SF Cops Get New Crime-Fighting Tool: Email

For San Francisco cops, the words have been a long time coming.

They've got mail.

All sworn SFPD officers now have email access, Chief Greg Suhr told a media roundtable on Thursday. "And yes, I agree this shouldn't be news in 2011," the chief told the San Francisco Examiner.

District station captains, administrative staff, unit commanders and other special police units like homicide investigators have had email for years, but rank-and-file patrolmen have been on a technology blackout. It was unclear why it took Suhr's April appointment to the chief position for beat cops to receive official email accounts.

Every police officer will have an email account "up and running" in the next two weeks to 30 days, according to the newspaper.

The email accounts mean that cops will be able to more effectively communicate with civilians as well as within the department.

Address book 'em, Dan-o.