He’s Mature for a Rookie : A laid-off aerospace industry employee joins L.A. Police Department at age 59

Calabasas’ Edward Olivares was probably one of the few people who was not surprised when boxer George Foreman (age 45) knocked out Michael Moorer (age 26) for a share of the world heavyweight championship. He probably just wondered why that youngster George took so long. That’s because Olivares, 59, knows a little about staying in shape. On Sunday, he assumed patrol duties in the Foothill Division as the oldest rookie officer ever on the Los Angeles Police Department.

If you’re aghast at the fact that someone pushing 60 is being allowed to join the LAPD, you can relax. Olivares has dropped from 240 pounds to 175 pounds. His daily workout involves a five-mile run, 90 minutes of weightlifting and enough laps in the pool to cover nearly a quarter of a mile. To put it mildly, he’s in better shape than most of us.

And is it a waste of time and taxpayer dollars to train someone who only figures to be on the force for a few years? The likely answer is no, at least in this case. Olivares is a West Point graduate who, like so many others in Southern California, was laid off from his aerospace industry job. He will bring a unique kind of experience to his new job.

Besides, age restrictions for starting positions as police officers are against the law. The history here starts in 1985, when a federal appeals court struck down the thirtysome-thing age limit for new Los Angeles County firefighters and sheriff’s deputies. The LAPD then allowed Lewis (Pops) Ellis to become the then oldest Police Academy graduate, at 53. But the age restriction was re- instated in 1987. It was dumped again in 1992 on the advice of Police Chief Willie L. Williams and the city’s Police and Civil Service commissions.

Chief Williams says that older officers generate fewer personnel complaints and fewer allegations of excessive force and take fewer sick days. That’s music for any taxpayer’s ears.