Carlos Acosta is sworn in as Salinas’ new police chief, promising partnership.

Nearly a year after its previous police chief resigned, the Salinas Police Department has a new chief. Two interim chiefs later, Carlos Acosta’s first day on the job was Nov. 29. The 51-year-old is a long-time San Jose police officer who was in charge of the bureau of investigations.

He is the third Salinas police chief in less than four years, filling a role left vacant by Roberto Filice, who resigned in January to take over as assistant general manager of public safety and police chief at East Bay Regional Park District.

Acosta was hired after Salinas conducted a second round of searching for the next chief. The first search came under fire after residents and former police officers said there was a lack of transparency in the process.

René Mendez was hired as city manager in March, and one of his first priorities was hiring a new chief. Despite members of the community expressing interest in having the next chief be local, he selected a chief from San Jose. “I selected Chief Acosta because of his demonstrated leadership and values that are centered around service to his community,” Mendez said during a swearing-in ceremony on Monday, Dec. 2.

Acosta said his priorities include creating partnerships with the community, building Salinas PD’s workforce and investing in training and development for police officers.

Like police departments across the country, Salinas PD is struggling with retaining officers, who routinely leave for nearby agencies that offer better pay. Currently the city has 133 sworn police officers and 31 vacancies.

“We have staffing concerns, but the community is the most important thing. As long as we build partnerships, we can start that foundation of what we can do collectively together to really create vibrancy, safety and a more prosperous city and community here in Salinas,” Acosta says.

Cmdr. Brian Johnson says the department welcomes the stability of having a chief after a year of interim leadership. “I think Chief Acosta will help retain people, and we’ll be able to build on that,” Johnson adds.

This year, Salinas PD has removed over 200 firearms from the streets. Homicides decreased last year from 11 in 2022 to six in 2023.

Acosta’s monthly salary is $20,385, plus benefits.