Thank you for your continued interest in our newsletter.  

We take pride in the many innovative programs we have implemented in recent years,  including our new Incarcerated Veterans Re-entry Initiative at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility. You can read all about it in this issue of On Guard and In Focus. 

I am also pleased to announce that we will host our annual Open House and Family Day on September 18, 2016 from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.  It will be held at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Riverhead.  

I welcome your suggestions, photos and story ideas for upcoming issues. Also visit us on Facebook and Twitter for updated information about the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office. 

Enjoy the rest of your summer!

VINCENT  F. DeMARCO
Suffolk County Sheriff

We will be kicking of NYS Sheriff's Week with our annual Open House and Family Day on Sunday, September 18th from 10:00 am - 3:00 pm on the grounds of the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Riverhead.  This is a completely free event and will feature K-9 demonstrations, jail tours throughout the day (for ages 12 and up), law enforcement presentations, Marine Patrol Units, Amber Alert Child ID Cards, a buggy obstacle course, exciting Sheriff’s Emergency Response Team demonstrations, Senior Medical ID Cards, balloon art, McGruff the Crime Dog, face painting, games for the kids, giveaways and much more.  Email Kristin.MacKay@Suffolkcountyny.gov for more information. 

Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco, Suffolk County Legislator Bill Lindsay, Judge John J. Toomey of the Veterans Treatment Court, New York State Senator Tom Croci, and Veteran Mentors from the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 11 in Farmingville, launched an Incarcerated Veterans Re-Entry Initiative at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility on June 10th.  The program will help incarcerated veterans re-enter society with services in place to address some of the underlying causes of their contact with the justice system.  Many of the jail’s incarcerated veterans suffer from PTSD and substance abuse issues, and have been involved in heavy combat situations.  

Long Island has a military veteran population of 174,000 -- more than any other area in New York State. Many of Long Island’s returning veterans are Reserve and National Guard members. 

The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office has created two Safe Transaction Zones designed to help protect citizens from various crimes associated with online transactions including robberies, thefts and assaults. Future planning will expand this initiative to additional locations.

The safe transaction zones are located at the Sheriff’s Office, 100 Center Drive Riverhead, NY, and at our Yaphank Facility, 202 Glover Drive, Yaphank, NY. Both are clearly marked with red and white signs and are in full view of on duty Deputy Sheriffs. Over time these areas will be enhanced with video cameras.

Citizens are encouraged to use the marked areas as a place to meet and conduct transactions that require in-person exchanges of online purchases.

Deputy Sheriffs will not participate in the exchanges or act as official witnesses in transactions. Most purchase agreements and transactions are civil matters. However with deputies nearby, the area will be safer for buyers and sellers and will deter criminals who want commit crimes against others.

Citizens are encouraged to use the area during daylight hours and will not have to schedule an appointment with the Sheriff’s Office.

For directions to our Safe Transaction Zones, please click here.

Suffolk County Correction Officer Thomas Miller recently engaged in a special project with 6th and 7th grade students at the William Paca Middle School in the William Floyd School District.  The initiative was a part of the Sheriff’s Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.RE.A.T.) Program, a curriculum the Sheriff’s Office conducts in schools throughout Suffolk County.  During his time teaching in the classroom, the students expressed an interest in giving back to their community, and decided to write letters of support for our United States military serving abroad.  Officer Miller offered to coordinate the effort with one of his colleagues, Correction Officer Jose Moreno, who is currently serving in the Air Force overseas and is on military leave from the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office. 

The students created drawings, cartoons, letters, cards and many other special items, and Officer Miller mailed the package to Officer Moreno, who then distributed it to his fellow Airmen, who were serving in Kuwait at the time.  To commemorate the students’ heartfelt best wishes, the Airmen commissioned an American Flag in the name of the students from the William Paca Middle School and the G.R.E.A.T. Program, and it was flown over their military base in Kuwait.  Officer Moreno then mailed the flag to Officer Miller, who presented it along with another Correction Officer, Ricardo Flores, to the students during the school’s Awards Night ceremony on June 13, 2016. Officer Flores also serves in the Air Force.

Inmate work crews from Sheriff DeMarco's Vocational Training Program participated in restoration efforts at the Kent Animal Shelter in Calverton. The work crews are under the supervision of Suffolk County Correction Officers.

Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco has expanded the Inmate Vocational Training Program throughout the years, and believes it is an opportunity for Suffolk County’s inmates to give something back to the community, while learning new skills that can improve employment opportunities post-release.

Sheriff DeMarco was honored at the New Beginnings Gala Event on Friday, May 20th for the contributions the Sheriff’s Office made to renovating  Brendan House, a state-of-the-art long-term rehabilitation home for survivors of traumatic brain injury, on Sound Avenue in Riverhead. Before Sheriff DeMarco dispatched inmate vocational training work crews to rehab the old farmhouse, in was virtually inhabitable.  Sgt. John Whitehead supervised the works crews, and played an integral in the entire restoration project. He was also honored at the Gala Event.

On Sunday, May 22nd, Suffolk County Correction Officers volunteered their time to present medals to participants of the Special Olympics of New York Annual Spring Games Competition at Bellport High School.

Join us in congratulating all of the athletes who participated in the Spring Games and thanking our Correction Officers for volunteering their time to be part of such a great community event.

Sheriff DeMarco recently announced that the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Incarcerated Youth Initiative has been recognized with a 2016 Achievement Award from the National Association of Counties (NACo). The awards are granted to counties for programs that serve to improve services to county residents, and are judged on their innovativeness, effectiveness, and for delivering results. The Sheriff’s Office received the award in the category of Criminal Justice and Public Safety.

Since DeMarco began the initiative in 2011, the youthful jail population in Suffolk County has been cut by more that 75%.  This is due to intensive re-entry services and coordination with other partners thoughout the criminal justice system, including the Felony Youth Part in District Court. The County's non-profit community and Eastern Suffolk BOCES have also played significant roles in improving outcomes for justice-involved youth in Suffolk.  

On May 20th members of the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office gathered at the Sheriff's Office Administration Building in Riverhead to salute and applaud Undersheriff John P. Meyerricks Jr. on his last day of service with the Sheriff's Office.

Known for his unwavering commitment, vision and dedication, Undersheriff Meyerricks played a vital role in enhancing the growth and professionalism of the Sheriff's Office.

Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco and the staff from the Sheriff's Office congratulate Undersheriff Meyerricks for his 32 years of dedicated service to the citizens of Suffolk County. We wish him the best in his retirement.

Recently, Deputy Sheriffs assigned to the Suffolk County Decon Strike Team participated in a simulated chemical emergency drill at Pilgrim State Hospital. The Suffolk County Decon Strike Team provides county and local agencies with technical assistance during a hazardous material incident.

Currently, there are 14 Deputy Sheriffs who participate on the team. They are trained in radiological device detection and also participate in Operation Shield, which is a marine and marina-based interdiction effort used to identify possible illegal uses of radiation based weapons.

On May 24th, Deputy Sheriff's from the K-9 Unit were at Oregon Middle School in Patchogue. The demonstration was part of the culmination of the 13 week G.R.E.A.T. Program that the students had just completed.

On Saturday, May 14, the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office joined numerous other local and state law enforcement agencies in teaming up with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) to combat drunk driving and support victims, their families and friends at the 2016 Long Island Walk Like MADD event at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater.

The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office B.A.T. Mobile is a modified command post equipped with breath and blood testing equipment, video recording devices, computer workstations, and a secure space to hold arrestees during processing. The onsite vehicle enables Deputy Sheriffs to reduce travel time transporting suspects to obtain blood tests and analyze breath, and improves the testing results of D.W.I. suspects since blood alcohol content can diminish with time.

The B.A.T. Mobile was purchased by Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco with an Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant, and from funds seized during drug arrests. It makes frequent patrols across Suffolk County.

photo credit: VVA Ch 11 member Ron Pacchiana

On May 24, 2016, Sheriff DeMarco spent the morning visiting with volunteer court-based mentors from the Vietnam Veterans of America’s Chapter 11 (Suffolk County, NY), as well as with Judge John J. Toomey, Jr., Presiding Judge of Suffolk County’s innovative Veterans Treatment Court.   The specialty-court provides our veterans with the opportunity for a second chance following an arrest.  Many of the defendants that go before Judge Toomey suffer from PTSD and head trauma as a result of their involvement in wars and heavy combat zones throughout the world.  The VVA-mentors offer special assistance and guidance to each defendant assigned to the court, and do a tremendous service to our community by caring for our veterans during very difficult times.  Judge Toomey, also a veteran, has made the court a great success throughout the years. 

DeMarco's visit to the Court was made in preparation for the launch of the Veterans Re-Entry Program at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility.  That event took place on June 10th. 

This year's awards ceremony honoring both officers and civilian employees of the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office was held at the Long Island Aquarium and Exhibition Center in Riverhead.

Debbi Hallock, (pictured on the right) who recently retired from the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office, is seen here with Chief Deputy Sheriff Michael P. Sharkey.  

 

Deputy Sheriffs Bing and Butler attended Longwood High School's Career Expo in March, where they spoke to students about their careers and the vital role law enforcement plays in keeping our communities safe.

At the Expo, the Deputy Sheriffs also accepted a Certificate of Appreciation for the ongoing partnership the Sheriff's Office has formed with the school district.

Instructors from the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office Project Lifesaver Bureau were in Lynbrook to train members of the Lynbrook Police Department as Project Lifesaver Electronic Search Specialists. The intensive, two-day Electronic Search Specialist operator course trains Police Officers on how to interact with clients with Alzheimer’s, Dementia, Autism, Down Syndrome and other cognitive impairments as well as search equipment orientation and mock search and rescues using the equipment.

Suffolk County Sheriff Vincent DeMarco was appointed by Project Lifesaver International Headquarters as the Downstate New York State Coordinator. In this role, the Sheriff and his officers are responsible for training all New York State law enforcement agencies south of Albany that wish to launch the Project Lifesaver program in their jurisdiction.

The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office Project Lifesaver program is a countywide emergency response locator service capable of finding individuals diagnosed with cognitive impairments in the event they wander and become lost. Each enrolled client is assigned a wrist-worn transmitter bracelet that emits a unique signal that can be tracked by trained law enforcement officers from the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office.

To learn more about Project Lifesaver, visit our website.

Deputy Sheriffs Indence and Gross recently visited an Eastern Suffolk BOCES classroom to discuss the dangers of impaired driving. The Deputy Sheriffs had the students wear simulated DWI impairment goggles, which simulate the effects of being legally intoxicated, and had them perform routine tasks such as identifying shapes and walking a straight a line to highlight the dangers of impaired driving.

To request this program for your school or community event, please visit our website.