Keeping over 900,000 Gwinnettians safe within almost 437 square miles is no small matter… and it takes no small number of public safety personnel to do it.
Firefighting and emergency medical response in Gwinnett is generally handled by the Gwinnett County Fire & Emergency Services Department, which is the largest fire service district in Georgia. The department operates 30 fire stations and 25 life-support medical units throughout the county, and employs 898 people who respond to over 74,000 calls each year.
Firefighting and medical help aren’t all the department does, of course. The department oversees outdoor burning, issues permits and certificates of occupancy, leads community education, and investigates fires. They even have HazMat, swift water rescue, technical rescue, and bike medic teams. And, for ceremonial events such as funerals and parades, they call out the Honor Guard to show (and get) respect in their dress uniforms and highly polished fire truck.
Policing in Gwinnett is a bit more complicated. Depending on the circumstances, citizens might seek the help of the Gwinnett County Sheriff, the Gwinnett County Police, a city police department, private security firms contracted by cities, or others. (See our sidebar for who to contact where you live.)
Gwinnett County Sheriff R.L. (Butch) Conway occupies an elected constitutional office that is not a department of the county government. The Office of the Sheriff includes 555 sworn officers and operates the jail, provides court security, serves civil papers, executes arrest warrants and evictions, and other functions.
The Gwinnett County Police Department, led by Chief A.A. (Butch) Ayers, includes 784 sworn officers and handles many areas of law enforcement from traffic stops to animal welfare enforcement. The county police department manages permitting for certain types of enterprises; enforces quality of life ordinances, such as those dealing with property maintenance, signs, and the registration of vacant/foreclosed property; provides primary law enforcement for unincorporated areas of the county, and to municipalities by contract; and runs educational crime prevention programs, among other things.
Lots of Gwinnett cities have their own police departments. Others contract policing to the county police. Some smaller municipalities supplement county efforts with city marshal programs, which focus on issues like code enforcement and generally rely on county police for law enforcement. At least one city, Sugar Hill, uses security guards for patrol, though these are not trained first responders.
If that weren’t enough, there are a few other types of law enforcement you might encounter in Gwinnett:
- Campus police, in several varieties; University System of Georgia police officers are sworn peace officers
- Georgia State Patrol and the Motor Carrier Compliance Division are departments of the Georgia Department of Public Safety
- Georgia Bureau of Investigation may have jurisdiction in some types of cases
- The Department of Natural Resources employs Conservation Rangers, enforcing boating, environmental, and wildlife laws
The lesson is that you should feel pretty well-cared-for in Gwinnett. And, in an emergency, getting to the right agency couldn’t be simpler: always dial 911.
Police & Fire Contacts
Gwinnett County Police and Fire Services
Gwinnett County Sheriff
Sheriff R.L. (Butch) Conway
770-619-6500
General Fire and Emergency Services
678-518-4800
Gwinnett County Police
Chief A.A. (Butch) Ayers
770-513-5700
Municipal Police Departments
Auburn Police Department
Chief Carl F. Moulder
770-513-8657
Berkley Lake Police Services*
770-513-5000
Braselton Police Department
Chief Terry Esco
706-654-3915 x1101
Buford Department of Public Safety
Buford Public Safety Director Dan Branch
Buford City Marshal Jerry Ethridge
770-945-6761
Dacula City Marshals
Marshal Steve Cline, 678-548-5439
Marshal Greg Chapel, 770-639-6441
Duluth Police Department
Chief R.D. Belcher
770-476-4151
Grayson Police Services*
770-513-5000
Lawrenceville Police Department
Chief L. (Randy) Johnson
770-963-2443 (Dispatch)
Lilburn Police Department
770-921-2211
Loganville Police Department
Chief Mike McHugh
770-466-8087
Norcross Police Department
Chief Bill Grogan
770-448-2111
Peachtree Corners Police Services*
770-513-5000
Rest Haven Police Services*
770-513-5000
Snellville City Police Department
Chief Roy Whitehead
770-985-3555
Sugar Hill Public Safety
770-513-5000
Suwanee Police Department
Chief Mike Jones
770-945-8995
*Policing for Berkley Lake, Grayson, Peachtree Corners, and Rest Haven are provided by Gwinnett County Police
Other Sources of Help
American Red Cross
770-476-3650
Atlanta Legal Aid
404-524-5811
Battered Womens Shelter (Partnership Against Domestic Violence) Atlanta
404-873-1766
Battered Womens Shelter (Partnership Against Domestic Violence) Gwinnett
770-963-9799
Child Abuse Reports
911 or 770-513-5700
Council for Women
770-963-9799
D.F.A.C.S. Department of Family & Children Services
678-518-5500
Gwinnett Childrens Shelter
678-546-8770
Gwinnett County
District Attorneys Office: Main Number
770-822-8400
Gwinnett County District Attorneys Office: Victim/Witness Program
770-822-8444
Gwinnett County Juvenile Court
770-619-6300
Gwinnett County Magistrate Court
770-822-8088
Gwinnett County Police Main Number
770-513-5000 or -5700
Gwinnett County Police Criminal Investigations
770-513-5300
Gwinnett County Sheriffs Department/Jail
770-619-6500
Gwinnett County Solicitors Office
770-822-8300
Gwinnett Sexual Assault Center/Rape Crisis Center
770-476-7407
Helpline Georgia
800-338-6745
Men Stopping Violence
404-270-9894
Senior Services
770-822-8850
Suicide Counseling
770-730-1600
Suicide Prevention Hotline (24 hours)
1-800-273-8255
Young Adult Guidance Center
404-792-7616
