On behalf of the Redwood City Police Department, I welcome you to our web site.  My hope is that the information you find here is helpful, and provides an enhanced understanding of the police department and how it serves the community of Redwood City. 

The City of Redwood City is a diverse community, and this diversity helps make it a wonderful place to live and work.  The men and women of the Redwood City Police Department are dedicated to our mission statement of “Providing excellent service with integrity and respect.”  We are a professional and progressive organization that takes great pride in providing quality customer service to our community.

The Redwood City Police Department has long been acknowledged as a public safety leader in San Mateo County due to its success in combating crime, reducing the fear of crime, and helping create a better quality of life for the community.  The department has received recognition for outstanding performance in many areas, including reducing the number of alcohol-impaired drivers on roadways and successful traffic safety improvement programs.  Each year, the California Office of Traffic Safety has awarded the Redwood City Police Department grant funding to support automobile seatbelt safety campaigns, sobriety checkpoints, specialized traffic safety operations, as well as alcohol-impaired driver awareness programs and bicycle safety programs for Redwood City youth.  The police department also works in collaboration with other San Mateo County agencies to address illegal drug use and criminal and street gang violence.  Members of the department are currently assigned to the County Gang Task Force and the County Narcotics Task Force, working both within Redwood City and in surrounding communities.

It is imperative that our police department maintains a close and ongoing community / police partnership.  The Redwood City Police Activities League (PAL), for example, is a vital program that serves to promote positive relationships between department members and the youth of our community.  The PAL program reaches thousands of young people every year through sports programs, camps, counseling services, and after-school programs.  The D.A.R.E. and G.R.E.A.T. programs offer instruction on the dangers of drug and alcohol use and gang activities to 5th through 7th grade students.  The department’s School Resource Officer program serves to create a safer environment on campus through early intervention with at-risk youth, and juvenile counseling programs.  The department strives to educate the community regarding crime and gang problems, and keep residents informed of community safety issues.

You can read more about these and other department programs by following the links above.

Thank you for visiting us.  I am very proud of our department and our community.  I look forward to working closely with all our residents to seek new and creative ways to address issues of community safety and security.

Louis A. Cobarruviaz
Chief of Police