Penn Is Considering Becoming Police Officer

Sagon Penn, the black man acquitted in the racially charged slaying of a white San Diego police officer, is apparently contemplating joining the Police Department.

Keith Enerson, police commander in charge of public affairs, said that Penn had picked up an application packet Tuesday from personnel officials at City Hall. Enerson said Penn apparently also was given an appointment for a written aptitude test--one of the first steps in the application process.

Penn’s apparent interest in joining the force adds a bizarre twist to the riveting, divisive case that has garnered headlines in San Diego for almost three years.

Enerson stressed that the matter was still “very preliminary,” and Penn would have to pass a series of written, physical and psychological tests before being considered for the department. The application process could last as long as a year, said Enerson, who declined to comment on Penn’s qualifications.

“It’s inappropriate to comment on any application,” Enerson said.

His comments were echoed by Police Chief William B. Kolender, who said Tuesday that he had heard from a “reputable source” that Penn intended to apply. Kolender, reached at home, declined to provide details, and the chief added that he had not confirmed the report.

Penn could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Penn’s apparent application was reported Tuesday by KGTV (Channel 10). The station’s report said Penn was told to return to City Hall next week for an aptitude test.

It was unclear Tuesday how Penn’s history would affect any police application.

The case has left ill feeling in the department, where Penn’s acquittal was not welcomed, and in the black community, where many believe proper police procedure could have averted the deadly confrontation.

It was on March 31, 1985 that the confrontation broke out in an Encanto driveway between Penn, then 23, and two city police officers. Before the struggle was over, Penn had grabbed an officer’s gun and shot and killed Agent Thomas Riggs. Penn also shot and wounded Agent Donovan Jacobs and Sarah Pina-Ruiz, a civilian accompanying Riggs on the ride-along program.

At his two lengthy trials, Penn’s lawyers produced witnesses who stated that Jacobs had provoked the attack by beating Penn and taunting him with racial slurs after police had stopped Penn’s pickup truck. Jacobs, who is still on the force, denied the charges.

Last July, after a jury had acquitted Penn on several key charges, prosecutors dropped the remaining charges against him.

Penn’s apparent interest in joining the force predates his involvement in the deadly shooting.

Previously, police had said that Penn had applied to become a police officer in April, 1983. Police said that Penn passed a physical but failed the reading comprehension portion of the entrance exam.

Despite all the publicity surrounding the case, Penn has remained somewhat of an enigma. He never testified at the trial and has yet to make a public statement of any kind since his arrest.

But interest in the case remains strong. Recently, a Los Angeles entertainment company unveiled plans to produce “The Sagon Penn Story,” a proposed television miniseries.