Sheriff of Suffolk County
Suffolk County Sheriff's Office
Riverhead, New York
Dr. Errol D. Toulon, Jr. is Suffolk County, New York’s 67th Sheriff and the County’s first African American
to be elected to a non-judicial countywide office. Now in his second term as Suffolk’s highest-ranking
law enforcement official, he continues to serve and protect the county’s 1.5 million residents through
innovative programs to reduce crime and recidivism. Early in his first term, he reorganized departments
into multi-disciplinary teams focused on corrections intelligence gathering, gang activity, and human
trafficking.
Sheriff Toulon launched the Sandy Hook Promise School Safety Initiative and since the program began
more than 30,000 students, faculty, and community members have been taught to recognize signs of
distress and how to report to a trusted adult. Simultaneously, he expanded correctional rehabilitation
programming aimed to reduce recidivism and keep communities safe. He also launched the nation’s first
jail-based Human Trafficking Initiative, which assesses inmates for signs of trafficking.
In 2020, Sheriff Toulon created The Sheriff's Transition and Reentry Team (START Resource Center). The
program is a national model for rehabilitation and reentry, assisting with services including employment,
mental health and addiction support, and housing to immediately help put them on a better path upon
finishing their sentence.
Prior to serving as Suffolk County Sheriff, Toulon worked for 25 years with the New York City
Department of Correction, culminating as the Deputy Commissioner of Operations. He received his
bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Monroe College, a master’s degree in Business
Administration and a doctorate in Educational Administration from Dowling College; an advanced
certificate in Homeland Security Management from Long Island University, and he attended leadership
courses at the JFK School of Government at Harvard University.
Disclosure information not submitted.
Sunday, May 21, 2023
1:15 PM – 2:45 PM