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In the New York City Police Department, Detective is a rank bestowed upon uniformed patrolmen who have distinguished themselves in the line of duty. Unlike other ranks in the NYPD, the rank of Detective is bestowed purely upon merit and cannot be tested into or applied for. Detectives hold the same rank as Police Officers and below those with the rank of Sergeant The NYPD fields three paygrades of Detective: Third Grade (lowest and the rank at which newly promoted Detectives start), Second Grade (next highest), and First Grade (highest). Promotion to each successive paygrade, just as promotion from Officer to Detective, is based on merit.

Detectives are usually assigned to investigative squads housed within individual precinct houses, such as the 27th Precinct, and the Department's various specialized units, such as the Major Case Squad, the Special Victims Unit, the Organized Crime Control Bureau, the Internal Affairs Bureau, the Crime Scene Unit, or the Technical Assistance Response Unit. Detectives customarily wear civilian clothing in lieu of uniforms.

Promotion to the rank of Detective is colloquially referred to by NYPD personnel as "getting one's gold shield", due to the gold color of NYPD shields for ranks of Detective and higher in comparison to the silver color of the shield worn by Officers. Detectives do not have the authority to give orders to officers or uniforms as they are called. Nor do they have the authority to order sergeants around.

In the New York Police Department:

  • Detective First Grade is someone who has proven to be a particularly top-notch detective, and, in consequence, is given lieutenant's pay.
  • Detective Second Grade is a journeyman investigator. Experienced and dependable, s/he's been appointed to a grade that gives him/her sergeant's pay.
  • Detective Third Grade is either someone who's been a detective a relatively short time, or someone who hasn't really distinguished him/herself, but hasn't disgraced him/herself either, and so has moved neither up, nor back into uniform.
  • A "white shield" investigator refers to police officers that will receive their gold detective shields in 18 months.
  • Most detectives make only slightly more money than "white shield" uniformed police officers. A detective second grade makes about as much money as a sergeant; a first grade makes about as much as a lieutenant. There are some informal status boosts to making the higher grades, but no real authority.

Known detectives[]

  • Detective Nick Amaro - Special Victims Unit (formerly; demoted to Officer, restored to Detective)
  • Detective Carolyn Barek - Major Case Squad (formerly; later promoted to Lieutenant)
  • Detective Dani Beck - Special Victims Unit (formerly), Warrants
  • Detective Olivia Benson - Special Victims Unit (later promoted to Sergeant, Lieutenant, Captain)
  • Detective Kevin Bernard - Homicide (formerly)
  • Detective G. Lynn Bishop - Major Case Squad (formerly)
  • Detective Max Greevey - Homicide (deceased)
  • Detective Lennie Briscoe - Homicide (Retired; deceased)
  • Detective Dominick Carisi, Jr. - Special Victims Unit (formerly; joined Manhattan District Attorney's Office)
  • Detective Nina Cassady - Homicide (formerly)
  • Detective Brian Cassidy - Special Victims Unit (later demoted to Officer, then promoted back to Detective)
  • Detective Rey Curtis - Homicide (Retired)
  • Detective Alexandra Eames - Major Case Squad (later promoted to Lieutenant)
  • Detective Nola Falacci - Major Case Squad (formerly)
  • Detective Joe Fontana - Homicide (Retired)
  • Detective Robert Goren - Major Case Squad (formerly)
  • Detective Ed Green - Homicide (formerly)
  • Detective Monique Jeffries - Vice; Special Victims Unit (formerly)
  • Detective Nate Kendall
  • Detective Chester Lake - Special Victims Unit (formerly; incarcerated)
  • Detective Mike Logan - Homicide (formerly), Major Case Squad (formerly)
  • Detective Cyrus Lupo - Homicide (formerly)
  • Detective Peter Lyons
  • Detective John Munch - Special Victims Unit (later promoted to Sergeant; retired)
  • Detective Zack Nichols - Major Case Squad (formerly)
  • Detective Ashok Ramsey - Special Frauds Unit
  • Detective Amanda Rollins - Special Victims Unit (2011-2022; resigned from the force)
  • Detective Jet Slootmaekers - Organized Crime Control Bureau (2021-present)
  • Detective Gina Cappelletti - Organized Crime Control Bureau (KIA; formerly)
  • Detective Diego Morales - Organized Crime Control Bureau (KIA; formerly); Gun Violence Suppression Division (formerly)
  • Detective Freddie Washburn - Organized Crime Control Bureau (formerly); Narcotics Division (formerly)
  • Detective Victoria Cho - Organized Crime Control Bureau (formerly); Narcotics Division (formerly)
  • Detective Carlos Maldonado - Organized Crime Control Bureau (formerly); Narcotics Division (formerly)
  • Detective Elliot Stabler - Organized Crime Control Bureau; Special Victims Unit (formerly)
  • Detective Katriona Tamin - Special Victims Unit (resigned; formerly)
  • Detective Odafin Tutuola - Special Victims Unit (later promoted to Sergeant)
  • Detective Megan Wheeler - Major Case Squad (formerly)
  • Detective Carmen Riley - Organized Crime Control Bureau (formerly); Narcotics Division (formerly)
  • Detective Joe Velasco - Special Victims Unit (2021-present)
  • Detective Frank Cosgrove - Manhattan North Homicide Squad (2021-2023; formerly)
  • Detective Frank Donnelly - 37th Precinct (????-2022; KIA; formerly)
  • Detective Atwater - 116 Precinct (incarcerated)
  • Detective Violet Yee - Manhattan North Homicide Squad (2022-present)
  • Detective Jalen Shaw - Manhattan North Homicide Squad; Narcotics Division (formerly)
  • Detective Grace Muncy - Manhattan Special Victims Unit; The Bronx gang unit (formerly)
  • Detective Jamie Whelan - Organized Crime Control Bureau (2022-2023, KIA)
  • Detective Bobby Reyes - Organized Crime Control Bureau; Anti-Crime Unit (formerly); Narcotics Division (formerly)
  • Detective Terry Bruno - Bronx Special Victims Unit; Manhattan Special Victims Unit (2023-present)
  • Detective Tonie Churlish - Bronx Special Victims Unit; Manhattan Special Victims Unit (2023)
  • Detective Vincent Riley - Manhattan North Homicide Squad (2024-present)
  • Detective Samir Bashir - Organized Crime Control Bureau; Hate Crimes Division (formerly)

External link[]

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