Emphasizing their pledge to keep Suffolk safe, county officials drew names for the next police academy class, a significant step in the process to bolster the ranks of local law enforcement.
County Executive Edward Romaine pulled the first name from a drum of 3,402 applicants who scored a 95 on the police civil service test. He later called some of the candidates to thank them for pursuing a career in public safety.
Those scoring 100 on the exam or achieved a 105 with veteran credits are already at the top of the list and will be considered first to begin the long process of becoming a police officer, according to Stan Pelc, director of exams for the county’s Department of Civil Service. Last week’s drawing set the order of applicants who will be called up next for the academy class of 225 trainees set for the fall.
The county also set the order for lists of Spanish-speaking applicants to fulfill a discrimination settlement from the 1980s, Pelc noted. Suffolk’s civil service process for police hires remains under federal supervision, and requiring fluency in Spanish satisfies the county’s legal obligations.
“This is the start of a great career for those who want to dedicate themselves to helping keep Suffolk safe,” Romaine said. “With this process, we continue our efforts to make sure criminals don’t get the upper hand here in our county.” Romaine recently announced the promotion of 24 current officers to detective in a move that saw a total of 69 members of the force advance in rank. The new academy class will allow the county to backfill these positions.
Before acceptance to the academy, the prospects will undergo a vigorous vetting process that includes medical, psychological, personality, background, and polygraph reviews. Candidates can be eliminated at any point, thus necessitating the numbered list to take their place. Those up next must be ready to go, leading a local business owner to once report that he lost two employees in one day after they were called to replace trainees washed out of the academy. The test, taken by 13,000 hopefuls last June, is given every four years.
Also pulling names for the list was the county Legislature’s presiding officer, Kevin McCaffrey. “This is the first step in our effort to put more police on the street,” he said. “Hiring more officers, detectives, and supervisors is an integral part of keeping us safe.” Noting that a few of the first names selected sounded Irish, McCaffrey quipped, “There will be a lot of members of the Emerald Society, I think.”
Another participant in the process, which was overseen by county Personnel Officer Thomas Melito, was Suffolk’s comptroller, John Kennedy. “This is a great day for Suffolk, a transformation of government. What the public pays for, the public will get—personnel, equipment, technology,” said Kennedy, a critic of former county Executive Steve Bellone for not filling budgeted police positions.
Academy training takes seven months, and candidates will be paid during this time, along with benefits. The starting salary for a Suffolk Police officer is $43,000. They receive a pay raise every six months for 11.5 years for a top base pay of $158,000, not including overtime. An officer on top pay can expect to receive about $200,000 in salary without overtime. Hiring more staff is a way to reduce overtime spending, officials point out.
With 20 years in, officers can retire with 50% of their salary, more if they stay longer. They also receive medical, dental, and optical benefits, along with a Deferred Compensation Plan similar to a 401k.
Pelc, who has been part of the process for 47 years, said about 20,000 people tuned into the televised drawing the last time it was conducted. The vetting will begin with 500-600 candidates, according to Pelc.