Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Grand Jury Says Clovis Police Still Not Diverse Enough but Finds No Evidence of Racism
NANCY WEBSITE HEADSHOT 1
By Nancy Price, Multimedia Journalist
Published 3 years ago on
June 27, 2022

Share

 

The Clovis Police Department is 75% white, twice as much as the greater Fresno metropolitan area, the Fresno County Civil Grand Jury says in a report released Monday morning.

The grand jury found that Clovis PD “has made significant efforts to ethnically diversify the department to include African American and other sworn officers of color,” but has not yet met expectations.

However, the grand jury found no evidence of systemic racism in hiring.

Clovis Police Responds

In response, the Clovis Police Department said it agrees with the grand jury report summary that says the department has made significant steps to increase diversity but has not met its expectations.

“The results have not met our expectations, because our expectations are high,” the department said in a news release. “But important strides are being made. Over the past two years, 23% of Police Officers hired by the Clovis Police Department are Female, 36% are Hispanic, 9% are Indian, and 5% are Asian.”

African American officers make up only 2% of Clovis Police Department, while the city’s population is 2.9% Black. The grand jury found that the department is “nearly reflective” of the city’s racial and ethnic makeup, but much less diverse than the Fresno metropolitan area.

Clovis police officers presumably would come into contact with people who are not Clovis residents but live in the greater Fresno metropolitan area.

The grand jury review came in response to a citizen complaint about the department’s hiring and staffing practices that resulted in only one African American sworn officer on the force in 2020 — the same as in 1990.

Clovis police recently hired 10 new sworn officers, but none are African American, the report said.

The complainant noted that other police agencies have had greater success in hiring African American officers from the same pool of candidates, even though Clovis PD has a “superior” compensation package.

Hiring Misperception Continues

City of Clovis and police department leaders told the grand jury there is a misperception that Clovis PD does not welcome candidates of color, particularly African Americans. At the same time, most of the leadership said they were unaware of specific objectives to recruit candidates of color and increase diversity.

The grand jury reported that Clovis Police leadership created a Citizens Diversity Committee in 2018 to help generate strategies to increase diversity in the applicant pool.

That same year department leaders created a Diversity Strategic Plan that established a set of goals, including:

  • Review equal employment opportunity and gender reports in recruitment and hiring.
  • Recruit three officers of different racial and ethnic groups to participate in recruitment and hiring.
  • Increase by 25% the number of applicants who are women or are people of color.

In its response, Clovis Police said that the actions it has taken, such as creating a Citizens Diversity Committee, has helped shape the department’s recruiting efforts over the past three years.

“You can find our recruitment team connecting with candidates from ethnically diverse backgrounds monthly at police academies, colleges, and community events, including at the Fresno Juneteenth Festival, where we were the only participating law enforcement agency,” the department said.

Individuals from all backgrounds are welcome to apply for sworn and nonsworn jobs that are posted on the department’s website, JoinClovisPD.com, which is regularly updated, the department said.

Grand Jury Report

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Only About Half of Republicans Say Trump Has Focused on the Right Priorities

DON'T MISS

ICE Deports the Mother of an Infant and a 2-Year-Old Who Is a US Citizen

DON'T MISS

Israeli Airstrike Kills 10 People, Half of Them Children

DON'T MISS

Shedeur Sanders Is Still Waiting for a Call as the NFL Draft Enters the Final Day

DON'T MISS

Israel’s AI Experiments in the War in Gaza Raise Ethical Concerns

DON'T MISS

Paul Skenes Strikes Out 9, Wins Duel With Yamamoto in Pirates’ Victory Over Dodgers

DON'T MISS

Eovaldi Outlasts Verlander as Rangers Beat Giants

DON'T MISS

Rams Take Oregon Tight End Terrance Ferguson in Second Round After Trading Out of First

DON'T MISS

The Latest: Francis Is Remembered as a ‘Pope Among the People’ as He Is Laid to Rest

DON'T MISS

ICE Is Reversing the Termination of Legal Status for International Students Around the US

UP NEXT

Israeli Airstrike Kills 10 People, Half of Them Children

UP NEXT

Shedeur Sanders Is Still Waiting for a Call as the NFL Draft Enters the Final Day

UP NEXT

Israel’s AI Experiments in the War in Gaza Raise Ethical Concerns

UP NEXT

Paul Skenes Strikes Out 9, Wins Duel With Yamamoto in Pirates’ Victory Over Dodgers

UP NEXT

Eovaldi Outlasts Verlander as Rangers Beat Giants

UP NEXT

Rams Take Oregon Tight End Terrance Ferguson in Second Round After Trading Out of First

UP NEXT

The Latest: Francis Is Remembered as a ‘Pope Among the People’ as He Is Laid to Rest

UP NEXT

Trump Now Doubts Putin Wants to End Ukraine War, a Day After Saying a Deal Was Close

UP NEXT

Fresno Elderly Woman Evicted, Forced to Leave Dogs Behind. One Still Needs a Home.

UP NEXT

Virginia Giuffre, Voice in Epstein Sex Trafficking Scandal, Dies at 41

Nancy Price,
Multimedia Journalist
Nancy Price is a multimedia journalist for GV Wire. A longtime reporter and editor who has worked for newspapers in California, Florida, Alaska, Illinois and Kansas, Nancy joined GV Wire in July 2019. She previously worked as an assistant metro editor for 13 years at The Fresno Bee. Nancy earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. Her hobbies include singing with the Fresno Master Chorale and volunteering with Fresno Filmworks. You can reach Nancy at 559-492-4087 or Send an Email

Shedeur Sanders Is Still Waiting for a Call as the NFL Draft Enters the Final Day

2 hours ago

Israel’s AI Experiments in the War in Gaza Raise Ethical Concerns

2 hours ago

Paul Skenes Strikes Out 9, Wins Duel With Yamamoto in Pirates’ Victory Over Dodgers

3 hours ago

Eovaldi Outlasts Verlander as Rangers Beat Giants

3 hours ago

Rams Take Oregon Tight End Terrance Ferguson in Second Round After Trading Out of First

3 hours ago

The Latest: Francis Is Remembered as a ‘Pope Among the People’ as He Is Laid to Rest

4 hours ago

ICE Is Reversing the Termination of Legal Status for International Students Around the US

4 hours ago

Trump Is a Revolutionary. Will He Succeed or Fail?

5 hours ago

Trump Now Doubts Putin Wants to End Ukraine War, a Day After Saying a Deal Was Close

5 hours ago

We Need Proof of Life for the Makeup Artist Trump Sent to El Salvador

5 hours ago

Only About Half of Republicans Say Trump Has Focused on the Right Priorities

WASHINGTON — Many Americans do not agree with President Trump’s aggressive efforts to quickly enact his agenda, a new poll finds, and ...

2 hours ago

2 hours ago

Only About Half of Republicans Say Trump Has Focused on the Right Priorities

2 hours ago

ICE Deports the Mother of an Infant and a 2-Year-Old Who Is a US Citizen

2 hours ago

Israeli Airstrike Kills 10 People, Half of Them Children

2 hours ago

Shedeur Sanders Is Still Waiting for a Call as the NFL Draft Enters the Final Day

2 hours ago

Israel’s AI Experiments in the War in Gaza Raise Ethical Concerns

3 hours ago

Paul Skenes Strikes Out 9, Wins Duel With Yamamoto in Pirates’ Victory Over Dodgers

3 hours ago

Eovaldi Outlasts Verlander as Rangers Beat Giants

Rams
3 hours ago

Rams Take Oregon Tight End Terrance Ferguson in Second Round After Trading Out of First

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend