Hoover Police Department
The Hoover Police Department is a law enforcement agency serving the city of Hoover, a suburb south of Birmingham with a population of 85,000. The department's administrative offices are located in the Hoover City Hall at 100 Municipal Lane. The Chief of Police is Nick Derzis. As of 2024 the department employs 190 sworn officers and more than 65 non-sworn staff members.
The Hoover Police Department's patrol division operates from the Hoover Police Department Field Operations Bureau in the former Hoover Twin Cinema at 3142 Lorna Road. The department's vehicle fleet includes 115 ethanol-fueled Chevrolet Tahoes and 8 Harley-Davidson motorcycles. The department's use of biofuels was highlighted during President George W. Bush's 2006 visit to the city.
The Hoover City Jail is housed, along with police records, police/fire/911 communications, and the Hoover Municipal Court, at the Hoover Public Safety Center at 2020 Valleydale Road. The center also provides office space for the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences and the United States Secret Service's National Computer Forensics Institute.
The department operates a Hoover Police Bluff Park Substation at 2146 Tyler Road in Bluff Park Village, which was dedicated in December 2006, and a Hoover Police Inverness Substation on the second floor of the Merchants & Farmers Bank at 107 Inverness Corners.
A $4.2 million 26,000 square-foot Frank & Pam Barefield Training Center was dedicated in September 2021 next to Hoover Fire Station No. 4 on Municipal Drive. The center houses shooting and other simulators, combat and defensive training spaces, classrooms and a gymnasium, along with garage space for specialty vehicles such as the incident command center and armored rescue vehicle.
History
When it was first created, the department, consisting solely of Chief James Norrell and patrol officer Oscar Davis, occupied a single room at Hoover Fire Station No. 1, sometimes using the station's restroom as a temporary jail. The department moved to the new Hoover City Hall in 1976.
The duties of the former Hoover Department of Homeland Security and Immigration were absorbed back into the city's police department in October 2008.
Hoover Police have been involved in two deadly police shootings. An officer shot William Russell Smith during a domestic disturbance call in March 2015. Another officer killed E. J. Bradford Jr in the aftermath of another shooting that took place inside the Riverchase Galleria on Thanksgiving night in 2018.
Police chiefs
- James Norrell, 1967-March 1968
- Oscar Davis, 1968-1976
- David Cummings, 1977-1998
- Bob Berry, 1998-2004
- Nick Derzis, 2005-
References
- Joynt, Steve (August 1988) "Despite yuppie jokes, Hoover Police take pride in their job." Birmingham Post-Herald
- Anderson, Jon (April 17, 2017) "Fire, police departments expand with the city" Hoover Sun
- Anderson, Jon (April 10, 2019) "Hoover police break ground on $4.2 million training center" Hoover Sun
- Robinson, Carol (September 15, 2021) "Hoover unveils state-of-the-art police training center." The Birmingham News
- Robinson, Carol (February 1, 2024) "Hoover ended 2023 with no homicides: Alabama’s 6th largest city reports crime falling." AL.com
External links
- Hoover Police Department website