Chief Matthews began his law enforcement career in 1999 and has proudly served his hometown, the City of Hayward, ever since.
During his tenure, Chief Matthews has risen through the ranks working a variety of assignments and divisions including the Patrol, Investigations, Personnel and Training, Gang Investigations, Community Policing, Internal Affairs, and Special Operations and the Commander of SWAT.
Chief Matthews first became a member of the department’s Executive Team in December of 2014 when he was promoted to Police Captain. In January of 2022 Chief Matthews was promoted to Deputy Chief of Police, until taking over as Interim Chief of Police in August of 2022.
Chief Matthews has propelled the Hayward PD Organization forward through his hard work collaboration with the development and implementation of the following:
- Emergency Preparedness
- Hayward Evaluation and Response Teams (H.E.A.R.T)
- Community Advisory Panel (CAP)
- Patrol Wellness Group
- Policy Innovation Workshop on Community Safety
- Programs to increase transparency and the timely release of information to the community
Chief Matthews has also provided leadership and support for the department’s achievement and re-accreditation through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) since 2011.
Chief Matthews earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from California State University, Hayward, now California State University, East Bay, and a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Columbia Southern University.
He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, the California POST Command College, and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government Program.
Chief Matthews has strong values regarding community and civic engagement and participates in many other community organizations including the Hayward Rotary, Hayward Education Foundation, California Police Chief’s Association, International Association of Chiefs of Police, FBI National Academy Associates, and the Alameda County Commanders Group.
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