Organizational Values

Provide Exceptional Service– We value being responsive to the community’s needs and seek to earn the public’s confidence and satisfaction with fair and impartial services that are highly competent, professional, and accessible to all.

Act with Integrity – We value a commitment to the nobility of policing, and the ethical standards of the organization and our profession. We are trustworthy, reliable and committed to doing the right thing, the right way, for the right reason.

Treat Others with Respect – We value approaching every contact with a guardian mindset that embodies treating people with dignity and respect, giving them a voice and listening, being impartial and fair, and building trust in our interactions with the public and our colleagues.

Leadership Team

Interim Chief Max Bosel

Interim Chief Max Bosel retired as Mountain View’s 10th Police Chief in December, 2020. He is serving in an interim role while the City conducts a selection process for the next chief.

Max has more than 40 years of public safety experience, to include 31 years as a sworn officer. He served 25 years with the City of Mountain View where he rose through the ranks with assignments in all areas of operations, as well as in interim assignments as an Assistant City Manager and City Manager.

As Chief, Max led the development of the City’s first published Policing Plan, which improved transparency and guided the department’s strategic initiatives for enhancing community safety, improving police-community collaboration, and promoting a culture of service excellence aligned with the pillars of the 21^st Century Policing Task Force Report. 

Max served as President of the Santa Clara County Police Chiefs Association, as a board member with the California Police Chiefs Association, and he is a life member with the International Association of Chiefs of Police and the Police Executive Research Forum.  He volunteers as the chair of the Public Safety Cadets Law Enforcement Sector National Committee, an organization that mentors youth interested in careers in public service.

In addition to academic credentials that include a BA in management from St. Mary’s College of California and a master’s in public administration from Notre Dame de Namur University, Max is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s State and Local Government Executive Program and the FBI’s National Academy. He was awarded an Executive Certificate from the Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training and maintains an EMT-Paramedic license with the state of California.

Captain Saul Jaeger

Saul has been with the Mountain View Police Department since 2003. Saul has served in a variety of capacities throughout his career including Field Training Officer, Motor Officer, Special School Resource Officer and Detective/Task Force and was a member of the Bicycle Patrol Team, Crisis Negotiation Team, Peer Counseling Unit and Recruiting Team. In addition to these roles, Saul was also instrumental in developing and branding several community outreach campaigns including the department’s podcast, The Silicon Valley Beat. Saul holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Administration from the University of Phoenix, a Master's Degree in Emergency Services Management from California State University, Long Beach and is currently completing his Doctorate in Human and Organizational Psychology from Touro University. Saul is a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and is also a graduate of the LEAD Certificate program through the Stanford Graduate School of Business, the California POST Supervisory Leadership Institute, Leadership Mountain View and the City of Mountain View Leadership Development Program. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy, Session 282.
 

Captain Michael Canfield

Mike has been with the Mountain View Police Department for over 20 years and has served in a number of positions including as a Field Training Officer, Detective, Task Force Agent, SWAT Team member and Recruiting Team member. Mike promoted to Sergeant in 2011 where he supervised patrol teams, ran our Crimes Against Person’s Unit and served as our SWAT Team Leader. In 2014, Mike promoted to Lieutenant, taking on new roles and responsibilities. In his time as a Lieutenant, Mike served as our Negotiations Commander and SWAT team Tactical Commander, a Patrol Watch Commander and managed many of our specialized units including, our Traffic Enforcement Team, the Personnel and Training Unit, our Investigations bureau as well as the Operational Services Unit. Mike is the recipient of our Distinguished Service Medal and proudly shares our Meritorious Unit Citation. Mike holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree from Columbia Southern University. Mike is a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, The Crisis Ready Institute and the California Police Chiefs Association.

Captain Scott Nelson

Scott started his law enforcement career with the Modesto Police Department in 2005 and came to Mountain View in 2016. He has worked in special assignments including Field Training Officer, SWAT Operator, Motor Officer, Cyber/Digital Forensics, Crime Scene Investigator (CSI) Team, and Public Information Officer. Scott holds a BA degree in Psychology, an MBA, and a Juris Doctorate Degree. He currently manages the Field Operations Division, which includes the Patrol Teams, Neighborhood and Event Services (NES) Unit, School Resource Officers, Traffic Unit, and the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS – Drone) Unit.

Lt. Wahed Magee  Wahed began his career with the Mountain View Police Department in 2006. During his time with MVPD he has served as a patrol officer, field training officer, detective, task force agent, K-9 handler, and the Neighborhood and Event Services sergeant. His current assignments include patrol watch commander, Field Training Program Coordinator, K-9 Coordinator and Mobile Field Force Coordinator. Additionally, Wahed served on SWAT as an operator, sniper, assistant team leader and is currently the Tactical Commander.		Lt. Armando Espitia  In his 22 years with the City of Mountain View, Armando has worked as a Field Training Officer, as a member of the Gang Suppression Team, as a Crisis Negotiations Team member, as a driver's training instructor , and as a detective in the Crimes Against Person Unit. Armando also worked as a detective in the FBI Violent Gang Safe Streets Task Force and served as Police Officer Association President. Armando is currently oversees weekday patrol teams , our Youth Services Unit, Gang Suppression Team, Crisis Negotiation Team, CIT, Peer Support Team and our community service officers.
Lt. Frank St. Clair Frank started with the Mountain View Police department in 1997. Frank is currently assigned as the task force commander for the Santa Clara County Specialized Enforcement Team (SCCSET). Frank’s previous specialty assignments have included assignments in fugitive apprehension, SCCSET agent, and he served as the sergeant of the Crime Suppression Unit.	Public Safety Support Services Manager Jennifer Copeland Jennifer began her career with the Mountain View Police Department in 1995 as a part time police assistant. Her roles at the department included Lead Police Records Specialist and Records Unit Supervisor before she was promoted to Public Safety Support Services Manager in 2016, where she oversees the Police and Fire Records units and the Public Safety Systems. She holds a BS from CSU Long Beach and a Master’s in Public Administration from Notre Dame de Namur University.
Emergency Communications Manager Barbara Liberty Barbara began her career in Public Safety Dispatching beginning with Scotts Valley PD in 1990 and moved to the San Jose Police Department in 1992. Her roles at the department included; Public Safety Dispatcher, Communications Training Officer, Academy Instructor, Tactical/Hostage Negotiations Dispatcher, and more. Barbara was an instructor for South Bay Regional Training Center for ten years teaching topics on Critical Incidents, Wellness, Workplace Communications, Customer Service, Communications Training Officer Program and Radio Procedures. Before joining MVPD, she was the Records and Communications Manager at San Jose State University Police Department.		Social Media and Public Relations Coordinator Katie Nelson Katie has been the Social Media and Public Relations Coordinator at the Mountain View Police Department since 2015. In her role, she manages the department’s social media accounts and outreach campaigns, focusing primarily on the department’s engagement efforts as well as serving as the agency’s public information officer. She presents across the country on social media best practices and crisis communication strategies. She serves as an instructor with the California POST and with California Police Chiefs Association. She has served as the General Chair of the International Association of Chiefs of Police Public Information Officers Section and as a council member for Government Social Media. She is the recipient of the 40 Under 40 Award with the International Association of Chiefs of police, and is a recipient of the Young Athena Award and has an Award of Distinction with the California Peace Officers Association.

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Department History

Mountain View was incorporated on November 7, 1902. One of the first acts of the new city council was to elect a marshal, R.C. Waits. Waits' duties were mostly administrative, and another officer was hired in 1909 to assist with the enforcement of laws. In addition to the marshal, the Santa Clara County Sheriff and Fremont Township Constable also had offices in town.

In 1916, the city appointed a traffic officer to address the problem of speeding vehicles on Castro Street. Officers were expected to provide their own vehicles, which may explain why the city had to recruit candidates from as far away as San Jose to fill the position.

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