Captain Darren Smith
Operations Bureau Commander

As Commander of the Operations Bureau, Captain Smith is responsible for overseeing all Patrol Activities and Officers, School Resource Officers, Animal Control Officers and the Bureau of Investigations.

  Captain Darren Smith has been a member of the Kenton County Police Department since August 16, 1990.  He was promoted to the rank of Captain on July 02, 2002.  Captain Smith has over 2400 hours of police training and is a graduate of the 219th Session of the FBI National Academy. Captain Smith has an extensive background in Patrol Procedures, Criminal Investigations, Narcotics Investigations and Evidence Collection.

 PATROL

As with any police agency, the Kenton County Patrol Bureau is the heart and soul of the department. The officers of Patrol are tasked with the responsibility of being the first line of defense for the citizens of the community. A strong emphasis is placed on promoting a proactive philosophy to the patrol officer to include community relations and crime prevention. It is their responsibility to respond to all types of calls for service from a barking dog, to a fatal motor vehicle accident, to a death scene. It is the Patrol Officer who responds and takes charge of the often volatile scenes. The primary focus of our Patrol Bureau is:

Preventative patrol in both the residential and business communities in the county.
Responding to citizens' requests for assistance and initiating the appropriate response.
Preliminary investigation of crimes.
Investigation of all traffic collisions within the community.
Enforcement of all laws, both criminal and traffic.
Assistance to neighboring Police, Fire and EMS agencies.

The Kenton County Patrol Bureau consists of 27 members, which includes of one Captain, six Sergeants, 19 patrolmen and one K-9 Officer.

 ANIMAL CONTROL

Kenton County Police has four Animal Control Officers who are responsible for enforcing state laws and local ordinances pertaining to the welfare and control of domestic, exotic and wild animals.   Our Animal Control Officers work in concert with other local agencies and the Kenton County Animal Shelter.

 SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS

Kenton County Police has five School Resource Officers (SRO) that are assigned to Twenhofel Middle School, Woodland Middle School, Scott HS, Ryland Elementary, Whites Tower Elementary, and Piner Elementary.  Our School Resource Officers are full time, certified, Kenton County Police Officers working within the Kenton County School System.  These SRO's interact between the school's administration and the Kenton County Police Department.  Their duties include security for the grounds, enforcement of state laws and school rules, truancy issues, trust-building of students through close contact and fellowship, and educational programs such as D.A.R.E. and Character Counts

Kenton County Police Bureau of Investigations

The Bureau of Investigations consists of three individual components:  Criminal Investigations, Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction Unit (STAR), and assignment to the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force.   There are five officers assigned to the Investigative Bureau: three Criminal Investigation Detectives, and two Narcotics Investigators. 

The Criminal Investigation Detectives handle the investigation of all reported felony crimes, missing person cases, and administrative investigations such as pre-employment background checks. The two narcotics investigators are assigned to a multi-county task force called the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force (NKDSF).  The narcotics agents, along with personnel from other local police agencies assigned to the task force, work narcotics investigations in a four-county area in Northern Kentucky. The STAR Unit is an arm of the Investigative Bureau, but the personnel with specialized skills in this area serve first in their primary duty of patrol officer or detective. When their services are needed they mobilize to handle the investigation at hand and return to their primary duties when the investigation is completed.

Through the Bureau of Investigations, the Kenton County Department operates an Evidence Collection Unit (ECU) that is called upon to respond to crime scenes and major auto accidents throughout Northern Kentucky. The services of ECU have been requested by numerous agencies including the Kentucky State Police and the F.B.I.  The ECU is primarily staffed by Criminal Investigation Detectives and these duties are in addition to their daily responsibilities of investigating felony crimes, missing person cases, and administrative investigations within our primary jurisdiction.

Community Projects

Since 2002 the Kenton County Police Department has dedicated resources towards educating our citizens with the following programs: Kenton County Police Citizens' Academy, Youth Citizens' Academy, Internet Crimes Against Children, Elder Abuse, Identity Theft and Stranger Danger.  Our community programs are designed not only to educate but also to build police-community partnerships.