Gates’ Assistant Drops Race for Sheriff’s Job

Assistant Sheriff Douglas D. Storm stunned the county’s political establishment Wednesday with the surprise announcement that he won’t be a candidate next year to succeed his boss, Sheriff Brad Gates.

It was only six weeks ago that Storm stood next to Gates at an emotional news conference to announce Gates’ retirement next year after 24 years as sheriff and to bestow on Storm Gates’ blessing as his heir apparent for the county’s top law-enforcement job.

Storm, 46, said in a statement that he discovered while gathering support and funds for the race that being a politician “is just not for me.”

“This is a decision that I’ve reached through family discussions and much soul searching,” he said. “It is the most difficult decision I’ve ever had to make.”

Storm declined to discuss what specifically soured him on the race but said his health had suffered during the short-lived campaign, which also placed stress on his family.

The abrupt withdrawal from the race strengthens other bids for sheriff by Orange County Marshal Michael S. Carona, 42, backed by most of the county’s Republican political establishment, and Santa Ana Police Chief Paul M. Walters, 52.

Gates said in a statement that he respected Storm’s decision and added that he intended to “do all I can” to defeat Carona, whom he repeatedly has criticized as unqualified. However, he mentioned no backup candidate from the Sheriff’s Department and declined to endorse Walters.

“It is now imperative that the professional law enforcement officers of our county identify an individual who is willing to take on the challenges of being sheriff and is qualified to lead the Sheriff’s Department,” Gates said. “If [Carona] were a deputy, he would not be qualified to become a sergeant, let alone the leader of a department of 2,800 sworn officers and employees.”

Jerry Pierson, a consultant with the Orange County Deputy Sheriff’s Assn., said Storm’s announcement delivered a gut punch to department morale. Other sources within the department said Gates had tried without success earlier this week to line up a replacement.

“Everyone assumed it was going to be Doug’s,” Pierson said of Storm’s yearlong effort to gather internal support and clear the field for replacing Gates. “Now no one knows what to say. They’re all walking around bumping into walls. I know I was dumbfounded.”

He said Storm likely was crushed by the inevitable collision between the heady concept of running for office and the gritty reality of a political campaign.

“Cops aren’t much up on the political world,” Pierson said. “Even their view of what politics is, is skewed. They don’t know how different things are until they get into that arena.”

Supervisor Todd Spitzer, a frequent critic of Gates, called Storm “a true professional” who discovered that he refused to emulate the arm-twisting political style of his mentor. He said Gates is a “bully . . . who runs the county behind the scenes through intimidation and threats.”

“Brad’s from the old school, and he wanted Doug to continue with the old-school kind of politics,” said Spitzer. “I don’t think Doug wanted to continue that kind of leadership. He didn’t want to insult the sheriff, but that’s not who he wanted to be.”

But some political leaders said Storm lacked the driving political ambition required for taking on a contentious countywide race. He was scheduled to address the county Republican Central Committee last month, for example, and failed to appear.

Political consultant Eileen Padberg, who ran all of Gates’ previous sheriff campaigns, wondered whether Gates will be able to recruit someone else within the department to replace Storm’s support.

“This is a very different [race] from when Brad ran,” said Padberg, who has signed on to run Walters’ campaign. “Friends come and go, but enemies accumulate and I think Brad found it harder to pass on his support in essence to a stranger. . . . Brad has got to be a basket case over this.”

Walters said he was surprised by Storm’s decision and hoped that Gates would consider supporting him against Carona.

Carona’s finance chairman, George Jaramillo, said Storm’s leaving won’t affect their campaign.

“We were confident we’d beat Brad Gates, we were certain we’d beat Doug Storm and we’re positive we’ll beat Paul Walters,” Jaramillo said.

County officials were buzzing Wednesday about Storm’s announcement, with many saying it boosts Carona’s campaign, which already is flush with endorsements and an estimated $150,000 in cash. Storm didn’t say how much he’d raised but said it all would be refunded in full.

“This has to be a big blow to Brad Gates because Doug Storm has been groomed for this position,” said Board of Supervisors Chairman William G. Steiner. “It gives Mike Carona a big edge.”

Robert MacLeod, general manager of the Orange County Deputy Sheriff’s Assn., said another candidate from the Sheriff’s Department likely will emerge for the race, as well as other local police chiefs.

Storm had won endorsements from several police chiefs, thanks to strong relations from his work with cities. A cornerstone of his campaign was that he--not Carona--had experience running a full-scale law enforcement agency.

As marshal, Carona oversees security for the courts, but his department doesn’t handle other policing functions such as beat patrols and drug enforcement.

One possible Sheriff’s Department candidate discussed Wednesday was Capt. Tim Simon, a well-known veteran who ran the department’s South County patrol division. Simon, a close ally of Gates, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Some people even speculated that Gates himself might reenter the race. But others doubted it.

“I’ve heard that rumor, but I don’t think it’s true,” MacLeod said. “Brad Gates has his strengths and his weaknesses. But he is not indecisive. I don’t think he’s going to run . . . after his decision to retire.”