Women comprise only 13 percent of the local law enforcement in agencies across the nation, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Closer to home, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department currently employs 236 sworn females, while the total number of sworn men is 1,855. The Murrieta Police Department has seven sworn females who serve on a force of more than 80 officers.
We spoke with three local women in law enforcement who never viewed those statistics as a hindrance. Instead, they continue to rise within the ranks of their respective departments.
Chief Deputy Shelley Kennedy-Smith is the first African-American woman in the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department to achieve the rank of chief deputy. The 53-year-old Murrieta resident currently oversees Central Field Operations for four patrol stations: Southwest in Temecula, Lake Elsinore, Hemet and Cabazon. She is also responsible for the sheriff’s countywide emergency response team.
It was through a twist of fate 27 years ago that Kennedy-Smith became a young deputy sheriff. She said as she was typing up a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department application as a favor for a neighbor, she realized she had all the qualifications. So she decided to apply.
“I got hired and he didn’t,” Kennedy-Smith said. “He went on to become an nurse. I ran into him five or six years ago; it was really funny how it turned out.” Even though there have been countless sacrifices along the way, she says she wouldn’t trade it.
Married for 32 years, Kennedy-Smith has two sons and three grandchildren. She thanked her husband for keeping their boys involved in sports while as a young deputy she worked odd hours and many a holiday.
To women thinking of pursuing a career in law enforcement, Kennedy-Smith said: “The sky is the limit. On Aug. 25, 1986, when I became a deputy sheriff, I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would have all the opportunities I have had. I have seen firsthand the growth and transformation in women in high positions in a predominately male field. We are making our mark. I would tell any woman to be strong and confident and that if she believes in herself, others will.”
Likewise, Lt. Julie Hoxmeier of the Murrieta Police Department said: “The gender thing never really got in the way for me.”
Raised by a single mother, Hoxmeier said she had a strong independent female role model. Additionally, she was accustomed to the law enforcement lifestyle because her father-in-law had worked as chief of police in the town she and her childhood-friend-turned-husband grew up in.
They got married after high school, and her husband was hired at the Riverside Police Department after serving in the Marines. Once determined to go to law school, Hoxmeier said she applied instead for the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. “It was an obvious choice for our family,” Hoxmeier said, because at the time—nearly two decades ago—they had a young daughter.
As a young deputy sheriff, Hoxmeier worked at Southwest Detention Center until she was hired at the Fontana Police Department. She worked there for six years, mainly in the investigations department and as a court liaison.
In 2000, Hoxmeier went to work for the Murrieta Police Department. She made the move because she lived in Murrieta, she said, where she has risen through the ranks and is currently the operations lieutenant. Her role is to oversee the patrol department. It is career choice that Hoxmeier, now 47 years old and a grandmother, has been happy with, especially when it comes to earning an income equal to her male counterparts.
“One of the things people talk about is how women make less money, even President Obama recently brought that up,” Hoxmeier said. “Across the nation, it’s a third less. Well in law enforcement, it’s based on your rank, not on your gender. I love that fairness…I think that should be a huge thing women look for.”
Another successful woman in law enforcement, Chief Deputy Patricia Knudson, looked back on what made her decide to pursue the career path. Coming up on her 25th anniversary with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, Knudson explained that she was working as a paramedic in Hemet when she decided she needed a job that would offer longevity.
“I reasoned that in police work, I would still be working in emergency services and generally outdoors,” Knudson said. “It was the closest field to what I was doing and offered the longevity opportunities that I was seeking for the long term.” That led to working as a patrol deputy and on the Community Action Team—both very rewarding positions, she said.
“Now, so many years later and as an executive, the reward factor has shifted,” said Knudson, 47, a Riverside resident. She currently oversees West Field Patrol Operations, which includes the stations of Jurupa Valley, Moreno Valley and Perris, as well as the Special Investigations (homicide, major narcotics, computer crimes) and Media Information bureaus.
“I now work very hard at mentoring our employees and carefully consider decision-making issues to leave a positive impact on the department and community as a whole.” She admits that the balance of a law enforcement career with a personal life is always challenging. “For me, faith plays a huge role, followed very closely by the love and support of my husband, who is also in the business,” said Knudson, a stepmother and grandmother. “As the first Latina chief deputy, it is rewarding to know that I can be an example for other young ladies to follow the path. I try and impart to young people that if I can do this, so can you.”