Message From The Sheriff

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the citizens of Hempstead County for allowing me to serve as your sheriff and collector it is an honor to serve Hempstead County as your Sheriff.

I believe that interagency cooperation and citizen support are critical to successful law enforcement in Hempstead County, as your Sheriff, I will continue to work with all agencies and citizen group’s to improve the quality of law enforcement in Hempstead County.

We will continue to aggressively seek out drug dealers, and criminals that prey on the young and elderly. We have adopted a no tolerance policy on underage drinking and those who provide alcohol to our youth. We have a very dedicated Criminal Investigation and Drug Task Force unit that works very well with state, federal and local law enforcement agencies to bring criminals to justice. 

Together with the support of our Prosecuting Attorney’s office, we have established the DARE program in all the county schools, and we have a certified deputy teaching the 5th and 6th grade students about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

Our detention center continues to rate among the best in the state, and we have recently updated the entire security system with digital cameras and monitors. We have installed a padded cell to help us deal with violent and mentally unstable persons that are brought into our facility. We received a grant to help install a video arraignment system in the detention center, courtroom, and judge’s office to allow persons in custody to receive a first appearance from a secure area in the detention center, creating less danger to the general public in transporting persons to and from court. It also allows detention officers and court personnel to be more efficient and timely in conducting first court appearances. 

The sheriff’s office has established a search and recovery Dive Team unit with 11 trained and certified rescue divers, a custom built rescue boat to be used in search and recovery operations, along with a military Humvee that was given to the sheriff’s office through the defense reutilization program.

My pledge to the citizens of Hempstead County is that I will continue to improve the sheriff’s office skills; techniques and training to make sure all Hempstead County citizens are provided with professional, honest, and caring service in all parts of Hempstead County. 

James A. Singleton, Sheriff