Division Commander - Captain Chris Clements

Captain Chris Clements was raised in the City of Pacifica. He attended Westview Elementary, Cabrillo and Linda Mar Schools. He is a graduate of Terra Nova High School, class of 1992. Upon graduation he completed courses at Skyline College, the College of San Mateo and San Jose State University.

Chris began his career with the Pacifica Police Department in 1996 as a reserve police officer. He was hired as an entry level police officer in 1998. During his career he has served in a number of positions and assignments including detective, field training officer, and corporal. He spent six months at the basic police academy as a recruit training officer, leading police officer recruits. After promoting to the rank of sergeant Chris served as the Watch Commander for all of our patrol shifts, and was eventually assigned as the Detective Sergeant.

In 2015 Chris was promoted to the rank of Captain. He has since worked in roles as both the Field Operations Commander and the Investigations and Administrative Services Commander. He also served as the Department’s public information officer. 

Chris has served as the City’s emergency manager; the primary point of contact with the San Mateo County Department of Emergency Management and he is a member of the San Mateo County Emergency Manager’s Association.

Captain Clements earned a Bachelor of Science degree from San Jose State University in Administration of Justice. He is also a graduate of the San Mateo County Public Sector Leadership Academy, the prestigious Sherman Block P.O.S.T. Supervisory Leadership Institute, and the P.O.S.T. Management Course.  

Captain Clements is currently the Field Operations Division Commander. He leads the group of women and men in uniform who proudly serve our community with commitment, ethics and professionalism.   

Field Operations Division

Patrol Services, also known as the Field Operations Division, contains the bulk of the department’s personnel. Both patrol and traffic services fall within the Field Operations Division and are staffed with uniformed officers.

Patrol and traffic officers are the primary points of contact for community members and visitors. Patrol services contain several units and programs on an as-needed basis to accomplish a specific mission. These programs include, but are not limited to, the Police Reserve Unit, traffic unit, community service officers and the canine unit.

Canine units are trained in tracking and may be used to locate subjects in both criminal and non-criminal circumstances. Canine units may also be used to assist officers in the apprehension of violent or armed criminal suspects when appropriate. Canine teams are available and may be requested for demonstrations for community groups. In addition to these programs, patrol officers participate in the Northern San Mateo County Gang Task Force and the San Mateo County Saturation Enforcement Program (S.T.E.P.).

Many officers within the organization hold other collateral assignments. Within patrol services, a number of officers are trained as hostage negotiators to deal with situations involving barricaded subjects or other critical incidents that may arise. In addition to handling routine calls for service, patrol and traffic services are responsible for security at special events, such as the Fog Fest, Fourth of July, dances, football games, and carnivals.