Our Mission
The mission of the Pasadena Police Department is to prevent harm, reduce crime, and protect the public through innovative approaches to crime and traffic safety while remaining steadfast in forging strong community partnerships.
Overview
The City of Pasadena was incorporated in 1928 and the first City Marshal, B. H. Pitts, was appointed. He was followed by Aubrey Cruse and O. C. King. Marshals handled law enforcement in the city until the formation of the Pasadena Police Department in 1937. J. C. Drury was the first official Chief of Police. Chief Drury and four (4) officers policed the city from 1937 to 1939 with one police car. A new chief was appointed in 1939. From then to the present time, the department has had 14 chiefs. We have grown from one vehicle to a fleet of 240 and from four officers to approximately 280 officers and 78 civilians. The main police station has also changed from a small office for four officers to a new 80,000+ square foot structure.
Today, our 280 officers patrol 67 square miles, serving approximately 150,000 citizens. We have had to adapt and alter our strategies through the years by creating specialized units such as: Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, Motorcycles, Gang Intelligence, S.W.A.T., Auto Theft, Special Investigations, among others. Working together, officers utilize a state of the art radio system, with virtually an unlimited number of talk groups, along with a computer-aided dispatch system and mobile data computers to aid them in keeping our citizens safe. On average, we respond to approximately 90,000 calls for service per year.