SWAT Team

The Campbell Police Department Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team is comprised of 15 members who serve on the team in addition to their regular assignment. The ultimate goal of the SWAT Team is to protect and preserve life and property during critical incidents and high-risk operations.

The SWAT team is on call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. On average, the SWAT Team is activated about 10 times a year. These incidents include search warrants, parole/probation searches, arrest warrants/fugitive apprehensions, barricade/hostage situations, and surveillance involving suspects with known violence. All SWAT callouts and operations need to reach a specific threat level and requires the approval of a Division Commander.

The SWAT Team currently consists of six Sergeants, two Agents, and seven Officers. The team also has two tactical dispatchers and one SWAT/Crisis Negotiations Team (CNT) liaison. Each team member completes various trainings to provide them with the tools necessary to handle critical incidents. In addition to the CNT Liaison, several SWAT Team members are cross- trained as hostage negotiators. Both cross-trained SWAT and CNT members regularly use their negotiations training to deescalate situations on patrol.

Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT)

The Crisis Negotiation Team (CNT) was established to create a peaceful resolution to often volatile situations. The team is comprised of sworn and non-sworn members of the Campbell Police Department and train with members of the Campbell SWAT Team.

Members of CNT are trained hostage negotiators and receive continuous training to respond to a variety of high-risk incidents. Typical calls may involve a hostage situation, barricaded subject, someone threatening harm to themselves or others, or other crisis events that threaten the safety of the community.

Crisis negotiators work to establish an ongoing dialog and rapport with the person or persons involved in the incident. Team members gather information on the people involved, interview witnesses, compile psychological profiles, develop threat assessments, and analyze intelligence information.

K9 Unit

The K9 Unit was initiated in July of 2019 with a mission of continuing to cultivate new ways to connect with our community and providing the highest level of public safety services on patrol and during critical incidents. The K9 Unit currently consists of two apprehension K9s and one therapy K9.

The apprehension K9 and their handlers complete an extensive 6-week training before taking their partnership to the streets of Campbell. Their specialties include locating individuals, apprehending criminal offenders, and putting smiles on faces. They attend various community events and schools, in addition to their diligent work together on patrol and continuous trainings.

The therapy K9 and their handler provides comfort to witnesses or victims of a crime. In addition, they provide important mental and emotional wellness benefits to our employees and can be an exceptional ambassador for the department. As an agency that embraces community engagement, we believe a therapy dog can be a beneficial tool for establishing stronger relationships with our diverse population.

Unmanned Aircraft Systems Unit

Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), more commonly referred to as drones, have proven to be a valuable resource for law enforcement. The Campbell Police Department studied the use of drone technology in public safety operations and developed best practices, policies, and procedures for our department. In 2016, we became the first law enforcement agency in Santa Clara County to be fully operational with a drone unit.

The Campbell Police UAS Unit received certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The pilots, members of our sworn and non-sworn staff, are trained and licensed by the FAA. The drones are deployed for incidents such as lost or missing persons, rescues, suspected explosive devices, barricaded subjects, hostage situations, active shooter events, apprehension of armed and dangerous subjects, and high-risk search warrants. We have also utilized our drones to help process crime scenes to avoid contamination and better document the overall scene.