IN August 2008, Filipino American Capt Cesar Solis made history as he was appointed Assistant Chief of America’s Finest in the San Diego Police Department. Solis then became the highest-ranking cop of Filipino and Asian descent. Both the Filipino and Asian communities in the City of San Diego celebrated the promotion, which included another officer, Captain Bob Kanaski.
"I have every confidence that Bob and Cesar will continue to be successful leaders and steer our department in a positive direction. I look forward to working with them in their new assignments," Police Chief William Lansdowne said in a statement to the Philippine Village Voice.
Police Captain Cesar Solis is an immigrants’ son whose parents hail from Naic, Cavite, in the Philippines. Captain Solis’ advancement made him the only Filipino to have reached the position and rank within a notch of being the top cop in the police department of the City of San Diego, California’s second, and the nation’s eighth, largest with an estimated population of 1.3 million.
"Not only is this great for the department and the community, but it is also a historic occasion - Cesar is the highest ranking Asian-Pacific Islander in the history of the San Diego Police Department!" said Alicia De Leon Torres, national director of the National Asian Pacific American Families Against Substance Abuse.
As a child, Captain Solis had dreamt of becoming a fighter pilot, and then refocused his attention to law enforcement while in high school. He worked odd jobs, including a stint as a manager of a KFC restaurant. He joined America’s Finest almost 29 years ago and has consistently risen from the ranks. He has served as a lieutenant at Western and Central Divisions, SWAT, narcotics sections, gangs, community relations and the emergency negotiations team.
After his promotion to captain in 2005, Solis was appointed to command the department’s southeastern district, the most diverse and problematic with a huge population of Filipinos, Hispanics, African Americans and other Asians. Under his command then was Investigations II which includes homicide, robbery, gangs, economic crimes, auto theft, District Attorney Liaison Unit and the Metro Arson Strike Team (MAST).
As assistant chief, Captain Solis presides over Centralized Investigations which includes units such as child abuse, vice, narcotics, economic crimes, homicide and robbery.
( Published May 5, 2010 in Asian Journal Los Angeles p.B2 )
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