San Jose Police Department

History

The San Jose Police Department was founded in 1849. At that time, California was not even officially part of the United States, but regardless, San Jose was considered the capital.

During its beginnings, the most common offenses recorded for the department were public intoxication and vagrancy according to old jailhouse records. In 1880, the department was averaging at 120 arrests per month, and the position of police chief was created. The chief also acted as the superintendent of the city jail, and by the late 1880s, the department went from 10 officers at its beginning to 25. In the early 1905s, as the SJPD grew, it became much more organized. As laws were passed and the department modernized, more rules and regulations were instituted regarding police officers. Officers now needed to go through field training and revolver training.

The department, along with many others in the nation, drastically changed with the introduction of the automobile and the advent of motorcycle units. The motorcycle unit mainly cited people for speeding and other traffic violations, and spent a considerable amount of time in court. San Jose was one of the first places to use radio and phone technology to help officers perform their duties better. In 1925, the city council released the first rules and regulations manual to all department members. It was the inspiration for the duty manual that the department currently uses. The San Jose Police Academy first started out as a police college for aspiring officers to earn four year bachelor's degrees with an emphasis on criminal justice. Men made up the entire police force up until 1945, when Ida Waalkes became the first female to be a sworn officer with the San Jose Police Department.

Community policing became popular with the department in the early 1990s, as specific geographic areas were mapped out and assigned. This enabled officers to get to know the people and communities they patrolled, and is partially credited for keeping San Jose one of the safest large cities in America.

Uniform and equipment

The uniform of the department consists of a dark navy blue shirt for sworn officers, and a light blue or white shirt for differing civilian classifications. On the left side of the chest is worn the departmental badge, or a patch replica on certain items. The badge of a sworn police officer is a silver seven-point star reading "San Jose Police", the officer's rank, and badge number. Gold-colored badges are issued to higher ranking police officers. Civilian staff are issued eagle-top or oval shaped shields depending on classification. The San Jose Police Department patch is worn on both sleeves, with a rocker denoting classification for civilian staff. Pants are regular navy blue uniform trousers with white piping running down the side of the leg.

Weapons and equipment

The San Jose Police Departments officers normally carry tasers. The standard taser for the department was recently upgraded and is the TASER(R) X26P(TM) Smart Weapon. Officers are issued OC Spray, handcuffs, a baton, flashlight plus a handgun and two spare magazines. In 2013 the department changed the standard issue, semi-automatic handgun from SIG Sauer to Glock. Squad cars are normally armed with shotguns and officers are allowed to purchase patrol rifles, which must be signed off by the chief for the officer to obtain the right to purchase and possess such weapons. An officer is also required to go on a four-day course. The officers must purchase these weapons with their own money, they are allowed to bring them home and use them for personal/recreational use.

In mid-2014, the department returned a mine-resistant military vehicle to the federal government.

Mission statement

Department Chain of Command (Office of the Chief of Police)

Source:

Police divisions

Controversy

In 2014, the department had been found to be using high tech cellphone spying systems. Commonly referred to as "Stingrays", it is often said they bear the appearance of regular cell phone towers, but instead pick up and record cell phone data. It was shown that the federal government gave the department a $500,000 grant for the technology. The SJPD spokesperson refused to comment on the situation.

In July 2003, Cau Bich Tran was shot and killed in her kitchen by a SJPD officer after brandishing a 10-inch vegetable peeler. The incident led to controversy among San Jose's Vietnamese community. In 2005, the city of San Jose settled the Tran family's lawsuit for $1.8 million.

The week before Halloween 2011, a 27-year-old highly intoxicated man was shot over 20 times by four SJPD officers and wounded after he refused to follow officers commands and grabbed the gun. He was dressed as a surgeon and had a toy gun in his waistband. In 2013, the city settled a lawsuit for $4.95 million, the largest settlement in San Jose involving police conduct.

In March 2014, Officer Geoffrey Graves was accused of raping a woman. He turned himself into Santa Clara County Jail and was arraigned on March 24.

In December 2014, SJPD officer Phillip White made statements on Twitter that he would kill people who would threaten him and his family and that he would be carrying a gun while off duty at movie theaters, in response to protests of the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. White was subsequently placed on administrative leave. The San Jose Police Association have condemned the comments. In January 2015, prosecutors declined to file charges against White.

Fallen officers

Since the establishment of the San Jose Police Department, 13 officers have died in the line of duty, the most recent being on June 14, 2016.