Community Corner
Meet Scotts Valley Police Chief John Weiss
Scotts Valley's chief of police balances a busy life with family and his artwork.
Scotts Valley Patch: What is your occupation?
John Weiss: Chief of police.
Patch: Where were you born?
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Weiss: Los Gatos.
Patch: Where were you educated?
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Weiss: Sonoma State and San Jose State, with a BA and Master's degree in Criminal Justice Administration.
Patch: How long have you lived in Scotts Valley?
Weiss: Twenty-one years.
Patch: What brought you to the area?
Weiss: I convinced then Chief Stephen Walpole to hire me at the police department. He's still in therapy over that decision.
Patch: What is something you are known for?
Weiss: My cartoons and artwork.
Patch: What is your latest project?
Weiss: Updating our police department's mobile data computers and records management system.
Patch: Book you last read?
Weiss: Baumeister and Tierney's Will Power. The authors note: "Self-regulation failure is the major social pathology of our time." I tend to agree. Charles Frazier's Nightwoods awaits my attention, and I am in the middle of Jim Harrison's The Great Leader.
Patch: Newspaper or magazine you read regularly?
Weiss: The Wall Street Journal, Santa Cruz Sentinel, SV Press Banner, SV Patch, among others.
Patch: Movie you could watch again and again?
Weiss: Gladiator. Great cinematography, haunting music and a true illustration of great leadership.
Patch: Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
Weiss: Spend time with my wife and son.
Patch: What is one of your most gratifying accomplishments?
Weiss: Being there for my father as he descended into the fog of Alzheimer's. The son became the father, the father became the son, and I am proud to have given a small measure back for so much I received.
Patch: What is your greatest indulgence?
Weiss: A glass of aged Silver Oak coupled with a piece of salted dark chocolate.
Patch: One of your most memorable vacations?
Weiss: New Orleans with my wife. Great cuisine, culture and history.
Patch: What is a goal you are chasing after?
Weiss: To paint as well as Scott L. Christensen. I have studied landscape painting with Scott extensively and hope to mature as an oil landscape painter.
Patch: What do you like most about life in Scotts Valley?
Weiss: The fine people in this community are a pleasure to serve, and we are blessed by the surrounding mountain beauty.