Westchester County NY Government

March 4, 2011 -- Based on the success of last fall's pilot program, the Westchester County Department of Public Safety is expanding its Unified In-Service Training Program in 2011 at the Westchester County Police Academy.

The training program for veteran police officers is offered at no cost to municipal police departments in Westchester as a shared service to help lower training costs. Previously, each department individually bore the time and expense of providing a minimum of 21 hours of refresher training each year for its members.

"We continue to focus on ways to reduce costs at all levels of government," County Executive Robert P. Astorino said. "This is an area where the county is able to help local municipalities reduce the cost of providing the annual training required by New York State."

Public Safety Commissioner George N. Longworth said the benefits of the Unified In-Service Training Program go beyond financial savings.

"When our police departments train together, they are better able to work together during joint initiatives or emergencies requiring mutual aid," he said. "It puts us all on the same page."

Longworth said the decision to expand the program in 2011 was based on positive feedback received from the police departments that participated in the fall pilot program.

During the pilot program, which was conducted for five weeks, training was provided to 83 police officers and supervisors from 13 police agencies in Westchester. Police officers received their in-service training in three 8-hour blocks of instruction while supervisors such as sergeants and lieutenants also attended a fourth 8-hour session. The training was conducted on both days and evenings for maximum flexibility.

The departments that participated were: Bronxville, Croton-on-Hudson, Eastchester, Greenburgh, Hastings-on-Hudson, Larchmont, Mamaroneck Town, Mount Kisco, Ossining Town, Pleasantville, Tuckahoe, Yonkers and the Department of Public Safety.

Since the county police must conduct the mandated in-service training for its 270 officers, there is minimal cost associated with opening its training sessions to municipal police officers.

Longworth noted that all police recruits from Westchester departments jointly attend the Westchester County Police Academy Basic Recruit School. The unified in-service training program extends that same shared services model to in-service training for experienced police officers.

The in-service training program, which is taught by Department of Public Safety instructors at the Police Academy in Valhalla, was created in conjunction with the Westchester County Chiefs of Police Association.

Among the topics covered during the training are Legal Updates, Investigative Interviewing, Use of Force and Firearms. Additional topics are planned for the expanded program.

In 2011, the Police Academy will conduct 23 sessions of the Unified In-Service Training Program. The sessions will follow the same three- or four-day format for participants.

"The Unified In-Service Training Program allows police departments to provide standardized training to its members at a cost savings, as well as address contemporary training topics that are affecting law enforcement at a countywide level," said Tuckahoe Police Chief John Costanzo, past president of the Westchester County Chiefs of Police Association. "The Tuckahoe police officers who attended the pilot program this past fall were impressed by the quality of the training provided, and were pleased that many of the attendees' suggestions were incorporated in the upcoming curriculum."

Departments that have already scheduled officers for the Unified In-Service Training program in 2011 are: Town of Mamaroneck, Larchmont, Tuckahoe, Bronxville, Eastchester, Tarrytown, Mount Kisco, Buchanan and the Department of Public Safety.