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Police

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1. Who are South San Francisco's Most Wanted?

The South San Francisco Police Department needs your assistance in apprehending the following suspects. Please call the South San Francisco Police Department at (650) 877-8900 if you have any valuable information. SSF's Most Wanted

2. Can I use my cell phone while driving?

Two new laws dealing with the use of wireless telephones while driving go into effect July 1, 2009. To find information regarding these laws, view the FAQs Concerning Using a Wireless While Driving.

3. How do I file a police report online?

You may only report incidents that have occurred in the City of South San Francisco. If the incident you are reporting occurred in another jurisdiction, please contact the appropriate police or sheriff's department. It is required that you have an address for the incident you are reporting in the City of South San Francisco.

You cannot use the online form to report traffic accidents, hit and runs, and any other traffic related accidents. We do not complete reports for non-injury accidents. You must exchange your information with the other party involved.

You cannot use this form if you have suspect information. You must call the Police Department at (650) 877-8900. We do not take theft reports online.

We do not accept online reports for any financial crime, fraud, unauthorized use of a credit card, forgery, or identity theft. You must call the Police Department at (650) 877-8900 to report those crimes. If your report does not fit the above listed criteria it will be rejected when it is reviewed by police personnel and the reason for rejection will be emailed to you. This will cause you delay in the report of the crime. If you need help in determining what type of crime you are trying to report, or if you were prefer to report the incident on the telephone, please call the police dispatcher at (650) 877-8900. File a Police Report Online

4. What is the COPPS Program?

The Police Department would like you to know about the approach we are taking in handling problems within the City - Community Oriented Policing and Problem Solving, or COPPS. Community oriented policing in itself has been around for years and is not so much a program as it is a philosophy or a frame of mind. Police Chief Mark Raffaelli and his staff have dedicated a great deal of time and effort to this approach which emphasizes community involvement and the use of non-traditional methods for solving problems on the streets, in our businesses, and in our neighborhoods and schools.

All Police Department employees are taking the community policing approach with them to the streets in an effort to minimize crime and bring the members of the community into the problem-solving picture. The face of police work has slowly changed over the years and police officers can no longer be viewed only as the enforcers of the law. We are making the transition to being facilitators of community involvement as part of a police / citizen team, working together to achieve a safe and desirable community in which to work and live.

In the past, handling crime suppression was performed by meeting with the complainant, obtaining the necessary information, and trying to catch the responsible. Community resources were not normally used in the process. Often times, the problem would resurface and another officer would respond to the call and handle it much the same way. Community skepticism and mistrust would sometimes enter the picture at this point when this traditional method of enforcement was ineffective.

With the community policing mindset, officers have greater latitude in handling problems that occur on their assigned beats. More creative solutions, including involving the community as our eyes and ears, have helped to reduce repeat crimes and on-going problems in certain situations. Officers are also working together and communicating with their beat counterparts to make sure that problems which occur on one shift are not happening at another time.

Patrol officers have also gone to the public to stop community blight from overtaking certain areas. Property owners, from apartment buildings to shopping centers, have been called upon to keep their property in good condition. The City's Code Enforcement Officers get involved if there is continued non-compliance. To assist in this community anti-blight effort, COPPS Officer Elena Dominguez-Brennan administers a juvenile diversion program called Project N.E.A.T. (Neighborhood Enhancement Action Teams) where juvenile first offenders meeting certain criteria attend mandatory counseling sessions, and work all day on a Saturday painting out graffiti, picking up trash, performing weed abatement, or any other reasonable task that would enhance the beauty of the City. For details about the program, see the Project NEAT page.