Daniel J. Spratt, Sheriff’s School Head, Dies at 41

Lt. Daniel J. Spratt, 41, the gregarious commander of the Orange County Sheriff’s Academy, died late Wednesday.

Spratt, a 21-year veteran of the department, began complaining of a sharp headache at ceremonies opening the department’s new pistol range Feb. 20 in Orange, Sheriff’s Department spokesman Lt. Richard J. Olson said.

The next day, Spratt underwent surgery at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach to remove a blood clot in the right side of his brain. He emerged from surgery in critical condition and, “despite some encouraging signs,” died Wednesday night, Olson said.

Spratt had served as commander of the academy, which trains recruits for law enforcement careers, since June, 1985. During his tenure, he expanded academy facilities, including classrooms in Garden Grove and the rifle range in Orange, which reopened with fanfare Feb. 20, with Sheriff Brad Gates firing the opening shot.

During the 1984 Summer Olympics, Spratt played a key role in organizing and establishing the Olympic Resource information center in Orange County.

Center Praised

As hundreds of thousands of sightseers flooded the county to watch wrestling in Fullerton and the bicycle road race in Mission Viejo, Spratt’s center sent official and confidential information to a similar law enforcement information center in Los Angeles. Spratt’s center was highly regarded among law enforcement officials, Olson said, and Richard T. Bretzing, the FBI’s special agent in charge in Los Angeles, commended him for its management.

Spratt joined the Sheriff’s Department as a deputy in 1966. After graduating from the academy, he worked at the Orange County Jail before being assigned to patrol duty in 1968. He was promoted to sergeant in 1975 and worked a variety of assignments that included field patrol supervisor, detective sergeant in the south county station and detective sergeant in the Youth Services Bureau.

Spratt received a bachelor of science degree from California State University, Los Angeles, in 1986 and recently was accepted into a master’s degree program there.

He is survived by his wife, Tina, and sons, Tom, 18, and Bryan, 16, all of Newport Beach. Funeral services will be held at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Westminster.