San Francisco Patrol Special Police
| San Francisco Patrol Special Police | |
|---|---|
Patch of the San Francisco Patrol Special Police
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| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1847 |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | County of San Francisco in the state of California, USA |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Website | |
| San Francisco Patrol Special Police | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
San Francisco Patrol Special Police is a neighborhood police force authorized in San Francisco's City Charter but not part of the San Francisco Police Department. Rather they are unsworn officers, private citizens, appointed and regulated by the San Francisco Police Commission after an initial security review by the San Francisco Police Department. They are assigned, or purchase, a specific area, or beat and charge private clients hourly rates for a variety of services.
The force has been in operation since 1847 during the California Gold Rush. By current City Code the force provides patrols on the streets of San Francisco as well as at fixed locations, and also provides a range of other safety services as requested by private clients.
As of 2011, there were approximately 40 patrol special police officers.
Patrol Special Police provide a variety of services for private clients pursuant to a negotiated contract, including unlocking or securing doors to a business, making checks of residences or businesses, conducting perimeter checks at burglar alarms, providing a physical presence at businesses and providing security consultations. Officers concentrate on order maintenance, rapid response, and early intervention in quality-of-life matters. Their goal is to prevent disturbances from becoming expensive and serious crimes, and to relieve pressure on the public police. Since 1994 officers operate with citizens’ powers of arrest, are on police radio bandwidth, and are trained annually for 24 hrs. of classroom instruction and twice on the range, according to standards set by the Police Chief. Officers are not civil service employees of the San Francisco Police Department nor do they earn City benefits or pensions. However, for specified purposes courts may consider them to be employees, such as for purposes of the SFPD maintaining employment records.
The officers are assigned a "beat” or a specific area where officers serve.
By tradition and practice, Patrol Special Police officers respect and consider the distinct tenor and character of neighborhood life where they work. They often attend merchant and resident meetings to listen to concerns or offer advice. Officers become trusted and valued members of neighborhoods where many interact daily with business owners, customers, residents, and families on the streets, thus serving as effective local "eyes and ears" to dispense important safety advice and gather security information.
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Wikipedia