34. James Carver

You can take the cop out of the streets, but you can’t take the streets out of the cop. Look no further for proof of that adapted idiom than Carver, who represents the 1,374 rank-and-file police officers patrolling Nassau County who are regarded as the department’s “backbone.” Starting out as a New York City transit cop before switching to Nassau in the ‘80s, Carver became a union delegate in the ‘90s and the PBA’s top cop six years ago. While critics often blame generous police pay for the county’s fiscal woes, this seasoned officer draws on his experience chasing crooks while leading the court fight to overturn a two-year-old wage freeze—especially after officers are doing more with less amid a controversial cost-cutting precinct realignment.