Officer Griffiths wife
Cynthia, with their
children (l-r)
Mathew, Emily,
Leah, and Ashley.
B
obby Griffith, 40, has been a
patrol officer with Gilroy Police
Department since 2006. Working
the graveyard shift—typically 9 p.m. to 7
a.m.—allows him to spend time with his
family: wife Cynthia, and children Ashley,
19, Mathew, 16, Emily, 10, and Leah, 5.
Though he’s found family and career
success, Oklahoma-born Griffith is the
first to admit to struggles; he was teased
as a child for wearing glasses and couldn’t
focus when it came to academics, which led
him to enroll in special education classes
beginning in grade school. He later realized
he had Attention Deficit Disorder.
“When we moved to California,
the schools were behind compared to
Oklahoma,” Griffith said. “When I
registered (at Watsonville High School), I
was put in regular classes. The classes were
a little more my speed and I was able to
catch up.”
While still in high school, Griffith
decided he’d join the military and took the
Army entrance exam. Though he passed,
he didn’t score high enough to pursue his
hopes of working with planes as a pilot or
mechanic. He chose not to join infantry;
instead signing up for an elective criminal
justice class at WHS—a class that led him
to a path he’d never considered.
“I got all A’s in that class,” Griffith said.
“I remember the teacher (Bob Martin) said,
‘You’re going to be a cop someday.’ When
he said that, the light clicked on.”
After graduation, he joined his friend,
George Zamora, in the Explorers Program
at the Watsonville Police Department
(WPD) to learn about the profession.
Griffith was also recruited to play football
for Cabrillo College, which he did while
taking further criminal justice courses.
Following a two-year football stint at
Cabrillo—he didn’t earn enough credits
to graduate—Griffith joined the Police
Academy at Evergreen Valley College in
San Jose. He was sponsored by WPD,
which paid for portions of his training.
With support from his parents, a hospital
security job, and Cynthia, he graduated and
was hired by WPD, where he worked for
11 years. In 2006 he joined the Gilroy
Police Department (GPD), a move that
offered better pay and a more affordable
area to live at the time.
“Leaving Watsonville was hard because
(WPD) did so much for me,” he said. “But
as a father and husband, I have to do what’s
best for my family. Every decision I’ve made
as a cop has been for my family.”
Griffith met his wife Cynthia through
their mutual friend, Zamora, in 1994.
“With Cynthia it was natural,” Griffith
said. “In my head I was like, ‘I love this
girl.’”
Eighteen years of marriage and four
children later, Cynthia Griffith said her
husband is “a great father to his children.
Being a police officer and also being a
father, he is protective yet loving.”
Bobby Griffith—who helped coach
Gilroy High School football until this
school year—is now pursuing a degree in
Criminal Justice Administration through
Columbia Southern University. In February,
he was accepted into GPD’s mounted unit
G M H T O D A Y M A G A Z I N E
MAY / JUNE 2015
and hopes to be certified with his horse,
Rojan, in time for the Gilroy Garlic
Festival in July.
“When I was in Watsonville, Gilroy
would need help with the festival, so
we’d come and work,” he said. “I saw the
mounted unit and thought, ‘That’s what
I want to do.’”
Griffith boards Rojan at a ranch in
Hollister. He’s found that working with
Rojan helps him to relieve stress. He also
learned about controlling stress from WPD
officers during his Explorers training.
“They said, ‘Don’t bring your work
home.’ What works for me is I pray and
release it.”
Griffith has also learned to take note
of his intuition and he wants the next
generation of officers to understand that
police work is a balancing act.
“Younger guys think they can’t let their
guard down, but you have to,” he said.
“You have to relax and be human. But
when those little hairs stand up on the back
of your neck, something’s going on.”
Griffith—who hopes to retire in about
10 years— will continue to serve his
community and offer encouragement to
Gilroy’s youth.
“If I can reach a kid who is like me,
who is struggling like I was, then it’s worth
it,” Griffith said. Offering advice to kids
interested in law enforcement: “Do ride-
alongs, do Explorers, do your homework on
the profession. And if it’s a calling, it’s
a calling. You can’t change that.”
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