Gates to Retire, Back Top Aide

Sheriff Brad Gates, who has held public office longer than any other current Orange County official, announced Thursday that he would say goodbye to political office when his sixth term expires next year. But that didn’t mean he was bowing out of politics.

To the contrary, Gates made it clear that he will work aggressively to ensure that one of his top commanders, Assistant Sheriff Douglas D. Storm, is his successor.

In an emotional news conference attended by his top lieutenants and supporters, Gates said his decision not to run for another term sprang from his family’s desire to escape the political limelight, not the unusually strong election challenge he would have faced next year.

“Thirty-six years at this department is a long time. . . . Another five years was more than my family wanted to commit,” said Gates, who at times fought back tears. “There is always a new challenge, a new project [to] complete.”

Gates, 58, said he hasn’t decided exactly what he will do when his term expires at the end of 1998. He hinted that he might “pursue business opportunities in the private sector.”

But he was unequivocal when it came to anointing his chosen successor.

Gates gave his “strongest backing” to the 46-year-old Storm, who at the same news conference announced his bid to become only the third Orange County sheriff in the last 50 years.

Gates said that Storm “has played a major role in earning this department a national reputation for excellence,” and that his candidacy ensures “that our department will remain in experienced and capable hands.”

Storm will face Marshal Michael S. Carona, who has already won the backing of many Republican heavyweights who had supported Gates’ campaigns in the past. Storm, however, was endorsed Thursday by several local police chiefs.

Both Gates and Storm took veiled swipes at Carona, saying the marshal didn’t have the law enforcement experience needed to be an effective sheriff.

“The other announced candidate has performed adequately in his job, which is limited to providing courtroom security and serving warrants,” Gates said. “But the sheriff has far more responsibility for solving major crimes. . . . I can’t imagine someone without that experience assuming the role of sheriff.”

Gates’ decision to leave county government comes as his department grapples with a series of sexual harassment suits filed by three female employees, one of them the highest ranking woman in the department, against former Assistant Sheriff Dennis LaDucer.

Although Gates initially defended his longtime top deputy, he fired LaDucer this summer after a departmental investigation. The lawsuits are scheduled to go to trial sometime next year, when the election campaign will be heating up.

Gates said that neither the sexual harassment cases nor Carona’s strong campaign played a role in his decision.

“I’m not afraid of any challenge,” he said. “People who know me know I don’t walk away from a challenge.”

Gates described the LaDucer case as a “sad situation” but declined to go into detail, saying it was a personnel matter. While LaDucer should be praised for his many years of service to the Sheriff’s Department, “he made some serious mistakes,” Gates added.

Carona’s backing from GOP leaders such as Senate Republican Leader Rob Hurtt and Assemblyman Curt Pringle, both of Garden Grove, shouldn’t hurt Storm’s chances for election, Gates said, and wouldn’t have hurt his chances either.

“I believe this office is controlled by the voters of Orange County, not any political party,” he said.

Flanked by political supporters, Sheriff’s Department colleagues and local police chiefs, Gates expressed bittersweet feelings about leaving the job he has held since 1974.

“A piece of my body and soul will always be in this department,” he said. “This has been a very difficult decision for me and my family. You all know how much I love this job and love the County of Orange.”

In recent years, Gates has come to be recognized as one of the most influential and best-known politicians in Orange County, a man who gained national attention for his tough stance on drugs, and who helped run county government during the chaotic weeks following Orange County’s 1994 bankruptcy filing.

His decision to bow out of the sheriff’s race was met with surprise by county and state officials, who praised his tenure.

“Brad Gates is one of the most effective sheriffs in the state,” Gov. Pete Wilson said in a statement from London, England, where he is traveling on state business. “The plummeting crime rate in Orange County is a testament to his effectiveness.”

A native of San Juan Capistrano and self-described “cowboy,” Gates entered the Sheriff’s Academy in 1961. Rising rapidly through the ranks he became, by the early 1970s, a key aide to his mentor, legendary Sheriff James A. Musick.

Voters elected him to succeed Musick 23 years ago, and his tenure has been marked by repeated clashes with county supervisors over his demands for more money to expand the county’s overcrowded jails. He was dogged by other controversies as well.

In the late 1980s, for example, he was sued by political opponents who accused him of spying. The case was settled out of court, and Gates repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

He also backed two failed ballot measures to increase the county’s sales tax, raising the ire of some conservative Republicans.

On Thursday, Gates focused on what he considers his accomplishments, such as building one of the state’s top crime labs, establishing a state-of-the-art training ground for police officers, instituting anti-gang programs and using high-tech crime-fighting techniques.

With Gates out of the race, Carona began to pick up some endorsements from officials who might otherwise have supported the sheriff or remained neutral. Supervisor Jim Silva, for example, announced his support of Carona.

“We go back a long way, and I told Mike that if Brad Gates didn’t run, he would have my full support for sheriff,” Silva said.

Carona brushed off Gates’ and Storm’s criticism as “absolutely ludicrous” and said that his more than 20 years of experience in county government make him more than qualified for the job of sheriff.

“Using their criteria, the only people who could run for sheriff would be someone from the Sheriff’s Department, and that certainly wasn’t in the minds of the authors of the Constitution,” Carona said.

“My credentials are easily matched against Brad Gates, who we figured we’d be running against, and Doug Storm,” he added. “I’m willing to put up my credentials and my background and let the voters make the decision.”

As a centerpiece of his campaign, Carona has embraced the idea of privately operated jails as a means of relieving overcrowding.

Gates has long opposed the idea of private jails. But Storm said Thursday that he would be willing to consider the idea. “If there is a better way to do it, we will look at it,” he said.

Storm said the Sheriff’s Department is operating effectively and needs continuity at the top. “This agency is not broken. It’s at the top of its game. We need to keep it there and make it even better,” he added.

Storm acknowledged that Carona’s list of backers and fund-raising head start are a challenge. But he said he will have enough time to take his case to the voters.

Irvine Police Chief Charles Brobeck, one of several chiefs to endorse Storm on Thursday, praised the assistant sheriff for promoting legislation beneficial to law enforcement and helping the county’s various police agencies to work as a team.

Storm was the preferred choice within the department to replace him when he chose to step down, Gates said. Storm added that the sheriff told his troops at several different management conferences that this day would come and encouraged them to pull together behind a single candidate they would support to replace him.

Storm began actively campaigning among his peers a year ago, with the understanding that he would only advance his candidacy if Gates elected not to run. He has also sought support from the rank and file through discussions with the Orange County Deputy Sheriffs Assn.

Storm said that for now he will campaign on his time off, but that he may decide to take a leave of absence later to devote full-time attention to campaigning. He said he had made no fund-raising calls while awaiting Thursday’s official announcement.

Gates said his decision to step down was “a family one” that transpired over several months as he evaluated his future. At 58, Gates is fully vested in the pension system and can step down at any time with full retirement benefits.

Gary Hunt, a vice president with the Irvine Co. and an influential business leader, said Gates’ withdrawal from the race makes it more competitive.

“There’s no question that had Brad chosen to run again, he would have been overwhelmingly reelected,” Hunt said. “All of the polling data showed he’s the most popular and respected elected official in the county. I don’t think that the fact he had an opponent had anything to do with his decision not to run again.”

While Carona has won the support of conservative Republicans, Storm is expected to gain the supports of some moderates and business organizations that previously backed Gates.

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Candidates for Sheriff

MICHAEL S. CARONA

* Occupation: Marshal

* Age: 42

* Residence: Orange

* Family: Married 17 years to Debbie Carona; son, Matthew, 7

* Education: Bachelor’s and master’s degrees in management, University of Redlands; master’s degree in management, Cal Poly Pomona

* Career: Started as deputy with marshal’s office in 1976; taught criminal justice at Golden West College, 1980-88; arbitrator with National Assn. of Security Dealers, New York and Pacific stock exchanges; appointed marshal in October 1988

****

DOUGLAS D. STORM

* Occupation: Assistant sheriff

* Age: 46

* Residence: Laguna Niguel

* Family: Married 24 years to Sharon Storm; daughter, Shelly, 21; son, Greg, 19

* Education: Bachelor’s degree, Cal State L.A.; master’s degree in public administration, USC

* Career: Started as jail deputy in late 1973; supervised Randy Kraft serial homicide investigation as a sergeant; in charge of professional standards as a lieutenant; headed operations for seven South County cities as a captain; responsible for $312 million in department budgets