate testing and hiring process, though they also send their candidates to the Nassau County Police Academy.
Rank structure Promotion to the ranks of sergeant, lieutenant, and captain are made via competitive civil service examinations. Promotion to the ranks of detective, detective sergeant, detective lieutenant, detective captain, deputy inspector, inspector and chief are made at the discretion of the police commissioner, though an individual must already have attained the rank of sergeant, lieutenant or captain prior to being designated detective in that grade.