Former San Jose Police union employee gets probation for drug conviction

Former San Jose Police union employee avoids jail time for drug conviction

Joanne Segovia was sentenced to three years of probation in a San Jose federal court.

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A former San Jose Police union employee arrested for drug distribution last year was sentenced to probation this week after being convicted in federal court. Now San Jose’s Mayor and community leaders are speaking out about the sentence, with some calling the sentence an injustice.

Federal prosecutors say she had a drug addiction when she was busted for dealing thousands of opioid pills. But some in the community are calling her sentence a slap on the wrist and are still looking for fairness in this case.

"This lady who’s under the POA has been doing it internationally. How many people have died because she brought that stuff into our communities?" said Activist Lori Valdez.

Nearly two years ago, this was the message community activists sent to San Jose city leaders and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. This press conference was held after 66-year-old Joanne Segovia was arrested and charged with a scheme to import and distribute opioids. At that time, Segovia was the Executive Director of the San Jose Police Officers Association.

"You have thousands of primarily Black and brown people, poor people who are stuck in the Santa Clara County Jail unable to post bond. Who are then being sentenced for convictions that are much less serious than what the Police Officers Association executive was convicted of," said Raj Jayadev, Coordinator for Silicon Valley De-Bug.

On Tuesday, Segovia was sentenced to three years of probation in a San Jose federal court, after prosecutors concluded she had a drug addiction and distributed pills to get free drugs. Still, investigators say she imported more than 17,000 doses of the opioid Ta-pen-ta-dol over a 17-month period back in 2021. At least once, they say, she used the union’s UPS account to ship drugs.

After the sentencing, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan released a statement saying:

"The sentence delivered today feels lenient to me," said San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan. "I understand that Segovia’s actions were primarily driven by her own addiction, and that she is now pursuing treatment for that addiction and community service as restitution, but anyone involved in importing drugs—in this case, over 17,000 pills of a highly addictive drug—that were in turn distributed to and no doubt harmed others in our community should face a steeper penalty. We need to send a clear message that we will not tolerate drug dealing."– Matt Mahan, San Jose Mayor

The San Jose/Silicon Valley NAACP also weighed in on Segovia’s case.

"We were surprised that the District Attorney’s Office of Santa Clara County didn’t prosecute her for state charges. Double jeopardy exists only in certain instances. But since she was charged federally, there are still local and state violations that could apply," said Sean Allen, President of the NAACP San Jose/Silicon Valley chapter.

The NAACP says they and other groups will ask the Santa Clara County D.A. to consider filing charges against Segovia.

KTVU reached out to the San Jose Police Officers Association, but they declined to comment.

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