San Francisco Police Department’s Ingleside Station Capt. Amy Hurwitz is leading the way to keep the city’s south central neighborhoods safe.
The New York native got her start policing 22 years patrolling the Tenderloin and the Richmond neighborhoods once out of the academy. After her probationary period, she was assigned to the Ingleside Station, where she worked from 2005 to 2012 before making her return as captain in 2023.
Over her career, she has worked as a sergeant for the Central and Southern Stations, been on the plainclothes team with Officer Arianna Dagget as the only women in that unit at the time and worked at the Northern Station as a lieutenant. She was also picked to be the officer in charge of police at the Golden State Warriors’ Chase Center, one of her favorite assignments.
“I always wanted to do it since I was tiny,” Hurwitz said. “When people say something is a calling, this was a calling. I always wanted to do it.”
Hurwitz has advocated for increasing the number of women in police ranks and tried to create a feeling of safety in the community. She is known for running one of the best monthly community meetings of all the stationhouses. She invites interesting guest speakers, keeps a fun tone and remembers to contain the meeting to a reasonable time. Plus, there are always refreshments.
“I believe that if we don’t all get to know each other in some way, we’re going to have a hard time getting through things,” Hurwitz said. “Everyone is there [at the community meetings.] We have some coffee, have some cookies and we laugh a lot. We have a great time and people get to meet each other.”
The Ingleside Light caught up with Capt. Hurwitz to see what it’s like in the captain’s chair.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
How did it feel to be appointed captain?
It's a lot of responsibility. It's a good feeling. I understand that there are a lot of people who depend on me: the officers at the station, the people in the department, but mainly the people in the community that we're trying to take care of.
What does a typical day look like for you?
It's interesting because in policing, there's no typical day. There's really no typical day. I could show up and do paperwork and answer emails all day, talk to reporters or I could be on scene at a shooting. We all know that we go with the flow like whatever happens, that’s where we’re going. It makes it interesting. It’s a really fun job.
Do you have a favorite memory or a crazy story from your career that you can share?
It's heartbreaking, but it's a good story. I am a hostage and a crisis negotiator. Earlier in my career, we got a call that there was somebody who was set to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge. The Golden Gate Bridge has its own negotiators, but that day, no one was working, so they called and I got out there. We had a bunch of SFPD people trying to talk to her and she was already over the railing. She was sitting on a beam, maybe it was 10 or 12 inches wide. She was really despondent and it was heartbreaking to see somebody in such crisis. She was a woman in her 20s and whose family loved her and was so concerned about her. I talked to her for probably hours, but she was finally like “OK, I'm gonna come back in.” We couldn't get her because of where she was. It was sort of touching because we had these guys who worked painting the bridge like these big dudes and they put on their harnesses and they went over the side and they got her and she was hugging onto them. It was like “We're here. You're OK. You're safe now.” They brought her back over and it was really sort of a touching moment and I hope to whatever superpowers exist that that young lady is OK.
That's like stuff that you deal with. You know your mission at the time and emotions aren't a part of it and then after the fact, you just sort of reflect, and you're like, that was pretty heavy.
What is one piece of advice you have for the community?
If you want to keep it, keep it in your pocket. Cell phones, jewelry, right? Every time the price of gold goes up, so do chain snatches. There are plenty of places that'll buy a ripped chain. They don't care, so anything of value needs to be hidden. Doors have to be locked. You have to really pay attention to your surroundings. I think, as the economy starts to change, things may get a little trickier and you will really have to pay attention to your surroundings. So keep phones in the pocket, not out on the buses or at the bus stops. If you want to keep it, keep it in the pocket.
Anne Marie Kristoff (she/her) is a recent graduate from San Francisco State University's journalism program. She enjoys writing about the arts, entertainment and nature.
