Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department
| Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department | |
|---|---|
| Common name | Roosevelt Island Public Safety |
| Abbreviation | R.I.P.S.D. |
|
Patch of the Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department | |
| Agency overview | |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | State of New York, USA |
 | |
| Map of Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department's jurisdiction. | |
| Legal jurisdiction | New York State |
| General nature | |
| Specialist jurisdiction | Buildings and lands occupied or explicitly controlled by the institution and the institution's personnel, and public entering the buildings and precincts of the institution. |
| Operational structure | |
| New York State Peace Officers | 40 |
| Parent agency | Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
The Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department (RIPSD) is a law enforcement agency in New York City whose duties are to patrol Roosevelt Island, the associated New York City Subway station of the same name (F trains), and the Manhattan and Roosevelt Islands stations of the Roosevelt Island Tramway, because of the contract that the State of New York made with New York City in 1968 which gave New York State a 99-year lease on the land.
Overview
The department is Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation's law enforcement arm and protects the island's property including all public/state facilities, storefronts and patrols certain contracted residential buildings 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Officers also patrol the island's only New York City Subway station, and the public school which is under the NYCDOE; they enforce state and city laws on the island. The department is manned by approximately 40 officers. They patrol an area which is approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) in length (north to south) and 800 feet (240 m) at its largest width, which is East to West. On September 21, 2009, the department opened their new command center located at 550 Main Street. The new command center has new and improved offices, a new training room, a weight room, as well as two holding cells for arrest processing. The Main command center monitors 24-hour island-wide camera system and every vehicle that comes onto Roosevelt Island via Lic.Plate/Registration readers installed on the Roosevelt Island Bridge. As well as cameras on the Manhattan side of the tram, along the route and inside the tram cars. Also the officers monitor cameras in the Roosevelt Landings housing Complex.
Equipment and uniforms
Roosevelt Island Officers are not authorized to carry firearms on/off duty as per NYS criminal procedure law. Officers wear dark blue uniforms with patches on the front and back as well as the Roosevelt Island Department of Public Safety patches on their arms.[1] bullet resistant vest, a can of pepper spray, expandable PR-24 baton, flashlight and a digital radio that is directly linked to the Central Dispatcher and other Public Safety officers. The department uses marked vehicles. The department have Patrol officers in vehicles and bikes and one certified EMT. All officers are trained in basic life support.
Power and authority
Roosevelt Island Officers are certified New York State Peace Officers. Officers can make warrantless arrests, issue summonses such as NYC Parking Violations, NYS and NYC Criminal Court summonses, Environmental Control Board summonses, and use physical force when necessary. Arrests are processed by the officers, and persons arrested are processed and lodged at Manhattan Central Booking, where they await arraignment. All officers are trained and responsible to factually testify in the court of law in regard to their actions.
Training
The officers complete an extensive Peace Officers course which includes training in law, police science, powers of a peace officer, self-defense/tactics, arrest procedures, traffic stops,and beat patrolling, vertical patrol tactics, park enforcement, and basic life support/CPR. Also an additional 8 weeks of Field Training, in which new officers must satisfactory complete in part of their supplemental training. For those seeking the certification, Bicycle Training and Radar Training are also provided.
History
When the island was first developed/opened to the public for housing by the "Roosevelt Island Development Corp", security on the island was handled by security guards contracted by "RIDC". The firm was City Security Guards Inc. from 1976–1978. Then in 1978 the contract was terminated and a full service police force was formed and law enforcement was handled by the Roosevelt Island Police Department (RIPD) from 1979–1981. In 1981 a name change happened and RIDC transferred all officers to the "NYS Division of Housing and Community Renewal Police" (NYS DHCR Police) from 1981 to approx. 1985. Both police departments were staffed by peace officers, and members had statewide jurisdiction and powers both on and off duty. Officers were armed with standard issue .38 special revolvers. Originally, RIPD/DHCRPD had state jurisdiction since they were employed as state officers. In 1984, the "Roosevelt Island Operating Corp." was formed and all island operations were transferred to it. Not long after that (in 1985) the DHCR Police were disbanded and Officers/Sergeants/Lieutenants/Captains could remain as Security Guards for "RIOC" or could join the NYS Department of Correctional Services. Most officers went to the NYPD, New York City Transit Police, and New York City Housing Authority Police Department, and only two or three went to New York State Department of Corrections. The officers who stayed were now part of RIOC Security, with no special patrolman status, no guns, and security type uniforms. Then about a year or two later, after residents demanded a more professional, police-type force, RIOC formed the Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department. Their first patrol cars were red Ford Jeeps and uniforms were changed to NYPD-style uniforms. They were given New York State Peace Officer powers and certain equipment but were still unarmed. The RIPD [1979-1981] cars looked like the Port Authority's police cars. They were blue with yellow tops and gray lines with the words "Roosevelt Island Police" written in red lettering, The color was changed in 1980 to white and a van was added. Then they switched from RIPD to a name change of NYS DHCR Police [1981–1985]. Those cars looked like modern day state trooper cars. Same graphics, colors, (actually, instead of navy blue the cars were black with gold stripes) and where it says "State Trooper" it said "DHCR POLICE". In 1986, in the wake of a major news story on a duplication of services by a town police department in upstate New York, then-Governor Mario Cuomo started an investigation on duplicated services for police departments, and since Roosevelt Island was in New York City, the New York City Police Department is the responsible law enforcement agency on the island, Cuomo then disbanded about 15 police departments total in the state, with DHCRPD being one. RIOC concurred with this move in order to have autonomy of their own Public Safety Department. At present, their vehicles are SUV's.
Rank structure
There are six titles (referred to as ranks) in the Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department:
| Title | Insignia | Uniform Shirt Color |
|---|---|---|
| Director (Chief) |  |
|
| Deputy Director (Deputy Chief) |  |
|
| Captain |  |
|
| Lieutenant |  |
Dark Blue: patrol |
| Sergeant |  |
|
| Detective |
 |
Excessive force complaints
Some residents have accused the RIPSD of a pattern of violent behavior towards residents, and making overly aggressive, unnecessary arrests. In a February 6, 2013, public meeting, the Roosevelt Island Residents Association Common Council, which includes elected representatives from most buildings, called for the removal of the Director and his Deputy. In one specific case, a resident, Anthony Jones, 20, was arrested on January 13, 2013, on Trespass and Resisting Arrest charges. The Manhattan District Attorney's office refused to prosecute the case, and the charges were dropped. Jones said that after handcuffing him, Public Safety officers threw him to the ground, beat and kicked him. Jones was hospitalized with a punctured lung, and is suing the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation. Other residents complained of being arrested and roughly handled on charges that were eventually dismissed.[2][3][4]
See also
References
- ↑ Roosevelt Island Public Safety Officers in Uniform
- ↑ Public Safety Under Fire After Resident Hospitalized in an Arrest; Attorney Alleges a Savage Beating; Demonstration Planned Next Saturday, by Dick Lutz, The Main Street Wire, Feb. 9, 2013
- ↑ Roosevelt Island Residents Demand Public Safety Department Changes, By Mirela Iverac, WNYC News, February 27, 2013
- ↑ Roosevelt Island Safety Nightmare. by Joanna Fantozzi, New York Press, March 1, 2013
