Nancy Burns, Leon County Sheriff’s Office
Nominated by: Lieutenant Rory Robbins, Leon County Sheriff’s Office
After receiving a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Florida International University, Sgt. Nancy Burns began her career with the North Miami Police Department in 1978. In 1983, Nancy was certified as a Crime Prevention Practitioner and began practicing crime prevention while still working her regular beat as a patrol officer. During her tenure at North Miami, she was selected as Officer of the Year by the Citizens Crime Watch of Dade County. She continued in that position until 1989 when she and her family relocated to Tallahassee.
Having two young sons at the time, Nancy decided to stay home and take care of them for a few years before re-joining the law enforcement arena. Nancy joined the Leon County Sheriff’s Office reserves in 1993 and then in 1994 she began working part time with the crime prevention unit. In 1997, Nancy shifted to working full time.
With her experience and training, Nancy quickly became a valuable asset to the Crime Prevention Unit. She immediately took over the Sheriff’s Office publication of CrimeWatch which is the agency’s magazine that shares information with the public. Nancy had an integral part in developing the 9-1-1 News, which is an intra-agency publication reporting agency related news. Nancy also introduced McGruff the Crime Dog to the citizens of Leon County.
In 2005, Nancy was promoted to sergeant over the Crime Prevention Unit and continues to hold that position. She supervises two deputies who are also crime prevention practitioners and one civilian.
Lt Robbins stated: “Nancy has been a Crime Prevention Practitioner since 1983 and has over twenty-three years experience directly in the field of crime prevention. She literally is a leader in the field from the ground up. Nancy has dedicated almost her entire career to crime prevention and has a passion for it. As many crime prevention officers do; she works countless hours without complaint, which includes evenings and weekends. You may find someone with more training, years or accolades; but you will not find anyone who works harder or loves their job more or is more deserving of this recognition than Sergeant Nancy Burns”.
