Henderson Police
Police Chiefs
Richard D. Perkins
Richard D. Perkins was appointed Chief of Police in July 2006, becoming the 10th
person to head the city of Henderson Police Department. He joined the Department
as a patrol officer in January 1984. He was selected as a field training officer
in 1987, tasked with training new recruits. He then became a police investigator
and was promoted to sergeant in 1991. That same year, he received the Clark
County District Attorney's Office Meritorious Award for his work with child
abuse victims. IN 1995, he was promoted to Captain, serving as the commander of
the Investigations Division, until his promotion to deputy police chief over the
Operations Command in December 2000. Chief Perkins also served in the Nevada
Assembly for seven terms, from 1992 until 2006. During this time he served as
Floor Leader, Majority Leader and Speaker of the Assembly. Perkins championed a
number of law enforcement issues, such as Nevada's Amber Alert, Homeland
Security, Truth in Sentencing and anti-drug and anti-street gang laws. Chief
Perkins was born in Boulder City and raised in Henderson. He is a graduate of
Basic High School. He graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, with a
bachelor's degrees in Criminal Justice and Political Science. He is also a
graduate of the FBI National Academy.