{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-164.955","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 164.955","heading":"Police officers -- Powers and duties.","body":"(1) Police officers so appointed shall be peace officers and conservators of the peace.\nThey shall have general police powers including the power to arrest, without\nprocess, all persons who within their view commit any crime or misdemeanor. They\nshall possess all of the common law and statutory powers, privileges, and\nimmunities of sheriffs, except that they shall be empowered to serve civil process to\nthe extent authorized by the employing governing board of the respective public\npostsecondary education instit ution employing them. Without limiting the\ngenerality of the foregoing, such police officers are hereby specifically authorized\nand empowered, and it shall be their duty:\n(a) To preserve the peace, maintain order and prevent unlawful use of force or\nviolence or other unlawful conduct on the campuses of their respective\ninstitutions, and to protect all persons and property located thereon from\ninjury, harm and damage; and\n(b) To enforce, and to assist the officials of their respective institutions in the\nenforcement of, the lawful rules and regulations of said institution, and to\nassist and cooperate with other law enforcement agencies and officers.\nProvided, however, that such police officers shall exercise the powers herein\ngranted upon any real property ow ned or occupied by their respective\ninstitutions, including the streets passing through and adjacent thereto. Said\npowers may be exercised in any county of the Commonwealth where the\ninstitution owns, uses, or occupies property. Additional jurisdiction may  be\nestablished by agreement with the chief of police of the municipality or sheriff\nof the county or the appropriate law enforcement agency in which such\nproperty is located, dependent upon the jurisdiction involved.\n(2) Police officers may exercise their  powers away from the locations described in\nsubsection (1) of this section only upon the following conditions:\n(a) When in immediate pursuit of an actual or suspected violator of the law;\n(b) When authorized to do so pursuant to the agreement authorized b y subsection\n(1) of this section;\n(c) When requested to act by the chief of police of the city or county in which the\ninstitution's property is located;\n(d) When requested to act by the sheriff of the county in which the institution's\nproperty is located;\n(e) When requested to act by the commissioner of the Department of Kentucky\nState Police;\n(f) When requested to act by the authorized delegates of those persons or\nagencies listed in paragraph (c), (d), or (e) of this subsection;\n(g) When requested to assist a state, county or municipal police officer, sheriff, or\nother peace officer in the performance of his lawful duties; or\n(h) When operating under an interlocal cooperation agreement pursuant to KRS\nChapter 65.\n(3) Police officers a ppointed pursuant to KRS 164.950 to 164.980 shall have, in\naddition to the other powers enumerated herein, the power to conduct investigations\nanywhere in this Commonwealth, provided the investigation relates to criminal\noffenses which occurred on property  owned, leased, or controlled by the public\npostsecondary education institution. Where desirable and at the discretion of the\npublic postsecondary education institution's police officials, the institution's police\ndepartment may coordinate said investigations with any law enforcement agency of\nthis Commonwealth or with agencies of the federal government.\n(4) Police departments created and operated by the governing boards of public\npostsecondary education institutions shall, for all purposes, be deemed public police\ndepartments and the sworn police officers thereof are, for all purposes, deemed\npublic police officers.\n(5) Nothing in KRS 164.950 to 164.980 shall be construed as a diminution or\nmodification of the authority or responsibility of any city or coun ty police\ndepartment, the Department of Kentucky State Police, sheriff, constable granted\npolice powers, or other peace officer either on the property of an institution of\npostsecondary education or otherwise. Nor shall anything in KRS 164.950 to\n164.980 b e construed as a diminution or modification of the authority or\nresponsibility of any constable.","path":["KRS Chapter 164"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=53279","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:51:18Z","sha256":"28bc85d37a61dfe7fa9ef55a074f99add65723c76b4c07d28496dcd482505ea1","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-164.952","next":"us-ky/krs-164.960"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}