Needs and Projects
SafetyNet
Will your child tell you if they are in trouble online?

The Internet is an amazing place: a bounty of information available any time, any where. It also provides intimate access to technologically savvy but naïve children. Along with the wealth of information are risks: cyberbullying, phishing and predators.  Research shows that:

  • 54% of teens talk about subjects referencing sex on MySpace social networking site.1
  • 1 in 25 youth in one year received an online sexual solicitation where the solicitor tried to make offline contact2
  • 39% of middle school students have posted photos of themselves, 36% have posted their real names, and 14% have posted their schedules and personal contact information.3

Although some things about being a teen have not changed much over the decades, a lack of caution, desire to fit in and developing sexuality, are teamed with limitless opportunities in today’s cyber world. The cyber journey offers 24/7 friends, and in many households, little parental guidance.

The San Diego Police Foundation and regional law enforcement San Diego Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force are leading a public education campaign in cooperation with schools and parents countywide.  Middle school students participating in our SafetyNet™ program indicate an increased understanding of risks.  Parents say they will increase supervision of their children's cyber activities.

The program is made possible by grants from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, AT&T Foundation, and the Lotus Children’s Fund.
You can help fight Internet crimes against children.  Join our campaign!

1 Moreno, M. et al. (Jan 2009). Reducing At-Risk Adolescents’ Display of Risk Behavior on a Social Networking Web Site. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. Vol. 163, No. 1.

2 Wolak, J., Finkelhor, D., Ybarra, M. & Mitchell, K. (Feb-Mar 200). Online “Predators” and Their Victims: Myths, Realities, and Implications for Prevention and Treatment. American Psychologist. Vol. 63, No. 2, (111-128).

3 McQuade, S.C., & Sampat, N. (2008). Survey of Internet and At-Risk Behaviors. Retrieved June 12, 2009 from the Rochester Institute of Technology website.

SDPD Crime Fighting Opportunities

As the department works to recruit, hire and train a new generation of “America’s Finest,” it is critically important to attract and equip them with current technology, empowering new officers to expand law enforcement efficiency.

Following are some high–priority law enforcement and crime prevention projects and equipment needs.  They are opportunities for you, your employer and your service organizations to partner with us on tangible, far-reaching, local solutions.

SafetyNet™ Smart Cyber Choices
for Children, Educators, Parents

In cooperation with schools, employers, and faith communities, we join the San Diego Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force in presenting our SafetyNet™ programs, which help parents untangle the web of confusion they often feel about their kids’ cyber activities. In middle school classrooms, educators use SafetyNet™ activities to help children make safe and responsible cyber choices. Facing a future of evolving cyber challenges, schools and parents want us to expand this program.

Improving Investigation Efficiency

Tracking evidence

Libraries have had electronic materials circulation systems for decades. The SDPD chain of custody tracking for crime scene evidence is still paper. Chief of Police William Lansdowne has asked us to help bring the SDPD Property Room into the digital age.

Digital Voice Recorders

In many investigative units, SDPD is a decade or more behind current technology with inefficient, large (even analog) recording devices. Smaller, digital equipment with expanded memory would facilitate uninterrupted long interviews and ease data storage.

License Plate Reader
Mobile and vehicle–mounted cameras track, read and process every license plate within their ranges at the pace of 300 – 1,000 cars per hour. Scanned plates can be on vehicles that are parked, moving, behind, ahead, passing or approaching the police unit. Stolen vehicles, or those associated with outstanding citations, crimes or warrants are automatically reported recorded and noted by audible feedback providing a tremendous law–enforcement tool.
Collecting evidence
With 600 new digital cameras, SDPD will improve evidence collection, benefiting the work of detectives and prosecutors.
Identifying criminal suspects
Composite sketches are an invaluable tool in the investigation of serious crimes. Yet SDPD’s software has not been upgraded in a decade.  Child Abuse, Sex Crimes, Homicide and Robbery investigators will be principal users of enhanced software that provides more life–like suspect composites.

Police Resource Multipliers

Air Support Unit – Forward Looking Infrared
The ability to monitor the actions and movements of suspects from the air— especially in darkness—is proven to enhance the safety of officers and citizens on the ground. The SDPD Air Support Unit, a recognized airborne law enforcement leader, has two FLIR units and four helicopters. An additional imager would provide full operational capacity when existing units are undergoing regular servicing or repairs.
K-9 Retiree Replacements
Eight to 10 new police dogs are needed each year to replace retirees. Canines used for searches and suspect apprehension are important contributors to efficient police work and play a primary role as an alternative to the use of deadly force. Foundation grants help to ensure retiree replacements stay on schedule.

...and More
Every dollar contributed helps us improve the human services delivered by men and women (and dogs) who “Protect and Serve.” Beneficiaries are domestic violence victims, the elderly, children and anyone who lives, works or plays in San Diego. Call us (and get a live voice) for more information: (858) 453-5060.
 

Grants exceed $3.5 million

Thanks to generous donations from individuals, businesses and organizations, the San Diego Police Foundation has facilitated in-kind donations and awarded grants totaling more than $3.5 million. The total reflects donors' growing interest in local, tangible, far–reaching results achieved in partnership with the San Diego Police Foundation.

Broad-based support from more than 1,500 donors helped us reach the mark.

Leadership contributions from organizations like the AT&T Foundation and Tayebi Family Foundation have played important roles in our SafetyNet™ Smart Cyber Choices public education campaign.

Our list of supporters includes donors who helped ensure the 24/7 response of police K-9  teams this past year, including: Donovan’s Steak & Chop House, Las Patronas, the Abrams Family,  Craig and Rebecca Irving and the Tayebi Family.

We’re also grateful for a $208,500 grant from Qualcomm Incorporated, which facilitated grants to nine San Diego County fire agencies in support of programs that increase citizen’s disaster preparedness. Grant money will be used to purchase training equipment and facilitate a variety of programs, including the training of Community Emergency Response Teams.

The Foundation is proud to implement cost-effective innovations that increase public safety efficiency. 

You make all the difference.