Bay Area Sheriff Departments

[Saname81]

I'm looking to make the big move back west and would like the pros and cons on the Sheriff Departments listed below, thanks guys........

San Francisco Sheriff Dept.
Alameda Sheriff Dept.
San Mateo Sheriff Dept.
Contra Costa Sheriff Dept.
Marin Sheriff Dept.

[Stugotz]

SF is a consolidated city/county, so SFPD provides patrol and general police services for SF, whereas SFSD provides LE services for the jails and courts.

I would imagine that means minimal-to-no patrol opportunities for SFSD deputies.

[COASTIE01]

CoCo County= lots of jail time.

To elaborate you start in the jails and go back everytime you promote.

[etamante]

San Francisco SD- No real patrol opportunities.
San Mateo SD-Don't know a whole lot.
Contra Costa SD- Long jail stint, low pay, horrible benefits, lots of nay sayers in the dept.
Marin SD- Don't know a whole lot, but hear its a pretty good agency.
Santa Clara SD- From what I hear it's 50/50 on people who like it don't like it. Pretty good pay
Now on to the Alameda County S.O.-My agency- Can't say anything negative. Great pay, short jail stint (Me, 1 year), some of my buddies made it out at 4-6 months. Many opportunities for non FTO trained Deputies to get out of the jail. Ot everywhere you look.

Look around and join the department that suits you. We all have our pros and cons. Just figure out what's best for you.

[Saname81]

Thanks everyone for the info, etamante I'm closing in on either SFSD or ACSD being that you work for Alameda you might be able to assist me with further questions I'll send you a message if you dont mind?

[COASTIE01]

I would shy away from SFSD unless you want to be a CO. If that is what you want they are great but if you want patrol they are not the way to go.

[pkagel]

Welcome back home. You can start studying for the academy now if you wish with my academy notes.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CABasicPolice/

[kcr]

CoCo is hit or miss. Right now guys are getting out of the jail with less than a year. When I was there it was at least 3.

I just got back from a two week school with some guys from San Mateo SO. They had nothing bad to say about their agency.

[Saname81]

That sounds great, I dont mind working in the jail to gain some experience but eventuality I would want to hit patrol. Its been about eight years since I been back west, cant wait to sell the house and start applying to my top agencies......keep the info coming guys thanks a bunch, off the topic lets go Niners!!

[pkagel]

Go inland and you should be able to afford something much easier. Sure, the housing market is easing up a bit but you still don't want to drive in that Bay traffic every day and miss everything going on with your family. Lots of the towns inland have really cleaned up a lot in the buildup of the late 90's and early 00's.

[Saname81]

pkagel, that's my major concern when moving back west being that I have two small children I dont want be stuck in traffic for over an hour but I guess that wont matter when you become a LEO I'm assuming you start mid-nights correct? I have family/friends living in San Fran, San Jose, Richmond, and Pittsburg they all tell me the same thing about moving inland some where in the center of the bay....

[pkagel]

I hated the traffic in the early 90's coming from the valley to the bay and it has only gotten worse. I'd say try something like Modesto, Stockton or Sac. You can always visit your family in the bay on your weekends. With the bubble having burst on the market you are sure to be able to find some nice foreclosures that you can fix up within easy driving distance. Heck, if you had to drive an hour out in the valley you could at least count on getting a lot more house up in the hills if need be.

[Territo]

I would go San Mateo, it prob the most well rounded SO.

[JPR]

Having lived here for a long long time, you would be well advised to research the schools your kids would be attending. Believe me there are a lot of schools in the Bay Area you don't want to have your kids enrolled in.;)

[pkagel]

I think the address is greatschools.net or something like that. It is very good for researching schools.

[sgttom]

My preference: ACSO, SMSD, MCSD....


San Francisco Sheriff Dept. Eh. jails mainly, no patrol. treated like
2nd class citizens.

Alameda Sheriff Dept. Good place, a few friends who work and
love it here. V Good pay / bene's. Short
jail time. decent to good sized patrol
area. lots of assignments.

San Mateo Sheriff Dept. good place, a few buds here too. v good
pay and bene's. good sized patrol area.

Contra Costa Sheriff Dept. relatives and friends here. long jail time,
lots of folks bailing due to pay / benefit
issues. good sized patrol area. lots of
assignments.

Marin Sheriff Dept. i've heard nothing but good of this place.
good dized patrol area. lots of ritzy areas
within county.

[eagleI]

ACSO has a great rep. & a better commute if you lived east in more affordable communities. SMSO is a good agency but the new Sheriff & Under Sheriff aren't very well liked & are making unpopular changes. If there is any chance that the Under Sheriff become the Sheriff in 3 years (or less) I would stay away. (Remember Vegas?) Sometimes pay isn't everything. (I wouldn't have anything to do with SFSD.) Check out SF Bay Area Cops Forum for more local info.

[kcr]

I heard that the CoCo SD's pension fund is seriously underfunded. (one of the few that is no CalPERS). That is something definitely worth looking at before deciding.

They are a 1937 Act municipality. They do run their own retirement program and don't appear to be very good at it.

That is one of the main reasons I left. I was paying 21.25 or 21.75 (I forget which) percent into retirement. At the time I left, which was over 14 months ago, they were w/out a contract for over a year. They have since settled their contract and are playing less into retirement though I hear they did give up quite a bit. The retirement package isn't nearly as good for new employees and I believe existing employees had to chose if they wanted to stay with what they had or opt in to the new package. I believe the new contribution is in the neighborhood of 14-17%.

The original package was great if you were planning on retiring in a few years. I didn't feel like it was worth it for me to stay with 20+ years left. I was paying around $1200 a month.

[BearCrawl]

The contribution to our retirement is about 17% at CoCo SO, and it's my only complaint. I can't think of any other Sheriff's Office that has anywhere near the amount of patrol opportunities that we have. I spent 33 months in the jails, and when I went to patrol, there were deputies who spent as few as 11. In the last five years, no one has been forced to spend more than 36 months is detention. Santa Clara County has always seemed intriguing. With the patrol responsibility of East San Jose, it seems that has an unusual amount of police work for a Sheriff's agency. Marin, Alameda, SF, and San Mateo counties have historically had low incidents of officer involved shootings, leading me to think the police work isn't as fast paced as some other agencies. While the number of OIS is an archaic indicator of police work, it is an interesting angle.

[sinned]

The contribution to our retirement is about 17% at CoCo SO, and it's my only complaint. I can't think of any other Sheriff's Office that has anywhere near the amount of patrol opportunities that we have. I spent 33 months in the jails, and when I went to patrol, there were deputies who spent as few as 11. In the last five years, no one has been forced to spend more than 36 months is detention. Santa Clara County has always seemed intriguing. With the patrol responsibility of East San Jose, it seems that has an unusual amount of police work for a Sheriff's agency. Marin, Alameda, SF, and San Mateo counties have historically had low incidents of officer involved shootings, leading me to think the police work isn't as fast paced as some other agencies. While the number of OIS is an archaic indicator of police work, it is an interesting angle.
So in your opinion, a lack of of officer involved shootings somehow determines the amount of work that gets done??? WTF are you smoking?

Lets look at what ACSO covers- all the courts in the county, marine patrol in the bay, a majority of the SWAT call outs in the area, Dublin PD, Castro Valley, San Lorenzo, not to mention all of the unincorporated areas surrounding Oakland-Sal Leandro-San Lorenzo. Berkley protests (nothing more to add there), Oakland airport, the Raiders coliseum, the off road patrol from San Jose to Livermore (50 miles or so of open space). This is in addition to to having like the 4th largest jail in the COUNTRY and housing over 4000 inmates at any given time.

Its a good agency to work for and definitely has plenty to do, there is no sitting around waiting for something to jump off.

[BearCrawl]

So in your opinion, a lack of of officer involved shootings somehow determines the amount of work that gets done??? WTF are you smoking?

Lets look at what ACSO covers- all the courts in the county, marine patrol in the bay, a majority of the SWAT call outs in the area, Dublin PD, Castro Valley, San Lorenzo, not to mention all of the unincorporated areas surrounding Oakland-Sal Leandro-San Lorenzo. Berkley protests (nothing more to add there), Oakland airport, the Raiders coliseum, the off road patrol from San Jose to Livermore (50 miles or so of open space). This is in addition to to having like the 4th largest jail in the COUNTRY and housing over 4000 inmates at any given time.

Its a good agency to work for and definitely has plenty to do, there is no sitting around waiting for something to jump off.

You illustrate my point exactly. Most of the assignments you just listed are not even law enforcement in nature. Airports and Raider games; thats a security detail with no nature of police work associated with it whatsoever.

My comment wasn't meant as a hit on ALCO. The agency clearly sets a standard for LE in the Bay Area, and all of CA. The comment was meant to point out that when choosing an agency, there's more to look at than salary and benefits.

The type of work officers/deputies do, will vary from agency to agency. There are officers who will work for large agencies and never handle a righteous homicide scene, while another officer will handle his 1st of many on the 2nd day of FTO.

If you're choosing the job for it's monetary incentives, there's easier and safer ways to make more money, and spend the holidays with the family. If you're choosing the job to drive around and look cool, that agency exists too. If you're choosing the job because you want to put people in jail on a daily basis, and do so by putting yourself in exciting situations, well, there is that agency too.

A person will spend 30 years pushing a Crown Vic. He/she is gonna be dying one day, and they're not gonna care about how much money was made. They will want to know that the time spent on the job wasn't spent waiting for the next property damage only traffic collision.

And I still stand by my point of the Officer Involved Shootings. Perfect example is Phoenix Police Department. I think it's a clear indication of a department's proactivity, and in Phoenix' case, effectiveness.

For arguments sake, of course.

[sinned]

You illustrate my point exactly. Most of the assignments you just listed are not even law enforcement in nature. Airports and Raider games; thats a security detail with no nature of police work associated with it whatsoever.



I don't know about that. Our airport force actually patrols the surrounding areas and makes a lot of LE cases. The Raiders detail picks up a bunch of DUI arrests, 242's, 245's, etc.. I tend to agree with the Raiders being a security detail but even in that aspect you will write paper and generate numbers.

I guess it depends on what you want to do. If going hands on and getting dirty is what you are looking for than just spend some type in D&C.

[BearCrawl]

Absolutely agreed. I find it hard to imagine that a security detail at a Raiders game can possibly go smoothly.

[DOAcop38]

You illustrate my point exactly. Most of the assignments you just listed are not even law enforcement in nature. Airports and Raider games; thats a security detail with no nature of police work associated with it whatsoever.


Airports?NOT "police work"?LOLOOLOLOLOLOLOL!!! hey no gun fights,but you "obviously" have NEVER worked a major airport(Wanted persons, major cargo theft,sex assualts,professional theft rings,high levels of auto theft, and MORE dope on one arrest than several months of ****ant "ped stops" of late night parolee "cluckers" on rusted bikes(plenty of those around where I work too)-BTW used to travel up north for at home Raider games- OPD and ACSD were "very lenient" considering the "clientele" coming and leaving the games.............


The type of work officers/deputies do, will vary from agency to agency. There are officers who will work for large agencies and never handle a righteous homicide scene, while another officer will handle his 1st of many on the 2nd day of FTO.

the same can be said for major depts with multiple sub stations or divisions (west L.A. LAPD will NEVER see the level of violence and crime that Compton LASD Deputies see;neither will Palos Verdes Estates PD or Seal Beach PD see what an LA School PD officer will deal with on a daily basis-does that make any of them LESS a copper?)


If you're choosing the job for it's monetary incentives, there's easier and safer ways to make more money, and spend the holidays with the family. If you're choosing the job to drive around and look cool, that agency exists too. If you're choosing the job because you want to put people in jail on a daily basis, and do so by putting yourself in exciting situations, well, there is that agency too.

True- a "lid for every pot",mom would always say....


A person will spend 30 years pushing a Crown Vic. He/she is gonna be dying one day, and they're not gonna care about how much money was made. They will want to know that the time spent on the job wasn't spent waiting for the next property damage only traffic collision.

Soorry,Bro but NOT every PD is out there kicking butt.I work at an Airport and on a given day we are booking more Fel and hi misd susps than most of the local so.Bay area Depts near us-but that doesn't mean that the "service" they give their local folks is ANY LESS important-if that prop damage only rpt is needed and makes Joe/Jane tax payer happy- then you've done your job as a copper.In reality,all the butt kicking means NOTHING when you can't afford to live happily in retirement(I know several of my LAPD academy instructors now retired and having to WORK some suck high rise complex guard gig) it took me 15 YRS to realize that the age of the "knuckledragger" is over-this generation of L.E. is concerned with "looking professional" and being successful, not being tough and hardworking.Mgm't sells out too many hard chargers,while the "middle of the road" continue to collect checks and smile -IA free.


And I still stand by my point of the Officer Involved Shootings. Perfect example is Phoenix Police Department. I think it's a clear indication of a department's proactivity, and in Phoenix' case, effectiveness.

For arguments sake, of course.


after 19 yrs ,many of the OIS incidents i've seen are a product of ,or lack of tactical control and "tunnel" vision on the part of the officers involved- some are just situations where "joe stupid "the thug tried to go for bad and LOST,despite the BESt tactical efforts of the officers/deputies to resolve the matter in a less terminal way.you can actually be PROACTIVE without shooting anyone,as many officers here have made dozens of felony hooks with out pulling the trigger.As in the FBI stats and inquiries ,I would seriously ASK WHY there are soo many shootings-is it becuase of :

1) lack of manpower on patrol(officer safety issue)
2)lack of experience in officers on patrol
3)accessibility of weapons in the criminal element of the community
4)high level of "career" and violent criminals in the community(gang unit and crime suppression /VICAP teams need to be ramping up their workload)
5)growth of transient criminal population( including out of state individuals and illegal aliens with prior criminal records)

Phoenix is a rapidly expanding community,with growth that is a little more rapid than many other west coast /Western major metropolitan areas.In such an environment ,I'd be concerned for Officer safety if OIS incidents are on a rise-it means that officers are engaging in more and more incidents that leave them with no alternative BUT to use deadly force,or - sadly ,that officers feel that deadly force is the ONLY way to handle situations;ask yourself if the same were happening in you agencies jurisdiction,would it be considered as evidence of "proactivity"? Probably more like a "problem" in the Dept. and soon a "concern" of your local watch dog groups or your own civie mgm't

[ateamer]

A person will spend 30 years pushing a Crown Vic. He/she is gonna be dying one day, and they're not gonna care about how much money was made. They will want to know that the time spent on the job wasn't spent waiting for the next property damage only traffic collision.

Get a few more years on the job and your perspective may (almost certainly will) change. All the good you do and all the action in the world don't mean much if you are going to be living in a half-room apartment and eating Alpo when you are old. Shoplifters, homicides, DUIs, fender-benders, it all counts on 30. Your pension check isn't based on what you did, just how long you did it.

[DOAcop38]

Get a few more years on the job and your perspective may (almost certainly will) change. All the good you do and all the action in the world don't mean much if you are going to be living in a half-room apartment and eating Alpo when you are old. Shoplifters, homicides, DUIs, fender-benders, it all counts on 30. Your pension check isn't based on what you did, just how long you did it.

LOLOLOLOLOL!!! Yeah,ateamer! let our "young'un" get some time under his belt-including the requisite IA beefs,a suspension of two, that "inner circle" screwing when he goes for a specialized unit or detail,then when his knees hurt ,his back is sore ( from all those UOF incidents where the suspect "just HAD to be taken to the ground),and he misses far too many holidays off 'cause that action ended up being bogus "poppa beat momma" calls or **** in the car DUI suspects-he'll put it all in perspective.We all still love to pop that felon -its still the thrill of the job, its just that after a certain time, getting off duty on time and bruise/complaint free becomes a thrill as well.....:D