The Fresno Police Department is looking for the best and brightest individuals – those who have the aptitude and sense of commitment – those who want to help their community, and who want to make a difference. FPD’s goal is to provide the highest level of professional public service to the wide range of ethnic and culturally diverse groups that make up Fresno.

A career with the Fresno Police Department offers: challenge, excitement, variety, teamwork and job satisfaction, opportunities for special assignments and career development, opportunities for promotion, and excellent salary and benefits.

Sworn Positions

Applicants for Fresno Police Officers most often start out as a cadet. As a cadet, potential new officers gain valuable experience working at various locations within the Police Department. Cadets can be assigned to field patrol where they respond in a marked patrol car to lower priority non-emergency calls. This allows them to learn how to write reports and work with the public in a generally non-confrontational environment. After gaining some experience, cadets are sent to the Police Academy where they receive six months of intensive academic and physical conditioning. Upon successful completion of the academy, cadets are generally promoted to Police Officer Recruits (the first rank as a police officer) and are paired up with a Police Training Officer for a minimum sixteen weeks to learn how to apply their academy training and how to be an effective Fresno Police Officer. Once training is completed new officers must pass a probationary period before they are promoted to the rank of Police Officer.

Current police officers from other agencies may apply for a lateral transfer to our agency as a regular police officer. Lateral police officers go through an accelerated training program because of their prior experience.

Volunteers

Fresno PD has a nationally-recognized volunteer program. Join the Citizens on Patrol (COP) or the Police Activities League (PAL) or learn more from the following available programs:

Treatment of Employees

Fresno Police Department staff members and supervisors will treat employees fairly, with honesty, respect, and dignity. Staff members and supervisors will not demean, embarrass, or be condescending towards employees.

If an employee demonstrates a desire to promote, then staff members and supervisors will do all they can to encourage them, counsel them on any perceived weakness, encourage them to gain experience in various assignments, and ensure they have every opportunity to promote.

The Fresno Police Department will provide the most appropriate level of training to all Department employees to help ensure effective and efficient delivery of service to members of our community.

The Fresno Police Department will provide employees with the equipment needed to help ensure their safety, keep members of the community safe, and to ensure the Department is able to provide the most effective and efficient service available.

Treatment of Citizens

Members of the Fresno Police Department will treat all members of the community professionally, with respect, dignity, compassion, fairness, empathy, and courtesy, and will not be condescending, disrespectful, rude, or unapproachable during contacts, regardless of how we are treated by them.

Members of the Fresno Police Department will maintain a positive, “can do” attitude while handling complaints, calls, concerns, inquires, etc., from citizens, and will not become defensive or appear unwilling to help.

Department members who do not have the ability to assist citizens on a particular problem will make every effort to guide them to the appropriate available resource.

Expectations of Employees

Members of the Fresno Police Department will do all they can to reduce crime through prevention, intervention, enforcement, investigative, and problem solving efforts. We will work closely with the community and allied agencies to accomplish this objective.

Members of the Fresno Police Department will operate with fiscal prudence and continually explore new and different ways to accomplish our tasks, to include new technology, use of volunteers, and non-sworn personnel with a desired result of becoming as effective and efficient as possible.

Members of the Fresno Police Department will continue to explore new revenue sources and reduce expenditures when practical, always considering the impact on service delivery.

Members of the Fresno Police Department will operate with honesty and openness as an organization providing information to the public as often as possible while respecting privacy rights, confidentiality laws, and the integrity of investigations.

Members of the Fresno Police Department will do all they can to provide the highest level of service to the public to include: promptly responding to calls for service ; returning phone calls in a prompt and polite manner; providing comprehensive and timely follow-up investigations; solving neighborhood problems; resolving citizen questions, problems and complaints; keeping crime victims informed of the progress of investigations; and being sensitive to the needs of business and property owners.

Within budgetary parameters, the Fresno Police Department will recruit the best candidates possible who are representative of our community in ethnicity and gender. Although the Department will not compromise standards to achieve minority recruiting goals, we will target members of under represented classes.