Cornelius Police Department

Jurisdiction and responsibilities

Cornelius Police Department serves the Town of Cornelius in northern Mecklenburg County. Its service setting includes residential neighborhoods, Lake Norman waterfront, marinas, lakeside parks, and businesses. The department describes its mission as providing a safe environment for residents and visitors through fair enforcement of local and state laws. Headquarters is at 21440 Catawba Avenue. The official website distinguishes the main telephone, 704-892-1363, from the non-emergency number, 704-892-7773, and directs emergencies to 911. Mailing correspondence uses P.O. Box 399, Cornelius, NC 28031.

How the agency is organized

The published divisions are Administration, Communications, Field Operations, Records, and Support Services. Administration handles overall operations, budgeting, and planning. Field Operations includes patrol and special services, while Records maintains and distributes police reports and submits statistical reporting to the state. Support Services includes investigations, logistics, training, recruiting, accreditation, and community-focused planning. The dedicated Communications page identifies a public safety answering point housed within the police department and operated through an interlocal agreement with Davidson College. The published agreement concerns communications for the college, a separate institution from the Town of Davidson and its municipal police department.

Agency history and local context

The Communications Division documents service to Cornelius beginning in 1993 and to Davidson College beginning in March 1999. Its account traces the operation to a primary public safety answering point handling routine and emergency calls for police, fire, medical, and local-government services. The department's annual-report archive provides another route to dated institutional information, including reports through 2025: https://www.cornelius.org/police/annualreports.php.

Official records and officer resources

Applicants can review the official hiring process at https://www.cornelius.org/police/recruitment___employment_opportunities/hiring_process.php. It describes preliminary screening, a ride-along, interviews, a conditional offer, psychological and medical assessments, drug screening, and background investigation. The page links the employment portal and North Carolina minimum standards, and outlines training and benefit programs; applicants should confirm current terms with recruitment staff. The Policy and Accreditation page explains the department's participation in CALEA and links its public comment portal for feedback about services and standards: https://www.cornelius.org/police/divisions/administration/planning___analysis.php. The page invites public commendations and concerns about services and compliance with accreditation standards, alongside information about the department’s policy and accreditation function.

FBI data · 2025

The following figures are from the FBI’s 2025 published agency tables. They describe a reporting period, not current staffing or an assessment of agency performance.

Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer downloads, table 8; published agency label: Cornelius. CIUS_Table_8_Offenses_Known_to_Law_Enforcement_by_State_by_City_2025.xlsx

Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer downloads, table 78; published agency label: Cornelius. Table_78_Full_time_Law_Enforcement_Employees_by_State_by_Cities_2025.xlsx

Blank or unavailable values remain “Not published.” Participating agencies and reporting scope vary. Campus figures concern the reporting institution; a city name does not expand them to all local residents. Read the data definitions and limitations.

NC SBI data · 2024

The NC SBI record is published under Cornelius. Its 2024 reporting-status table lists: Reporting. These earlier figures are presented separately from the FBI’s 2025 tables.

Published Index-crime total: 382.

Sources: SBI agency reporting status · SBI law-enforcement personnel · SBI Index offenses by agency in county.

Personnel are a dated full-time payroll snapshot. Civilian classifications can include jail employees without outside police powers. These are not authorized-position or vacancy counts. Index-crime totals cover selected categories and are not totals of all crime.

Sources and review date

Official agency, government and institutional sources are linked below. Contact details and organizational information were reviewed September 24, 2026. Published statistical years are identified separately.

• Cornelius Police home and current contact information
• About Cornelius Police and its service community
• Department divisions
• Communications scope and history
• Annual report archive
• Hiring process and application links
• Policy, accreditation, and public comment portal