Police

Overview

New Albany is consistently one of Ohio’s safest communities and a reason for this low crime rate is the strong interaction between our officers, residents and businesses. Whether performing vacation house checks, patrolling neighborhoods or conducting bicycle safety programs for children, our officers understand that strong relationships set the foundation for a safer community. New Albany officers are also deeply committed to upholding the values of professionalism, integrity, respect and compassion to those they serve and protect.

New Albany police utilize multiple communications channels to stay in touch, including social media; the LIST city e-newsletter; and, when time is of the essence, the CODE RED call-out network that sends information to phone numbers and email addresses for those who have registered for the free updates. Police monthly reports are also available here.

Our school district partners promote the idea that if you see something, say something and report it. We couldn’t agree more. Even though New Albany’s crime levels are low, please report suspicious activity to the police at 614-855-1234. Those who believe an activity could be a life threatening emergency should call 9-1-1 immediately.

Accreditation

The New Albany Police Department earned National Accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) in 2019. Established in 1979, CALEA is a credentialing authority created through the joint efforts of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) and Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), to:

  • Strengthen crime prevention and control capabilities;
  • Formalize essential management procedures;
  • Establish fair and nondiscriminatory personnel practices;
  • Improve service delivery;
  • Solidify interagency cooperation and coordination; and
  • Increase community and staff confidence.

CALEA’s three year process included a self-assessment step where policies and operations were brought into compliance with CALEA’s proven standards. At the end of the self-assessment the department participated in two mock assessments before beginning the CALEA web-based assessment and the on-site assessment. CALEA assessors then submitted their report to the Commission for consideration. CALEA found the New Albany Police Department to be in full compliance of all 155 applicable standards covering every aspect of its public safety mission.

The New Albany Police Department is now one of less than 70 law enforcement agencies out of approximately 1,000 in Ohio to earn CALEA accreditation, which reflects to our residents and business partners how committed the New Albany Police Department is to meeting a national standard of excellence. Our officers, communications technicians and civilian staff understand that today, more than ever, we must strive to build upon our values of professionalism, integrity, respect and compassion while protecting our community.


In addition its CALEA national accreditation, the department is also a part of the Ohio Collaborative, a 12-person panel of law enforcement experts and community leaders from throughout Ohio that established state standards for use of force including use of deadly force and agency employee recruitment and hiring that can help guide law enforcement agencies in Ohio. These standards hold everyone accountable and instill a greater confidence with the public. The Ohio Collaborative works closely with partners, including the community and law enforcement agencies, to implement these standards. All law enforcement agencies are expected to meet or exceed these new standards as they develop policies and procedures to meet these new expectations. The Ohio Collaborative also provided model policies as a resource for agencies, and the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services serves as a contact and is available to assist agencies with implementation.

9-1-1

Police dispatchers take all emergency 9-1-1 calls. Calls for service are classified and then dispatched to police personnel and/or transferred to the appropriate fire or EMS emergency department. Cellular 9-1-1 calls are answered by either the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office or the Ohio State Highway Patrol and then transferred to the proper agency.

The dispatch communications center itself, located at 50 Village Hall Road, includes two fully functional dispatch stations and one call-taker station if needed.  Both dispatch stations are equipped with CAD (computer aided dispatch system) and RMS (records management system).  Each station is also equipped with up to date 9-1-1 phone lines and state-of-the-art phone systems.

Tips

9-1-1 dispatchers understand that callers may be under a great deal of stress and are trained to provide help in a timely and professional manner. When calling 9-1-1, please keep in mind the following tips:

  • Stay calm

When callers are scared or agitated, they are sometimes difficult to understand. Staying calm helps get questions answered more quickly and the appropriate help dispatched more easily.

  • State the nature of your problem quickly and clearly.

Until dispatchers know the nature of the call, they cannot begin to ask the questions most relevant to solving the problem and sending help. When calling 9-1-1, state the problem and be prepared to answer follow-up questions.

  • Be prepared to give your location and phone number.

In most cases when someone calls 9-1-1, the address and telephone number are immediately available to the dispatcher; however, cellular callers cannot be located unless they tell us where they are. If you don’t know an exact address, look for intersections or landmarks such as nearby businesses. Memorize your mobile phone number.

  • Answer the dispatcher’s questions simply and directly.

When asked yes or no questions, reply simply yes or no. If asked to describe something, be prepared to provide as much detail as clearly and concisely as possible. Follow any instructions that the call-taker gives you for your own safety.

  • Don’t hang up!

Don’t hang up when you think that the conversation is over with the call-taker. The dispatcher on the phone is your link to the officer, paramedic or firefighters in route. In many cases, field units in route to a call may ask questions that the dispatcher needs to ask the caller. Also, staying on the phone during a crisis or altercation will potentially allow the call-taker to hear a crime or will let us know that you are safe.

  • 9-1-1 hang ups

Per policy, New Albany police officers respond to all 9-1-1 calls where the caller either hangs up prior to the dispatcher completing the call, or when there is an open line or accidental call. Dispatchers will call the number back, but a police response will also be sent in order to ensure that what the caller stated is happening is in fact happening. If you call 9-1-1 accidentally, please stay on the line so that the dispatcher can speak to you.

Dispatch

The New Albany Police Department staffs a 24/7 communications dispatch center. New Albany dispatchers are responsible for answering multiple administrative and 9-1-1 lines ranging from animal complaints, residential and commercial alarm drops, crimes in progress, public disturbances, traffic complaints, automobile crashes and fire and medical emergencies. Dispatchers respond to nearly 5,000 calls for service annually. Fire emergencies are also part of our 9-1-1 response system. We work closely with the Plain Township Fire Department, which provides fire and emergency medical service to New Albany residents.

Dispatchers log each officer’s activities daily in the computer aided dispatch (CAD) system, information which includes arrive-on-scene times, disposition and in-depth information on each call. Our dispatchers also enter warrants, protection orders, missing persons, stolen vehicles, stolen license plates, stolen guns and stolen articles into the LEADS and National Crime Information Center (NCIC) computer systems.

All dispatchers of the New Albany Police Department are state of Ohio Notary Publics and their Notary services are available to the public, free of charge, 24 hours a day.

Our dispatchers are also all certified through the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International, the world’s oldest and largest organization of public safety communications professionals. By completing this certification, our dispatchers demonstrate that they meet or exceed industry training standards and follow the best practices set forth by APCO.

Stay Informed

MyPD App

With the explosion of smart phones and other mobile devices, residents can now provide tips through the MyPD smart phone app.

The MyPD app won’t replace 9-1-1 by any means. If you see something happening that may be a medical or life threatening emergency, please call 9-1-1 immediately. But for those times when you have a general police question, have information about an ongoing investigation, or want to provide feedback about our staff, this app allows you to conveniently access your police department at the touch of an icon on your mobile device. MyPD also allows you to download pictures along with text, something you can’t do over the phone. This information then automatically gets sent via email to the New Albany police dispatcher on duty.

Those downloading the app will be asked to insert the country, state and city they want to download. The country and state fields must be chosen before you can enter New Albany as the city. The entire process takes no more than a couple of minutes. Once New Albany is chosen and the app is downloaded onto your mobile device, residents have another easy 24/7 means of access to their local police department. For those submitting questions, please remember to insert contact information or police staff will not be able to respond.

MyPD Android App
MyPD Apple App

CodeRED™

New Albany utilizes CodeRED™ to notify the entire community or targeted areas in case of an emergency or urgent situations that require immediate attention.  CodeRED™ is a high-speed telephone communication service available for emergency notifications. Examples of notifications may include natural disasters (tornado warnings/watches, fires), man-made disasters (terrorism, chemical spills, gas leaks), search and rescue (missing children, adults or disabled persons) and crime (prisoner escape warnings, sexual offender/predator alerts).

CodeRED™ uses a database of phone numbers and emails that is offered at no cost to residents and businesses. The information in the CodeRED™ database is secure and confidential and will only be used for emergency notification purposes.

Please click here to register for CodeRED™.

Severe Weather Awareness – residents can receive severe weather alerts as part of their CodeRED™ registration. Additionally, residents can learn more about how to prepare for severe weather events at the Franklin County Emergency Management and Homeland Security website:  www.franklincountyohio.gov/emahs.

Programs

The New Albany Police Department offers a variety of programs geared to keep residents and businesses informed and engaged. From block watches to Safety Town to school resource officers, our officers and dispatchers value the opportunity to interact with the community to develop relationships that set the foundation for a safer community.

input-arrow input-arrow Bicycle Rodeo

Your child has the opportunity to participate in our upcoming bicycle rodeo, an event that teaches safe bicycling skills to children ranging in age from 5-12. The bicycle rodeo will include a safety inspection and a series of skill stations directly related to everyday bicycling situations. Participants will practice starting and stopping, safely exiting a driveway, the proper way to look for traffic, negotiating an intersection, and avoiding common road hazards that often lead to accidents. Participants can also go on a training ride through the trails at Swickard Woods under the supervision of a New Albany Police bike officer. We encourage your child to attend this educational bicycle safety event. To participate, make sure your child brings a bicycle and helmet.

input-arrow input-arrow Block Watch

The New Albany Police Department maintains several active Block Watch programs. If you live in New Albany and are interested in starting a Block Watch program in your neighborhood, please contact the department at 614-855-1234.

input-arrow input-arrow Citizen Police Academy

This free interactive nine-week training program is designed to provide insight into law enforcement and a working knowledge of the values and operations of the New Albany Police Department. Participants learn about the unique challenges faced by law enforcement as they take part in tabletop exercises and real-life scenarios that require split-second decision making. Taught by New Albany Police Department personnel, instruction has been designed to inform residents about various topics and provide opportunities for engagement and community input. Topics of instruction may include:

  • Orientation to law enforcement and modern policing
  • Patrol and emergency dispatch operations
  • Criminal law/search and seizure
  • Control and arrest tactics, response to resistance, and traffic stops
  • Drug enforcement
  • Shoot/don’t shoot judgment scenarios
  • Crime scene investigation

Enrollment in the CPA is not designed to train the participant.

Residents of the City of New Albany, Plain Township, and the New Albany-Plain Township School District who are at least 18 years of age are welcome to apply. Where space is limited, priority will be given to New Albany residents and applicants must commit to attending seven of the nine weekly sessions.

Applications may be submitted beginning October 1 each year and will be processed on a first come, first served basis. All applicants will be subject to a background check and the New Albany Police Department reserves the right to deny acceptance to any applicant. To receive enrollment information, please email CPA@newalbanypolice.org. Applicants will be notified by email of their acceptance.

input-arrow input-arrow Female Self-Defense/Rape Aggression Defense

This self-defense program is open to females 18-years-of-age or older who are interested in obtaining self-defense training and understanding the options they have when encountering sexual assault, harassment, domestic violence or other types of crime. The class covers current statistics, laws and common crimes of choice, as well as awareness, self-defense tactics and risk recognition. This high-impact course teaches easy-to-use self-defense techniques, not martial arts. The department has offered this free, multi-day course to more than 1,000 women. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. Call 614-855-1234 or email Officer Leland Kelly at lkelly@newalbanypolice.org for more information.

input-arrow input-arrow Fingerprinting Services

Digital (Webcheck) and rolled inked prints on form FD-258 fingerprinting services are offered to the public.

Those who require fingerprinting services for a background check can be fingerprinted on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. This service is by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, please call 614-855-8576. If you are in need of digital prints, please bring this completed form with you to your appointment. BCI and FBI reason codes are required to complete your digital fingerprint transaction.

Beginning November 1, 2020, this service is only available to New Albany residents and those who work within New Albany corporate limits. People utilizing these services will be charged $25 for digital fingerprinting associated with state background checks and $30 for digital fingerprinting associated with federal background checks. Processing prints on form FD-258 are no charge. The general public who neither live nor work in New Albany cannot utilize these services.

input-arrow input-arrow Safety Town

Safety Town is a safety awareness program held each summer for children who will be entering kindergarten or first grade in the fall.  Each day, the program explores a different safety topic, including stranger awareness, water safety, fire safety, pedestrian and bicycle safety, animal safety and school bus safety. All Safety Town instructors are state-certified elementary school teachers. More than 4,000 children have graduated. Continued support from our sponsors, including State Farm, Mounty Carmel, the New Albany Community Foundation and the New Albany Woman’s Network, has been integral to the success of this now well-established program. For more information visit http://newalbanysafetytown.org

input-arrow input-arrow School Resource Officer

Education is a community core value and New Albany City Council has consistently underwritten all costs associated with the school resource officer position stationed on the New Albany Plain Local Schools campus throughout the school year. The New Albany Police Department assigns a school resource officer and DARE office on the school learning campus.

input-arrow input-arrow Speed Trailers

Speed trailers are frequently utilized to help educate and slow motorists on New Albany streets. These trailers are deployed to streets where complaints occur and where those complaints have been confirmed by a Stealth Stat traffic study. New Albany police have two trailers. They don’t collect traffic information and no camera is used to cite speeding motorists. When deployed, these trailer display posted speed limits. When approaching vehicles exceed the posted speed limit by a pre determined amount, the sign board will begin flashing the vehicle’s speed. Additionally, red and blue strobe lights on the side of the sign board will flash to obtain the motorist attention and alert them of their speed. The speed trailer is often deployed before officers begin speeding enforcement. Educating motorists of the speed limit and their vehicular speed to gain voluntary compliance to the speed limit is preferred over writing speeding citations. To request the placement of speed trailer on a particular street, please contact the police department at info@newalbanypolice.org.

input-arrow input-arrow Stealth Traffic Survey

The New Albany Police Department uses Stealth Stat, a device to gather information about traffic on roadways. Unlike the speed trailer, Stealth Stat is small and blends in with the surroundings so that it does not influence motorist driving habits.

Stealth Stat provides an 85th percentile speed of vehicles traveling along a road, a number reflecting the average speed of the vast majority of motorists. Stealth Stat also can provide the ten mile pace, which is the ten mile per hour range that contains the greatest number of vehicles surveyed. Because most drivers are law abiding safe drivers, the 85th percentile speed and ten mile per hour range are two factors used in determining appropriate speed limits.

When the police department receives a speeding complaint for a particular road, a Stealth Stat survey is often one of the first activities completed. Data from Stealth Stat surveys assists police staff in determining if a speeding problem is perception or reality. Sometimes complainants believe cars are speeding on their street but a Stealth Stat survey indicates otherwise.

input-arrow input-arrow Urban Deer Management (2021-2022 Season)

The New Albany Urban Deer Management Program, which began in 2004, has successfully decreased the number of vehicle-deer crashes in the community while simultaneously decreasing complaints from local landowners who experienced landscape damage caused by overgrazing.

Hunting in New Albany is prohibited except on land that is designated to be part of the Urban Deer Management Program and only then by hunters who are annually chosen and officially recognized by the New Albany Police Department to be a part of the program. For land to be eligible for the Urban Deer Management Program, the landowner must sign a Hold Harmless Agreement and the area to be hunted must be approved by the police department and be given a hunting zone number.

2021-2022 

The 2021-2022 deer hunter list is complete and no new hunters will be added for the season.

input-arrow input-arrow Vacation Checks

In our continuing efforts to make the community as safe as possible, the New Albany Police Department provides free vacation house checks to residents. By completing and submitting the online form here, the police department will check on your residence during your time away from home. Always remember to call 614-855-1234 when you return home to cancel your vacation house watch.

Law Enforcement Links

Police Careers

Thank you for your interest in the New Albany Police Department! New Albany is one of Ohio’s safest communities and a key reason is our police force’s strong interaction with residents and businesses to protect life and property. Whether performing vacation house checks, offering women’s self-defense classes and a Citizen Police Academy, working with businesses, patrolling neighborhoods, conducting bicycle safety programs for children or maintaining a presence on the school learning campus throughout the academic year, our officers understand that strong relationships set the foundation for a safer community.

Our department currently consists of more than 20 uniformed staff and nine civilian staff, including seven full-time dispatch staff. More than 90% of our uniformed officers have obtained degrees and one third of our officers are military veterans. The department holds itself to the highest standards of excellence and professionalism and earned National CALEA Accreditation in 2019. The New Albany Police Department is now one of less than 70 law enforcement agencies out of approximately 1,000 in Ohio to earn CALEA accreditation.

For more information regarding New Albany Police Careers please visit New Albany Police Careers

Help Reduce the Potential for Teen Suicide

STORE YOUR FIREARMS AND DRUGS SAFELY OUT OF SIGHT

The rate of adolescent suicide by firearms has increased by 61% over the past 10 years and one in five teens have thoughts of suicide each day. Sadly, unsupervised teen firearm access triples the risk of death by suicide. Providing a barrier to an impulsive action, be it firearms or drugs, is a crucial first step in reducing the permanent results of unintentional suicide. If you haven’t done so already, the New Albany Police Department encourages you to take the Ohio AAP Store It Safe Pledge and commit to reversing the trend of irreversible actions and keep the conversation going. You can also visit the Store It Safe page to access educational handouts for yourself, providers, parents, and teens, plus view the online education modules.

New Albany police officers understand that strong relationships set the foundation for a safer community.