About the New
York State Police In 1913, a construction foreman named Sam Howell was murdered during a payroll robbery
in Westchester County. Because Westchester County was a very rural area then, there was no local police department and Mr.
Howell's murderers escaped, even though he identified them before he died. His vicious crime spurred Mr. Howell's employer, Moyca Newell (left) and her
friend, Katherine Mayo (right), to initiate a movement to form a State Police department to provide police protection to rural
areas. As a result of their efforts, the State Legislature established the New York State Police as a full
service police agency on April 11, 1917. Since the first 237 men rode out of their training camp on horseback to begin patrolling rural areas, troopers
have been there to fulfill the law enforcement needs of the people of New York State with the highest degree of fairness,
professionalism and integrity. During
the 1990s, the New York State Police focused on three primary objectives: dealing with the rising tide of violent crime, much
of it drug related; increasing cooperative ventures with local law enforcement agencies to more efficiently and effectively
provide police services to the people of New York; and preparing for the challenges of the rapidly approaching 21st Century. Source: troopers.state.ny.us /Introduction/History/
|
|
|
Albert S. Kurek has spent
40 years in law enforcement. He served in the United States Marine Corp from 1957 to 1960, the New York State Police from
1962 to 1985 and as a Special Agent with the Defense Security Service from 1985 to 2002. A lifelong resident of Western New
York, he is a graduate of Genesee Community college and the State University College at Buffalo, New York. He enlisted in
the State Police on June 18, 1962 attending the state police school held at Oneonta, New York during that summer. He was assigned
to SP Horseheads where the very capable Trooper Kenneth Epler provided his on the job training. During the next three years, he was
assigned at SP Albion, SP Allegany and again at Albion. In 1965, he requested and was transferred to SP Batavia patrol where
he remained until 1980, when he was detailed to the first Hazmat detail and re-assigned to SP Clarence. While at Batavia,
he worked two duty tours on the Loadometer Detail and was elected to the PBA, as the Troop “A” delegate in 1979.
He served as the PBA Vice President under President John Canfield until his retirement in 1985. An avid New York Trooper history
buff, he maintains a mini-museum at his home with several one-of-a-kind items. He also has in excess of 100 albums containing
trooper photo and newspaper articles. Albert S. Kurek, a retired
New York State Police trooper wrote two books on the history of the New York State Police in The Troopers Are
Coming: New York State Troopers, 1917-1943 and The Troopers Are Coming II: New York State Troopers,
1943-1985.
|
|
|
|