San Jose appoints interim chief of police
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Two months after San Jose Police Chief Anthony Mata announced he was stepping down, a new interim police chief has been appointed. Asst. Chief Paul Joseph will now act as chief until a permanent replacement is selected.
Paul Jospeh will officially become the Acting Police Chief in San Jose next week. He’s been with the department for three decades, but advocacy groups say they hope others outside the dept. are also considered for the job.
"Paul seems to be a pretty good guy, but I have expectations for us to be given a different variety of officers," said Rev. Jethroe Moore II, NAACP San Jose Silicon Valley President.
Mata, who served as chief of police for three years, is moving on to work for the Santa Clara County D.A.’s Office. Joseph has been with San Jose police since 1994 and Asst. Police Chief since March 2021. On March 31, he’ll become the acting chief of police in San Jose.
"Who knows? Paul might be the best one out of the candidates brought forward, but we do want to see the other candidates that are going to be applying for the position," said Rev. Moore II.
The San Jose Police Officers Association released a statement, saying:
"Assistant Chief Joseph has a wide breadth of experience within the San Jose Police Department to draw upon as Interim Chief while the City searches for a permanent Chief. We look forward to working with him to improve the safety of our residents, grow our ranks, and support our officers in the field." - Steve Slack, San Jose Police Officers Association President
"Personally, I think it’s time for us to consider bringing in someone from the outside who may bring in a new flavor. At the same time, we’re looking for somebody who’s consistent, steady-handed and accessible to the community," said Rev. Moore II.
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San Jose’s city manager says this month, five in-person community meetings and one virtual meeting were held for residents to weigh in on a new chief of police. There’s also an online survey available to the community until May 3.
"I’d say about three or four months for them to vet people across the nation and across the state. My preference would be someone from the state of California that would come in so that we can find out more history about who they are," said Rev. Moore II.
Current San Jose police employees also have access to an online survey about the next police chief. The city says an executive recruiter will begin the search for a new police chief in mid-April.