Credit: Patrick Grego
Police Cpl. Steven Camburn, Shield 4, is a third-generation resident of Pine Plains. Born in 1983, Camburn enlisted in the Marine Corps after graduating from Stissing Mountain High School in 2001. His local roots and commitment to his community run deep.
“Since my family is from here, I like to help out,” he said. Camburn’s maternal grandfather was from Beacon, N.Y., while his maternal grandmother was from Pine Plains. His father’s family is from Stanfordville. Camburn has served with the Pine Plains Police Department for seven years.
A member of the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the volunteer fire department, Camburn returned to Pine Plains after leaving the Marines. He has two young sons in the Pine Plains Central School District. “I get out and get to meet people every day from all different walks of life. It’s exciting,” he said.
Camburn served eight years in the Marine Corps and later received an associate degree in criminal justice from Dutchess County Community College. He graduated from the Dutchess County Law Enforcement Academy in 2017.
Credit: Dutchess County
“He’s our go-to guy. He lives right here in town, so if I get a call for something, we call him,” said Officer in Charge John Hughes. Camburn’s role in the police force is part-time and mostly on call.
During his second tour of Iraq in 2004, Camburn received a Purple Heart. As a fire team leader in Najaf, he was clearing out a basement when an enemy grenade exploded, injuring him with shrapnel. The shrapnel, which caused nerve damage and hearing loss, was later removed from his bicep. He was then transferred to a medical facility in Baghdad. “I told the doctor, bandage me up so I can go back,” he said.
Reflecting on his family’s tradition of community service, Camburn said, “My grandfather and grandmother on my mother’s side were part of the Bomber Boosters Club; they would always help people out. My grandmother on my father’s side was a bus driver for the school district, and my grandfather on my father’s side was a volunteer firefighter in Stanfordville. Community service runs in my blood, so I like to help out as much as I can.”
Camburn and his colleagues at the Pine Plains Police Department deal with issues typical of a small, close-knit community. “Since it’s still kind of small and community-oriented, most of the neighbors know each other, so they’ll hash out their problems before they even call us,” he said. “Unlike bigger cities where people may not know their neighbors, residents here still help each other out.”
Generally, “We try to mediate situations and provide information so neighbors can work things out civilly,” he said. “You can get something as small as a guy cutting his lawn in the summer and blowing his clippings on the road. Most people don’t know, but that’s illegal, and it will bug someone else on the road. It’s a petty thing, but you gotta go there and address it.”
Most complaints the Pine Plains Police Department handles involve speeding traffic. Camburn and his colleagues are often the first on the scene for car accidents, fires, and medical emergencies, rendering aid until rescue services arrive. “Sooner or later, we’ll have a crime that every other place has, but we’ll have it once or twice, not five times a day,” Hughes said.
The current patrol area of the Pine Plains Police Department covers 38 square miles, and as a rural police department, its members often face unique challenges. “Let’s say we get a call at 11 o’clock at night for an alarm at a house. You go up there to that house, the wind is blowing, the snow is coming down sideways, and the door is smacking. You get out of that car, and the hair will stand right up on the back of your neck. If there is someone in there, they can see you, but you can’t see them. And there’s no backup. It’s just you,” said Hughes, noting that backup can take up to 45 minutes to arrive.
Motor vehicle stops also present dangers, whether from being hit by another car or facing a violent motorist. Despite these challenges, the police department remains very community-oriented.
“We are doing it because we want to do it,” said Hughes, who has been with the Pine Plains Police Department for 35 years. “I went to school here, my kids went to school here, we’re invested.”
“People wave to us, and I wave back,” Camburn said. “I’m always a firm believer that if you want respect, you have to give it.”