Police Officer

Police Officer

The City of East Palo Alto is seeking an adaptable, problem solver with exceptional integrity and communication skills for the Police Officer Lateral/ Academy Graduate position. The Police Officer performs a wide variety of patrol and related duties involving the prevention of crime, the protection of life and property, traffic control, and the enforcement of Federal, State, and local laws and ordinances. The incumbent employs community policing strategies to prevent juvenile crime and delinquency; assists in the preparation of cases and testifies in court. The Police Officer provides information and assistance to the public; depending on assignment, performs specialized administrative or investigative work; and performs related duties, as assigned.

Ideal Candidate: The ideal candidate will:

• Exercise sound independent judgment, discretion, impartiality, and professionalism.
• Possesses a genuine passion for the East Palo Alto community and demonstrates unwavering dedication to fostering meaningful relationships with its members.
• Be a collaborative, inclusive, and encouraging team member.
• Be adaptable and able to work under stressful or difficult conditions.
• Be comfortable working in inclement weather conditions at all hours of the day and night, including on weekends and holidays.
• Presently employed by a California law enforcement agency as a peace officer or a graduate of a California POST Police Academy is required.
• Bilingual is highly desirable.

Examples Of Duties:

• Performs a variety of community policing duties to maintain a highly visible presence within the community for the purpose of deterring crime, maintaining good community relations, and providing assistance to the public, including speaking before various civic and community groups, patrolling assigned divisions by foot, bicycle, or vehicle, and performing other related duties as required.
• Patrols the City within an assigned area in a radio dispatched automobile to secure life and property, observes situations, reports suspicious, criminal activity, or hazardous conditions, and deters crime by providing high visibility patrols.
• Responds to emergency calls for service, disturbances, thefts, burglaries, vehicle accidents, domestic disputes, suspicious activities, and other incidents to protect public safety and property, resolve problems, diffuses situations, and enforces laws and ordinances.
• Provides information, directions, and assistance to the public in a variety of situations; takes reports and assists the public with complaints or unusual situations.
• Detects, apprehends, arrests, and transports suspected or convicted criminals; enforces traffic laws; prepares and issues tickets for violations; investigates traffic accidents and determines causes; administers drug and alcohol testing as appropriate; arranges for additional emergency and patrol vehicles as necessary.
• Secures crime scenes and evidence; interviews suspects, victims, and witnesses; collects and preserves evidence; performs complete investigations and/or cooperates with other law enforcement agencies providing investigative and case development support.
• Responds to a wide variety of calls from citizens in need of first aid, information, and general assistance; provides direction or information to individuals or groups for the purpose of preventing, subduing, or alleviating harmful, dangerous or illegal situations; performs traffic and crowd control duties as needed.
• Prepares a variety of detailed and concise police reports related to crimes, investigations, traffic accidents, and assigned activities; maintains records and logs related to daily activities; prepares search warrants and press releases related to criminal activity as assigned by the position.
• Serves as an informational resource to the public concerning law enforcement activities; responds to inquiries and provides detailed and technical information concerning related services, crimes, laws, ordinances, codes, regulations, policies, and procedures.
• Communicates with other law enforcement agencies, City personnel, and various outside organizations to exchange information, coordinates activities, and resolves issues or concerns; collaborates with other law enforcement agencies in the investigation of various crimes as appropriate; assists the District Attorney staff in preparing, documenting, and developing cases and gathering information; testifies in court as required.
• Serves writs, warrants, subpoenas, and other legal documents as necessary.
• Operates and maintains a variety of specialized equipment such as law enforcement vehicles, firearms, handcuffs, leg restraints, batons, flashlights, radars, two-way radios, pepper spray, breathalyzers, and sirens.
• Assists in cases involving unfit homes and crimes committed against or by juveniles.
• Provides first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and rescue services at crime scenes, accidents, and other emergency situations as needed.
• Conducts investigations in specialized areas such as narcotics, missing persons, sexual abuse, mental health, and deaths as assigned.
• Notifies the public of criminal and law enforcement situations and activities as needed; checks on the health and welfare of citizens as requested.
• Attends and participates in various meetings and training sessions as assigned; serves in assigned special functions and activities as required.
• Promotes the City's commitment to excellence and quality customer service by employing community policing strategies.
• When assigned to the Field Training Officer (FTO) function, provides field training to colleagues, evaluates training performance, and keeps supervisory staff abreast of training progress as necessary.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

About The City: The City of East Palo Alto is a beautiful community located in the heart of the Silicon Valley, and is uniquely positioned to maximize its potential as a significant city in the region. Founded by speculators and farmers in 1849, the town was originally named Ravenswood. In 1983 the residents successfully campaigned to incorporate as East Palo Alto. The population is approximately 28,000 with an area of approximately 2.5 square miles.

About The Department: The City of East Palo Alto Police Department has built a strong partnership between the community and the department to help enhance public safety and improve the quality of life for the people who live and work in the City of East Palo Alto. The Police Departments goals are to focus on crime suppression and analysis, problem solving, building community relationships, and creating effective crime prevention strategies. The philosophy is that the more the department is informed and openly available about public safety issues, the better we can work together toward safer, more secure, and healthier neighborhoods.

Qualifications: Any combination of training and experience that would provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required qualifications would be:

• Education: Equivalent to graduation from the twelfth (12th) grade.
• License and Certifications:
• Possession of, or ability to obtain, a valid California Driver's License by time of appointment and a satisfactory driving record.
• Possession of a valid Police Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Academy Graduate Basic certificate.
• Possession of a valid CPR certificate is required within six (6) months of appointment.

Selection Process: It is important to complete all required application materials. Applications will be reviewed in detail to identify the most qualified candidates to interview. The most qualified will be invited to a panel interview. Those who pass the panel interview will be advanced to an interview with the Chief of Police.

Successful candidates will be required to undergo a standard Police background investigation including, polygraph exam, psychological evaluation, and complete physical exam with drug screening.

Application Process: To be considered for this exciting opportunity, candidates should apply through CalOpps.org. Please go to the Member Agencies tab, locate San Francisco/Peninsula, Under that select East Palo Alto. Or follow this link; . Complete an online application and the required supplemental questionnaire. All materials must be included to be considered as a candidate.

This position is open until filled.

Candidates with a disability who may require special assistance in any phase of the application or selection process or additional inquiries about the position should advise Danielle Oliveira from Muchmore Than Consulting at View email address on click.appcast.io or View phone number on click.appcast.io.

The City of East Palo Alto is not responsible for the failure of internet forms or email in submitting your application.

The City of East Palo Alto is an equal opportunity employer.