Chief Paul Sandy was appointed as a Patrolman for the City of Cortland Police Department on November 19, 1985, where he later became one of the founding members of the department’s Tactical Response Unit and later initiated the Bicycle Patrol.  DC Sandy was promoted to the rank of Uniform Sergeant in 1993 and then reassigned to the Detective Bureau in 1995, as a member of the Cortland County Drug Task Force.  He remained in the Detective Bureau until his promotion to Detective Lieutenant in 2003, where he became the agency’s Public Information Officer and Field Information Officer within Counter Terrorism Zone 6.  On August 28, 2009, he was promoted to Deputy Chief, then Chief in March 2021.  Throughout his law enforcement career Paul Sandy has received a number of awards, letters, and commendations from local, state, and federal agencies., including 2001 Lawman of the Year award.

Paul has been a lifelong resident of Cortland County.  He graduated in 1980 from McGraw Central School and attended Oswego State University, where he received his BA in Criminal Justice, with a Minor in Forensic Science, in 1984.  Later, he received his Master Degree in Labor Policy Studies in 2002 from SUNY Empire State College.  In 2005, Chief Sandy graduated the 220^th Session of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia.

The Chief is a member of the FBINAA, where he has held various positions on the Executive Board of the New York/Eastern Canada Chapter, including President in 2013.  He remains very active with chapter business and was one of the Co-Chairs for the 2018 FBINAA National Conference in Quebec City, Canada.   Currently, he is the Section IV representative for the FBINAA National Youth Leadership Program and one of the Co-Chairs of Counter Terrorism Zone 6, which covers several counties in NYS.  He is also a member of the International Association of Arson Investigators and Past President of the Blue Knights International motorcycle club, New York Chapter XXIX. Chief Sandy is a member of both the New York State Association of Chiefs of Police and International Association of Chief’s of Police. 

Chief Sandy is also a former member of the Board of Directors for 7 Valley Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse, Board of Directors for Catholic Charities as well as a past Adjunct Instructor at Tompkins Cortland Community College, where he taught Criminal Investigations and Criminology for several years.  In 2018, Chief Sandy was one of the founders of the Cortland 9/11 Memorial Foundation, which erected a memorial in Courthouse Park to honor those who sacrificed on 09/11/2001.

Paul enjoys spending time with his wife, Susan, and two sons, Kyle and Cody.

Kyle is a police officer with Cornell University Police and Cody is a county police officer with the Cortland County Sheriff Department.