Gillespie Leaves at a Difficult Time

Popular, hard-nosed Ventura County Sheriff John V. Gillespie announced his retirement Wednesday at a time when his department is undergoing severe budget cuts and widespread staff juggling.

To absorb a $2.5-million spending cut, the department is shifting 11 courthouse officers to street duty, closing and reassigning the staff of the showcase Rose Valley Work Camp and permanently surrendering about 50 of 80 positions left vacant by a hiring freeze.

Gillespie’s retirement, effective Dec. 31, has made some deputies nervous about their future, Sgt. Earl Matthews said.

“They’re concerned about major changes in the department, given our economic plight,” said Matthews, a crew chief in the sheriff’s helicopter unit. “Things are uneasy already because of the economic problems, and this just adds to that concern.”

“I think people in general are sad to see him go. He’s been a good sheriff,” saidLt. Gary Backman, a patrol watch commander in the department’s West County and Central divisions. “The department has made a lot of advances under his administration.”

“Sheriff John,” as many know him, began his professional career in a brief brush with show business as a Capitol Records publicist, which he later called “a world of absolute phoniness, and I hated it.”

Seeking better work, Gillespie passed the Civil Service exam and joined the Claremont Police Department as a desk officer and dispatcher.

He worked his way up to lieutenant, then was appointed chief of the Ojai Police Department.

From there, Gillespie was named undersheriff by newly elected Sheriff Al Jalaty. Gillespie held the position for 10 years before the Board of Supervisors appointed him to replace the retiring Jalaty.

Gillespie quickly earned a reputation as a reformer who was loyal to his troops, yet able to work under tight budget constraints.

“John is a consummate professional,” former Supervisor Madge Schaeffer said. “John was open, receptive, innovative and willing to compromise without compromising the public safety.”

Gillespie appointed a staff psychiatrist to help cut down on stress-related absences.

He started the department’s canine unit, and he oversaw formation of the search-and-rescue team, which now operates mounted patrols for high-country searches and helicopters for fire control and other emergencies.

He was instrumental in getting the massive Todd Road jail project planned and slated for construction.

And he helped open the acclaimed Rose Valley Work Camp, where minimum-security inmates underwent boot-camp training and job counseling in an effort to keep from re-offending and returning to jail after release.

But he has also faced stresses such as harsh opposition to the new jail from neighbors of the site, a discrimination suit filed by black deputies, community pressure after the beating of Rodney G. King and the crushing budget constraints.

“I know that for the past two years, that the job has really taken its toll” on Gillespie, Schaeffer said.

Ventura County Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury said he will miss working with Gillespie. But, he added, “I’m happy for him that he’s not going to keel over his desk from a heart attack.”

Gillespie and his colleagues have been quiet about the exact nature of his health problems, other than to attribute them to the stress of his job.

“Due to health considerations, I must leave the helm of what is arguably the finest law enforcement agency in the country,” Gillespie wrote in a letter distributed departmentwide on gold-embossed stationery.

“I thank you for helping me, in a major way, to gain some success in the greatest and most honorable profession in the world,” Gillespie concluded. “I will indeed miss you all.”

But although some are uneasy about the timing of Gillespie’s departure, they are taking heart in his choice of successor--Undersheriff Larry Carpenter, who has been overseeing the department’s daily operations for several years, Matthews said.

“I’ve known Larry for many years. He’s a good street cop,” Matthews said.

“He’s the logical choice for the department,” said Backman. “I think he would make an excellent sheriff. He’s also well-liked by the people of the department. He’s certainly capable.”

The officers said no one candidate stood out in their minds to challenge Carpenter in the 1994 elections if the supervisors agree with Gillespie’s written assertion that “it is essential that Undersheriff Carpenter be appointed to my position.”

But Supervisor John K. Flynn said the undersheriff has always worked well with the board. He added, “I have high respect for Carpenter.”