Suffolk County Sheriff's Office Presents Shields to 38 New Deputy Recruits
Half of the 38 new Suffolk deputies who received their shields at Yaphank today already have law enforcement experience — from the NYPD to the State Police.
Thirty-eight deputy sheriff recruits received their shields Tuesday at the Yaphank Correctional Facility, two days before their official graduation ceremony at Suffolk County Community College's Grant Campus on Thursday, March 26.
The shield presentation, held with family and friends in attendance, marks the formal transition from trainee to sworn member of the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office. Sheriff Errol Toulon's office said the ceremony was held specifically so loved ones could witness the milestone ahead of the larger graduation event.
The recruits trained alongside Suffolk County police recruits at the Suffolk County Police Academy in Brentwood over a seven-month program that included firearms instruction, emergency vehicle operations, EMT training, and individualized field training. On Thursday, they will graduate alongside members of other law enforcement agencies at the Grant Campus.
The class brings a notable depth of experience to the force. Nineteen of the 38 recruits have prior law enforcement backgrounds, including service with the New York Police Department and the New York State Police. Three have military backgrounds, and six are fluent in more than one language.
During Tuesday's ceremony, the Suffolk County Police Foundation donated a gun locker to each recruit, providing secure at-home storage for their service firearms.
The Suffolk County Sheriff's Office serves more than 1.5 million residents across the county. In 2023, a comparable graduating class of 16 deputy sheriffs and 22 correction officers completed a six-month training program and joined a force that at the time comprised 233 deputy sheriffs and 802 correction officers. That ceremony, held at Van Nostrand Theatre on the Suffolk County Community College campus, was the first joint graduation the Sheriff's Office had held for both deputy and correction officer classes.
Thursday's graduation will mark the new deputies' formal entry into service for a county whose population rivals mid-sized American cities.
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