The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office held a Graduation Ceremony for 19 new Correction Officers Friday at the Van Nostrand Theatre on the campus of Suffolk County Community College. The event was streamed live on Facebook and can still be viewed by visiting the Sheriff’s Office Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SuffolkSheriff.
These new Correction Officers spent the last ten weeks in a rigorous training program that included instruction in security and supervision, defensive tactics, legal issues, implicit bias training, essential services, chemical weapons and firearms, role play, and more. These officers join a force consisting of 812 Suffolk County Correction Officers working in the Riverhead and Yaphank Correctional Facilities.
Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr. congratulated and welcomed these new Correction Officers to the Sheriff’s Office, reminding them that “as employees of the Sheriff’s Office, you are now part of our extended family, and we have your back. And I can assure you that as your Sheriff, I have your back.”
Sheriff Toulon spoke about his recollection of his own graduation from the New York City Correction Academy on October 8, 1982, and reminded them that the job of a Correction Officer has changed over the years. “No longer are you just men and women working behind the four walls of the jail supervising inmates. You are now trained professionals who will be gathering intelligence to help solve and prevent crimes. You will be helping those addicted to drugs and alcohol overcome their issues, and you will be working with these same men and women so they never return to jail.”
The ceremony included bagpipes from the Suffolk County Police Officer’s Emerald Society Pipe Band, the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard, and large collection of distinguished guests including Suffolk County Comptroller John M. Kennedy, Judith A. Pascale, Acting Suffolk County Police Commissioner Stuart Cameron, and many Suffolk County Legislators.
For more information on the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office Correction Division, please visit www.suffolksheriff.com.