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Sean Patterson

Chief of University of Tennessee Police 

Sean Patterson was promoted to Chief of the University of Tennessee Police Department in November 2023. He was hired as the Assistant Chief of the University of Tennessee Police Department in 2020, after retiring as a lieutenant with the New York Police Department for more than 21 years.

During his time with the NYPD, he was training coordinator for its Emergency Service Unit, which performs tactical and technical rescues including high-angle rope and water rescues and vehicle extrications. Since 2015, he has served as safety officer for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade. He directed an interagency task force responsible for the safety of the parade route and leads a team of sergeants tasked with the safe operation and flight of 18 large helium character balloons, numerous smaller novelty balloons, and floats.

Patterson also is a retired Navy chief petty officer with 22 years of service including deployments to Bosnia, Kuwait, and Iraq. A native of Staten Island, New York, Patterson comes from a family of police officers and medical care professionals. His father is a retired NYPD sergeant, and his mother is a retired emergency room nurse. His brother is a retired NYPD detective, and his sister is a retired labor and delivery nurse.

Patterson’s wife, Anaida, was a K9 handler with NYPD’s Emergency Service K9 Team. Her partner, K9 Smitty, is named after Officer Moira Smith, the only female NYPD officer killed on September 11, 2001. Smitty is a male Dutch shepherd. Sean and Anaida Patterson are parents to two children Liam and Erin. He enjoys landscaping and he also is an avid distance runner and has completed six New York City Marathons.