SANTA ANA : Dornan Ride-Along a Trip on the Mild Side

It was supposed to be a chance for Rep. Robert K. Dornan to get an up-close look at life on the mean streets of Santa Ana.

Taking off his wool sports coat and loosening his tie a bit, Dornan (R-Garden Grove) climbed into the front seat of a patrol car Tuesday night to learn how much the city’s crime problem has changed since he rode with police the last time, during his first campaign to represent the central Orange County district 10 years ago.

At the outset, Dornan said he wanted to see real police work, “things we never see during the daytime driving through certain corners and intersections,” he told his police escort, Officer Bruce Leamer.

Unfortunately for Dornan, crime took most of the night off.

The only action he saw during his four hours with Santa Ana police was a fight among three growling stray dogs. There were no arrests on Dornan’s watch.

The criminals “are on their good behavior,” Dornan quipped as he entered the final hour of his tour. “They know their congressman is out here tonight.”

Dornan, who has been criticized in the past by his Democratic opponents for not spending enough time in his district, was demonstrating his concern about Santa Ana’s crime.

At one point, Dornan said he expects to win approval this year of his proposed “police corps” program that would provide a four-year college education in return for four years of service in a state or local police department.

But the quiet ride through Santa Ana still proved to be a learning experience for the congressman, who planned to spend Wednesday night in South Central Los Angeles--ground zero of the 1992 riots.

“Hispanic transvestites?” he asked Leamer, as they cruised through downtown Santa Ana. “That’s a new one to me.”

He also seemed surprised to learn that Santa Ana is the second most densely populated city in the state behind San Francisco. He learned about a large gang made up of illegal immigrants organized to defend themselves against the more established gangs, and he asked Leamer how police handle illegal immigrants who have committed crimes.

As the cruiser turned onto Third Street, Leamer pointed to shadows of figures that quickly jumped over a wall as the headlights turned toward them. Across the street, a house was covered with graffiti.

“Look at all this graffiti and the house boarded up. And we’re just on the edge of the Civic Center?” Dornan asked.

“This is a wrong turn, let me tell you,” Leamer responded. “It’s a popular street for carjackings.”

Leamer told Dornan war stories and took him to the scenes of past battles between police and gang members. They cruised through some notorious neighborhoods, including the Willard area, El Salvador Park and the so-called “Weed and Seed” neighborhood in central Santa Ana, which received $1.4 million in a special federal program designed to weed out crime and plant the seeds for neighborhood pride and redevelopment.

Dornan had his own war stories--nostalgically recounting his efforts to remove an adult theater on Seventeenth Street and helping Santa Ana get funding for anti-crime and capital improvement programs.

As he was riding down Fourth Street, which was redeveloped several years ago with federal urban renewal funds, Dornan lamented that “it didn’t stay quite as upscale as I thought.”

But if the quiet of the night surprised Dornan, he was even more amazed by the look of the city, often commenting that the graffiti was not as widespread as he had imagined.

“This is a decent-looking street,” Dornan said of one area that was described as unsafe.

“Everything is relative,” he added. “When I go to the (former) Soviet Union, I think about an area like this, the number of cars and shops, Laundromats and restaurants. . . . They would think they were in heaven (and say), ‘Oh yeah, boy, this is great.’ ”