Latinas want to be the face of Fresno Police Department’s future

Selenia Prudente Ambriz grew up in a part of Fresno infested with “a lot of gang violence, a lot of narcotics, a lot of fighting.”

She got accustomed to seeing police officers in the neighborhood.

“Every time they came to my house or around the neighborhood, I felt like I got saved,” said Prudente Ambriz, who completed the State Center Community College District Police Academy and joined the Fresno Police Department.

“That’s when I decided to be in law enforcement.”

Prudente Ambriz was among two dozen cadet graduates – including four women – who joined the Fresno Police Department the day after Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderrama committed to a goal of increasing the number of women in the police force to 30% by the year 2030.

“Women have been under-represented in policing,” Balderrama said in a press release. “I support the success of qualified female officers at all ranks throughout their careers.”

Prudente Ambriz and fellow cadet graduate Cristal Ramírez welcome the police chief’s goal.

“I know that even now, having females in law enforcement is not very common,” said Prudente Ambriz. “It needs to be because I think we bring something different to law enforcement.

Ramírez, who also joins the Fresno police, said there is a need to have more females on police forces “because it shows the diversity and the fact that any female could do it.”

“There’s criminals out there, or people that need help, and they’re not just males,” said Ramírez, who is from Santa Clarita. “Having a female officer gives them a different point of view than that of a male.”

A Latina, said Ramírez and Prudente Ambriz, would be even better, especially in a heavily Latino city like Fresno.

“I feel like I can make a big difference and a big impact because people are going to see someone that they might not be used to seeing in the community, someone in a position of power,” said Ramírez.

“It’s going to prove to Latinos that you can make it,” said Ramírez, whose parents immigrated from México. “I’m making them proud that they had a dream and I’m just helping them pursue it.”

Prudente Ambriz, whose boyfriend, Dorian Arellano, also graduated at the same time from the police academy, hopes to make a difference with the Latino community. He also joins the Fresno police.

“It’s just letting the Hispanic community understand that we’re there to help them regardless of anything and to not be afraid,” said Prudente Ambriz. “We want to help everyone, no matter where they come from.”

Prudente Ambriz, the fourth of five children, feels like she belongs in a police uniform.

“I’ve always wanted to be here,” she said.

However, “it’s become a lot more challenging getting acceptance from friends and sometimes even your family,” she said.

What’s more important, said the 22-year-old Prudente Ambriz, is her main goal of making a difference in her community.

“I went into law enforcement so that I could make positive changes in the community I grew up in,” she said.

Ramírez moved to Fresno with her husband, who works for Cal Fire. She has four older half-brothers and half-sisters.

“I went to Grand Canyon University and graduated with my bachelor’s in criminal justice, so I always knew this was the path I wanted to take,” said Ramírez, 22.

“It’s important to go into law enforcement to be a stepping stone for young females and just prove that anyone can do it.”

This story was originally published April 1, 2022 at 11:40 AM with the headline "Latinas want to be the face of Fresno Police Department’s future."