Northern Division
The CHP’s Northern Division boundaries encompass the 14 northern-most California counties. From the rugged coastline in the west, to the Oregon and Nevada borders, Northern California boasts many of the world’s natural wonders, including national and state parks, wildlife refuges, fish hatcheries, lakes, rivers, waterfalls, forests, and mountains. Residents and visitors of Northern California can enjoy on and off-road biking, fishing, boating, camping, hiking, backpacking, hunting, skiing, and photography in this beautiful region. Northern California leads the nation in the production of more than 30 commodities, including peaches, eggs, walnuts, strawberries and rice. Northern Division has it all! Within this geographical area of 39,929 square miles are nearly 36,000 miles of roadway. The CHP is responsible for patrolling 20,715 miles of that roadway, which represents 21.2 percent of all the roadway miles CHP patrols statewide! The CHP provides road patrol and emergency response 24-hours-a-day, 7-days a week. In Northern Division, the CHP is represented by approximately 557uniformed employees and 194 non-uniformed employees. These employees live and work in these communities, are aware of the qualities and needs of each, and strive to provide the highest level of safety, service, and security.
The Northern Division office, located in Redding, is responsible for overseeing all CHP operations in this region, including its 15 Area Offices, 11 Resident Posts, and Two commercial vehicle enforcement facilities. Northern Division staff is divided into separate units for the management of numerous departmental programs: Field Support Unit; Air Operations; Commercial Enforcement; Motor Carrier Safety; Investigative Services Unit (ISU); and the Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT).
A Message From The Chief
Chief Greg Baarts has been a peace officer for 30 years, the past 22 years with the California Highway Patrol. Prior to joining the CHP, Chief Baarts was a deputy sheriff with the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office and a police officer with the Ukiah Police Department. Prior to his current assignment, Chief Baarts served as an Assistant Chief in Northern Division, the Special Services Commander in Northern Division, and as an Area Commander of Redding Area, Santa Rosa Area, and the Clear Lake Area. Much of his career has been spent in Northern California, serving in the counties of Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino, Lake, Sonoma, and Shasta. He is a member of the California Peace Officers’ Association, International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy Associates, and a graduate of the Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute, POST Command College, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy.
Having spent most of his career in Northern California, Chief Baarts has a unique understanding of traffic safety issues in this part of the state. CHP’s ultimate purpose is to save lives by providing our communities with traffic safety education and enforcement to decrease fatalities and serious injuries on our roadways. Through these efforts, our goal is to have a positive impact on the primary crash factors in California: impaired driving, distracted driving, and speeding. As a leader in law enforcement, Chief Baarts holds firm to the values set forth by the CHP’s Public Trust Initiative to serve and safeguard our communities with compassion and understanding. Responding to emerging law enforcement demands with allied agencies’ need for support and assistance, especially during emergency incidents, are an integral part of CHP’s core mission in Northern Division. Throughout his career, Chief Baarts has been actively involved in departmental programs to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security to the people of California.