San Diego County Sheriff's Office


The San Diego County Sheriff's Office is a law enforcement agency serving San Diego County, California. It was established in 1850. It is the largest law enforcement agency in the county and one of the largest sheriff's offices in the United States, with over 4,206 employees, an annual budget of over $1.3 billion, and a service area over 4,500 square miles extending to a 60-mile international border.
The office provides general law enforcement and public safety services to all unincorporated areas of the county. Nine incorporated cities within the county contract with the office for municipal law enforcement and public safety services. Within these cities, traffic enforcement is also provided.
The office operates and provides detention facilities, court services, and specialized regional services to all of the county and the nine contract cities. The Wireless Services Division is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the San Diego County–Imperial County Regional Communications System. The Sheriff is elected by the voters of San Diego County. The current Sheriff is Kelly Martinez, who was elected in 2022 and took office at the beginning of 2023.
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History

The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department was formed in 1850.
The San Diego County Sheriff's Office was a co-appellant in the Supreme Court of the United States and Ninth Circuit cases Kolender v. Lawson, 461 U.S. 352, which held unconstitutional laws that allow law enforcement to demand that "loiterers" and "wanderers" provide identification; this continues to affect other offices nationwide.
On September 10, 2024, the agency's official name was changed from San Diego County Sheriff’s Department to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office.
On March 6, 2025, KPBS reported findings by the ACLU that Sheriff Kelly Martinez violated the state sanctuary law SB54 by transferring to ICE a felon who was still protected by the act because his conviction was more than the required 15 years old.

County detention system

The Sheriff’s Office operates a system of seven detention facilities throughout San Diego. The San Diego Central Jail is located in Downtown San Diego, Both George Bailey Detention Facility, The Rock Mountain Detention Facility, and East Mesa Reentry Facility is located in Otay Mesa, San Diego in the southern enclave of San Diego, California. Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility is located in Santee, California. South Bay Detention Facility is located in Vista, California. The Vista Detention Facility is located in Vista, California.

Concerns and challenges

The San Diego County Jail incarcerates about on an average day in 2022, there were 4,305 people in county jails and with such large numbers, the jail has faced numerous problems with its facilities.
One of the main concerns within the San Diego County detention facilities is death of inmates, while in custody. The San Diego County jails system set a record high of 18 deaths in 2021. Then Sheriff Kelly Martinez took over in February 2022, and the jails matched its record total deaths again. In 2022, a report from the California State Auditor found that while individuals were in custody at county jails, San Diego County reported the second‑highest number of in‑custody deaths over the time frame of 2006-2021. The San Diego County Board of Supervisors Citizens Law Enforcement Review Board created a semi-annual report, due to the concerns about the rate of deaths in San Diego. The Board noted that from 2006 through 2020, 185 people died in San Diego County’s jails. The report also found that inmates who died in the county's jails had been in custody for only a few days or several months, while others were waiting to be sentenced, set to be released or about to be transferred.
In 2024, at least nine people died while in county jail.
Another concern is that lack of accountability from those in charge. According to Justice Department data, 47 people died between 2021 and 2023, Sheriff Kelly Martinez and her predecessor, repeatedly refused requests from the CLERB to put her deputies through scanners before they start their shifts to reduce the flow of drugs into facilities. This request from the board came after two jail deputies pleaded guilty to drug-related charges last year, one for burglary of medication from a jail prescription medication drop-off box and the other for possession of cocaine on jail property. In December 2024 the County supervisors voted for stronger law enforcement review board powers. It has been noted that even having the sheriff to appear at CLERB meetings has been a struggle.
Families of people who died in jail have expressed their frustration with the sheriff and the jails policy, especially Martinez refusal to scan jail staff for drugs. Thirteen inmates died from drug overdoses in San Diego jails between 2021 and 2023.
In 2025, San Diego County faces a slew of lawsuits filed by at least two dozen people who said they were sexually assaulted as children and teens by probation officers while in the county’s juvenile detention facilities.

Organization

Office of the Sheriff

  • Public Affairs
  • Intergovernmental Legislative Affairs
  • Legal Affairs
  • Senior Executive Assistant
  • Division of Inspectional Services

Service bureaus

The San Diego County Sheriff's Office is organized into five service bureaus: Law Enforcement Services, Detention Facility Services, Court Services, Human Resource Services, and Management Services. Each bureau is managed by an Assistant Sheriff except the Management Services Bureau, which is headed by an Executive Director.

Law Enforcement Services Bureau

  • Major Crimes Division
  • * Central Operations Detail
  • ** Computer And Technology Crime High-tech Response Team
  • ** Elder Abuse
  • ** Financial Crimes
  • ** Homicide Detail
  • * Family Protection Detail
  • ** Domestic Violence
  • ** Sex Offender Management Unit
  • ** Child Abuse Unit
  • Communications Division
  • * Communications Center
  • Emergency Services Division
  • * Arson/Explosives
  • * ASTREA
  • *
  • * Reserves
  • * Search and Rescue
  • * Special Enforcement Detail /SWAT
  • Special Investigations Division
  • * Intelligence
  • * Narcotics
  • * Public Inspections
  • * Street Gang/Narcotics
    Patrol Stations, Substations and Field Offices
4S Ranch Substation
10282 Rancho Bernardo Rd
San Diego, CA 92127
Alpine Station
2751 Alpine Blvd
Alpine, CA 91901
Borrego Springs Office
571 Palm Canyon Dr.
Borrego Springs, CA 92004
Boulevard/Jacumba Substation
39919 Highway 94
Boulevard, CA 91905
Campo/Tecate Substation
378 Sheridan Rd
Campo, CA 91906
North Coastal Station
175 N. El Camino Real
Encinitas, CA 92024
Fallbrook Substation
388 East Alvarado St
Fallbrook, CA 92028
Imperial Beach Station
845 Imperial Beach Blvd
Imperial Beach, CA 91932
Lakeside Substation
12365 Parkside St.
Lakeside, CA 92040
Julian Substation
2907 Washington St, Bldg C
Julian, CA 92036
Lemon Grove Substation
3240 Main St
Lemon Grove, CA 91945
Pine Valley Substation
28914 Old Highway 80, #106
Pine Valley, CA 91962
Poway Station
13100 Bowron Rd
Poway, CA 92064
Ramona Substation
1424 Montecito Rd
Ramona, CA 92065
Rancho San Diego Station
11486 Campo Rd.
Spring Valley, CA 91978
Ranchita Office
25704 San Felipe Rd, S-2
Warner Springs, CA 92086
San Marcos Station
182 Santar Pl
San Marcos, CA 92069
Santee Station
8811 Cuyamaca St
Santee, CA 92071
Valley Center Substation
28201 N. Lake Wohlford Rd
Valley Center, CA 92082
Vista Station
325 S. Melrose, Ste 210
Vista, CA 92081

Detention Services Bureau

  • San Diego Central Jail
  • George Bailey Detention Facility
  • East Mesa Reentry Facility
  • Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility
  • South Bay Detention Facility
  • Vista Detention Facility
  • Rock Mountain Detention Facility

Human Resource Services Bureau

  • Personnel Division
  • * Background Investigations Unit
  • * Career Path Assessment Unit
  • * Recruiting Unit
  • Professional Standards Division
  • * Internal Affairs Unit
  • * Risk Management Unit
  • Training Division
  • * Detentions and Court Services Academy
  • * In-Service Training Unit
  • * Regional Basic Academy
  • * Weapons Training Unit

Management Services Bureau

  • Data Services Division
  • Wireless Services Division
  • Contracts Division
  • Fiscal Services

Vehicles

Over the years, the agency's marked vehicles have sported unusual paint schemes. Originally in a traditional black and white, they transitioned to a pink-salmon color in the 1960s. From 1971 to 1991 the vehicles were painted kelly green-and-white which were the campaign colors of Sheriff John F. Duffy. When he retired the fleet was returned to the black-and-white color scheme and has remained so ever since. The office has also had a few all-white cars over the years, but these were for Traffic Enforcement and Volunteer Patrols only.
Today, the San Diego County Sheriff's Office utilizes the Ford Explorer as their base model for their fleet.
The SDSO also operates the Following Aircraft:
Bell 205, Bell 407, and Bell 412.

Weapons

  • Glock 17 – standard-issue handgun equipped with a Streamlight TLR-1.
  • Glock 22 .40 S&W – previously standard issue, being phased out.
  • Glock 23.40 S&W – used by detectives and other investigators, some regular deputies carry it as well as an off-duty weapon.
  • Glock 27.40 S&W – backup gun for deputies, used by some investigators as well as an off-duty weapon for some deputies.
  • Colt CAR-15A1/A2 – R6520 variant used as a patrol rifle for deputies as is the R0603 variant can also be seen in patrol vehicles.
  • Remington 870 12-gauge – standard-issue shotgun for deputies, is a pump-action shotgun.
  • Springfield Armory M-14 – used for certain situations, is not the standard-issue rifle but the SDSO does have a few M-14s in the agency's inventory.

Sheriffs

  1. Agoston Haraszthy, 1850–1851
  2. George F. Hooper, 1852–1853
  3. William Conroy, 1853–1854
  4. M. M. Sexton, 1854–1855
  5. Joseph Reiner, 1856–1857
  6. D. A. Hollister, 1857–1858
  7. George Lyons, 1858–1861
  8. James McCoy, 1862–1871
  9. Samuel W. Craigue, 1871–1874
  10. Nicholas Hunsaker, 1875–1876
  11. Joseph Coyne, 1876–1882
  12. Edward W. Bushyhead, 1883–1886
  13. Samuel A. McDowell, 1887–1890
  14. John H. Folks, 1891–1892
  15. Augustus Cravath, 1892
  16. Ben P. Hill, 1893–1894
  17. Frank S. Jennings, 1895–1902
  18. Thomas W. Brodnax, 1903–1906
  19. Fred M. Jennings, 1907–1914
  20. Ralph Conklin, 1915–1918
  21. James C. Byers, 1918–1929
  22. Edgar F. Cooper, 1929–1935
  23. Ernest W. Dort, 1936–1941
  24. Bert Strand, 1941–1962
  25. Elmer Jansen, 1962–1963
  26. Joseph C. O'Connor, 1963–1971
  27. John F. Duffy, 1971–1991
  28. Jim Roache, 1991–1995
  29. William B. Kolender, 1995-2009
  30. William D. Gore, 2009–2022
  31. Anthony Ray 2022-2023
  32. Kelly Martinez, 2023–present

Deputies killed in line of duty

  1. Andrew Kriss, May 25, 1864, gunfire
  2. Will Ward, November 27, 1899, assault
  3. Thomas A. Fay, May 17, 1919, gunfire
  4. Herbert Sibert, July 13, 1949, Automobile crash
  5. Donn G. Witt, September 25, 1983, illness
  6. Kelly Ann Bazer, January 13, 1986, gunfire
  7. Lonny Gene Brewer, December 5, 1987, gunfire
  8. Theodore L. Beckmann Jr., February 8, 1989, vehicular assault
  9. Patrick Steven Coyle, February 16, 1997, aircraft accident
  10. Ken Collier, February 28, 2010, vehicle pursuit
  11. Matt Gibbs, August 21, 2021, COVID-19
  12. Ramon Cazarez, April 10, 2023, COVID-19