Falls Police add three new officers after Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy graduation

Rick Pfeiffer -, Niagara Gazette, Niagara Falls, N.Y.
·2 min read

Sep. 23—The ranks of the Niagara Falls Police Department have grown again with the arrival of three new officers.

And while the trio of officers are fresh out of the Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy, none of them are strangers to the field of police work.

Officers Lauren Licata, Preston Reynolds and Nathan Shanley all hail from families where law enforcement played a central role in their lives. Police Superintendent John Faso said their family experience will be a plus as they move forward in their careers.

"It absolutely makes a difference," Faso said of the backgrounds of his new officers. "They know what they're getting into. They've been around it their whole lives."

Licata is the daughter of former Falls Police Superintendent Thomas Licata, Reynolds is the son of long-time Falls Police Narcotics & Intelligence Division Detective Jay Reynolds and Shanley's dad was a Niagara County Sheriff's corrections officer. They join at least a half dozen other Falls officers with family ties to the department.

"If you look at our department, we have a lot of legacy officers," Faso said. "And that serves us well."

Having just graduated from the law enforcement academy, the three officers are now experiencing 12 weeks of field training. The new patrol officers are paired with veteran officers and work tours of duty on all three patrol shifts and in the Traffic Division.

"It's exactly what it sounds like," Faso said, "It's designed to give them experience in everything a patrol officer has to do. We try to show them all the aspects of patrol."

The police superintendent said the field training is the last building block the officers need before they begin patrolling on their own.

"As well trained as they are at the academy, and they are very well trained, they need that street experience," Faso, a former law enforcement academy co-director, said.

The new additions mean Falls police are close to full manpower. Faso says recent retirements and departures have left him with four new openings, which he expects to fill quickly.

"We're almost at full staff," Faso said. "Mayor (Robert) Restaino has made it clear he wants to fill vacancies as soon as they occur. We just had a (civil service) exam and as soon as we get a new list, we'll immediately fill those vacancies. Those are the mayor's orders."

Notwithstanding their family ties, Faso said the expectations for the new officers are high. He said the new officers are "doing well" in field training.

"They are sharp police officers," the police superintendent said. "My expectations for them are the same as for every one of our officers. Perform the job they were hired to do and do it well."