MEDIA ADVISORY

The San José Police Department (SJPD) has launched a new public Gang Incident Dashboard, giving residents, service providers, and city stakeholders easier access to information about suspected gang-related and gang-motivated incidents across San José.

The dashboard is part of SJPD’s broader support of the San José Youth Empowerment Alliance (SJYEA)—formerly known as the Mayor’s Gang Prevention Task Force—a citywide coalition focused on prevention, intervention, and the reduction of gang violence. The SJPD developed and maintains this tool to help ensure data transparency and support more informed, community-driven responses.

“This dashboard reflects a shared commitment to public safety—not just from the police department, but from our entire city network working to prevent violence and support our youth,” said Chief Paul Joseph of the San José Police Department. “It’s the product of years of collaboration between officers, analysts, educators, community leaders, and service providers. By making this data accessible, we’re opening the door to more informed conversations, better-targeted resources, and stronger trust between the department and the communities we serve.”

The data in the dashboard is compiled by the Crime Analysis Unit (CAU), using information flagged by patrol officers and reviewed by the Gang Investigations Unit (GIU). Since 2017, SJPD personnel have flagged suspected gang-related incidents for additional review. Incidents are then classified as:

Gang-Related (R): Involving a known or suspected gang member, without direct gang motivation.

Gang-Motivated (M): Clearly committed to benefit or further gang activity, based on evidence and context.

All classifications follow state law and FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) standards, with the GIU and CAU working together to ensure consistent and accurate reporting.

While the San José Youth Empowerment Alliance continues to lead citywide strategy on youth safety and violence prevention, the SJPD remains responsible for the on-the-ground work of identifying and analyzing gang-related incidents. The Gang Incident Dashboard is the result of this ongoing operational effort, bringing verified data to the public in a way that’s both accessible and actionable.

This dashboard is intended to serve a wide range of users: Residents and neighborhood leaders, to better understand trends in their communities, community-based organizations and nonprofits, to guide outreach and programming for educators and youth advocates.

“Gangs harm our communities and especially put our young people at risk. Mapping gang activity helps us better deploy resources — both to prevent violence and to focus youth outreach and programming where it can make the biggest difference,” said Mayor Matt Mahan. “This dashboard is part of our broader commitment to transparency and data-informed action — joining a growing suite of dashboards used by departments citywide to guide our work.”

“This dashboard will play a vital role in providing residents with timely information about suspected gang-related activities throughout the city and supporting their ability to stay aware and engaged,” said San José City Manager Jennifer Maguire. “I am proud of the San José Police Department’s Crime Analysis Unit for continuously seeking innovative ways to develop tools that keep the community informed, promote transparency and strengthen public safety efforts.”

The dashboard is updated monthly and available to the public here.


About the San José Youth Empowerment Alliance (SJYEA)
Established in 1991 as the Mayor’s Gang Prevention Task Force, SJYEA brings together residents, law enforcement, educators, service providers, and faith-based organizations to coordinate gang prevention and youth safety efforts.