Nick Derzis

Nicholas Charles Derzis (born July 13, 1954 in Berlin, Germany) is chief of the Hoover Police Department and mayor-elect of the City of Hoover.

Derzis is the son of Peter Derzis, a U.S. Army intelligence officer and stockbroker, and his wife, Helen. He was born in Germany and spent his childhood in Arlington, Virginia before coming to Alabama at the age of 9. He earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice at Samford University and has also completed a law enforcement program at the FBI National Academy.

Derzis joined the Hoover Police Department in 1979. He became assistant chief in December 1999 and succeeded Bob Berry as chief in January 2005. He is a member of the Alabama Association of Chiefs of Police, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Metropolitan Criminal Justice Executive Association, the Law Enforcement Executive Development Association and the Board of Directors of the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO). That organization’s “Chief Nicholas C. Derzis Safe Schools Leadership Award” is named in his honor.

In March 2025 Derzis announced that he would challenge incumbent Frank Brocato for Mayor of Hoover in the 2025 Hoover municipal election. He promised to ‘energize” the city’s leadership. Among his priorities as mayor would be fully funding public safety departments, ensuring school quality, tackling “reckless spending” and establishing openness and accountability with regard to the city’s budget.

References

• Adnerson, Jon (March 3, 2014) “Fiancee of Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis: ‘I never attacked Nick with a hammer’.” The Birmingham News
• Anderson, Jon (August 2, 2017) “National school resource officer group names award after Hoover Chief Nick Derzis.” 280 Living
• Robinson, Carol (March 17, 2025) “Hoover police chief Nick Derzis running for mayor of Alabama’s 6th largest city.” AL.com