Full Notification

     First and most importantly, we owe all of you in this fantastic community a huge thank you for everything you do to make the City of San Ramon a great place to live, work, and play. It was an exciting year within the San Ramon Police Department, and after closing out 2022 with the wettest and wildest New Year’s Eve we can remember, here are a few updates on what we have accomplished and where we are heading in 2023. 
 
     Without question, the past 12 months have been a year of transition within our organization. In 2022, we welcomed 20 new employees, including 15 experienced officers and five administrative staff members. This was, by far, the busiest hiring year since our inception in 2007. In addition, 18 promotions took place last year, including promotions at every peace officer rank in our agency. Even though this was a year of significant transition, we have thrived as an organization because you are served by the most professional and community-focused group in law enforcement.
 
     I am happy to report we, as an agency, are no longer suffering from the same peace officer staffing shortages faced by many other law enforcement organizations. On top of our ultimate goal of maintaining a safe and secure environment in San Ramon, one of our primary focuses during 2022 was hiring and recruitment. We had some ups and downs this year, including the lowest staffing level in our history. Still, due to the outstanding work of our hiring and recruitment group, during the final three months of 2022 alone, we welcomed nine new officers with over 50 years of combined experience in law enforcement. I am pleased to report we currently have 68 sworn officers, which is only two short of our authorized number of 70. Police Officer hiring interviews are scheduled again for January, and our goal is to be fully staffed in 2023.
 
     The primary reason we have been able to attract and hire the best and brightest in our profession is the work environment we are fortunate to have in the City of San Ramon. Not only do we have tremendous support from you, the members of our community, but we also have fantastic support and trust from our elected officials. In addition, a primary focus within our agency has been the creation of a supportive culture with an emphasis on officer wellness. The number of officers we have hired as a result of recruitment by those already employed in our organization directly reflects the work environment we have created. Our officers are our best recruiters, and I couldn’t be happier that they continue to work at bringing the highest quality people to join us as we make the City of San Ramon even better. For those who know me well, it is no secret I am a firm believer that when you have happy, healthy, honest, and motivated individuals working toward a common goal of selfless and service-based policing, you end up with excellent results. We are far from perfect, but there is no better and more professional group anywhere in law enforcement. And yes, I know I am biased, but it is with good reason. 
     
     Even though we had a challenging year in staffing, I must give tremendous credit to all of our personnel who worked tirelessly throughout 2022. Because of their efforts and the work of San Ramon Community members, I am happy to report a downward trend in the overall crime rates for San Ramon. We have seen a fairly significant decrease of roughly 3-4% through November. Unless there was a significant spike in crime last month (which I did not observe), we will end 2022 with a decrease in our overall crime rates, which is fantastic news. I understand some will be skeptical of these statistics. However, I can assure you what you are observing is not an increase in crime. Instead, it is a massive increase in awareness of what is happening in your neighborhoods and the City as a whole. 
 
     Recently, I mentioned this awareness issue in the comments section of a Nextdoor post. Today, we know more about what is happening in our neighborhoods than ever before. This heightened awareness goes far beyond criminal activities, and I used the examples of learning about the teenager who ran a stop sign, the person who didn’t pick up after their pet, the contractor who didn’t do his job, and countless other neighborhood issues. Because of social media, we know more about everything, which can be a good thing. However, it also means you know more than ever about the crime in our City, which can have the unintended impact of increased anxiety surrounding criminal activity. I am also well aware some may believe many crimes are unreported. There may be a little of that in San Ramon, but I disagree with the theory that unreported crime is rampant. When a crime happens in San Ramon, it is a significant event for any community member, and the overwhelming majority of the time, we are called, which is precisely what we want! If you see or hear something, please call us, and tell your neighbor to do the same. We want to know about it so we can do everything we can to stop what is happening or solve what happened. In an emergency, always call 9-1-1. For non-emergency situations, our Communication Center is always here for you at (925) 973-2779. If you see something, say something! We are here for you and want to know what is happening throughout San Ramon.
 
Over the past year, a few individuals in our agency have stood out because of what they have done for the San Ramon Community and our agency. It is with great excitement I have the pleasure of announcing the following awards –
 

• Ray Hamilton (School Resource Officer) – Officer of the Year
• Kevin Albert (Fleet Technician) – Employee of the Year
• Zach Schiess – Dispatcher of the Year
• Dave Roach (Sergeant – Traffic Division) – Supervisor of the Year

 
     Please join me in congratulating these well-deserving award recipients. All four of them have done incredible work over the past year. What they have done is greatly appreciated throughout our organization and the San Ramon Community!
 
     In 2022, we worked together to meet and overcome some significant challenges, and we are currently working on several projects to enhance our service to the San Ramon Community. Included are projects on adjusting our beat structures, in-depth scheduling and staffing analysis, technological enhancements to better response capabilities, return of a local crime-mapping feature, and enhancing our community-based outreach and messaging, among others.
 
     When it comes to our community messaging, you may have noticed an increase in our use of this platform (Nixle) for our communications. Over the past several years, we have seen significant algorithmic changes on every social media platform we use (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Nextdoor). Because of these changes, we have nowhere near our previous reach. We routinely hear from community members who did not see the information we’ve pushed out on social media due to these changes. We are not leaving social media, but you will see more use of Nixle as a communication source throughout our organization. Please register your mobile phone number and email using the “Sign-up” link at the top of this page to ensure you receive our emergency and informative messages. If you register, all of our emergency communications will arrive by text message to your mobile phone, and our non-emergency communications will be delivered via email directly to your inbox. Your registration will minimize the risk of missing important communications we may have previously pushed out solely on social media. On a side note, we also understand privacy concerns. If you choose to register, you do not need to list your personal address when registering. You can use any address (including the Police Department at 2401 Crow Canyon Road) or any intersection in San Ramon during the registration process. Actually, we don't care if you use your real name or not when you sign up. What matters is you register so you can receive the information that is important to our community.
 
     This coming year may bring different challenges, but our approach in 2023 will remain the same. Maintaining and enhancing a safe and secure environment for every City of San Ramon community member will always be our top priority. You all deserve it, and through our advancement as a professional law enforcement agency, we will strive to serve the San Ramon Community to the best of our abilities.
 
     I often mention having the best job in the world. There are several reasons behind that. The main reasons are you, the San Ramon Community, the supportive elected officials we are fortunate to have, and the incredible members of the San Ramon Police Department. From our administrative staff to our command staff, we are all committed to serving the San Ramon Community. Our agency is full of people deeply invested and heavily involved in keeping San Ramon an exceptional community.  
 
     Our family made the San Ramon Valley our home over a decade ago because it is a special place. Having the opportunity to work and raise my family in this area is an honor and a privilege. This community and the people who make up the San Ramon Police Department are why I love my job! All of us in the San Ramon Police Department cannot thank you enough for what you do to make San Ramon incredible, and we are excited to jump into 2023 together!
 
-Denton
 
Denton Carlson
Chief of Police
San Ramon Police Department
[email protected]