Although North Las Vegas and Las Vegas are part of the same metropolitan area, share city limit boundaries, and are within Clark County, NLVPD is not part of the larger Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. As of 2008, NLVPD provided law enforcement services to an area of 82.48 square miles (213.6 km2) and a population of approximately 235,479 citizens. As of October 2008 NLVPD had 458 commissioned personnel (Police and Detention Officers) and 381 civilian support personnel. The agency grew rapidly, adding 150 officers during the period 2006-2009. However, the number of personnel has been reduced by the financial crisis that began in 2009. NLVPD was established in 1946 to serve the growing community of North Las Vegas, which at that time consisted of four square miles and had a population of around 3,000. Since then, NLVPD has grown dramatically to keep pace with the growth of North Las Vegas and the rest of Clark County.
Under the chief are four subordinate captains who run day-to day department operations in three bureaus: Operations (2), Investigations, and Detention Services. Administrative Services are managed by a civilian deputy director.
Operations Command is divided into two geographical area commands, operating from separate facilities. These are the Northwest Area Command (NWAC) and the South Area Command (SAC). The Traffic Division also belongs to the Operations Command.
Investigative Command includes the Detective Bureau, Crime Scene Investigations Bureau, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT), Problem Solving Unit (PSU), K-9 Unit, and Narcotics Investigations Division.
Detention Command Detention services are conducted at the Las Vegas city jail in a shared services agreement. 48 NLVPD employees work in that facility.
Administrative Command includes the Communications Division (911 emergency dispatch), Animal Control Division, Resource Management Division, Community Services Division, Records Division, Validations Office, the Victim Witness Program, and Police Department Training Division.
The Special Assignments Unit (SAU) includes the Public Communications Office (public information officer, recruiting), and Field Training and Evaluation Program (FTEP). The SAU is supervised by a sworn police supervisor who reports to the Chief of Police.
