Brooks Is Sworn In to Succeed Carpenter as County’s Sheriff

Flanked by scores of law enforcement officials, Bob Brooks was sworn in as Ventura County sheriff Tuesday during an emotional ceremony at the County Government Center.

Brooks--who will not officially become the county’s top cop until Sheriff Larry Carpenter steps down June 27--sounded a family values theme during a brief speech before the Board of Supervisors. Keeping families safe is what has motivated him during a 25-year career in the department, he said.

“Safe neighborhoods are the foundation for [residents’] quality of life,” the 47-year-old Brooks said. “Crime is about victims who are friends and neighbors.”

Afterward, Brooks announced that he will spend much of his first 100 days in office meeting with residents and department personnel to help him establish goals. He already has some things in mind, including surveying crime victims, to gauge the community’s opinions of the department.

During Tuesday’s ceremony, the Thousand Oaks native was silent much of the time, listening as officials lauded him.

To a standing ovation in the supervisors’ chambers, Carpenter removed his gold sheriff’s badge and handed it to Brooks.

It was a symbolic move, because Carpenter will remain sheriff until June 27, the day he selected for his retirement. Brooks, who ran for the office uncontested and was elected last week, will remain as chief deputy until then and plan the transition to sheriff.

Carpenter, 51, informed Brooks nearly two years ago that he was planning to retire. He urged Brooks to run for the office, calling his top deputy a seasoned officer who excels at all facets of the job.

“His work product, his experience, his relationship with his peers were excellent, well and justly earned,” Carpenter said during the ceremony. He said that as a top department commander, Brooks has handled job pressures and community issues well.

“Scrutiny is intense at that level,” Carpenter said. “It’s seven days a week of extreme public exposure.”

The swearing-in ceremony was scheduled before Carpenter’s retirement because supervisors are busy with annual budget negotiations, county officials said.

But coming two weeks before Carpenter actually retires, it underscored the long wait Brooks has had on the road to the county’s top police job. Many county officials have teasingly called Brooks “the almost sheriff” because he ran uncontested with Carpenter’s full support--but still had a lengthy wait.

Brooks does not seem to mind waiting a couple more weeks. He said Tuesday afternoon that he was overwhelmed by all the goodwill.

“It was emotional for me, because of the great respect I had for the sheriff,” Brooks said. “It’s a little difficult to see him leave. It’s very humbling and certainly gives you a renewed respect of what’s on your shoulders.”

Brooks will run a department with 1,200 employees and an annual budget of $122 million. The Sheriff’s Department is responsible for law enforcement in five cities--Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, Camarillo, Fillmore and Ojai--and in unincorporated county areas.

Brooks began his career as a patrol deputy in Newbury Park during the early 1970s. The father of two grown sons climbed the ranks, rising from officer to sergeant to commander. He has been overseeing patrol squads in east Ventura County for five years.

After the ceremony Tuesday, he announced some of his ambitions.

One top goal is equipping every patrol car with a computer, enabling deputies in the field to quickly obtain the arrest and court records of crime suspects. Such a system would expedite investigations and alert deputies when they encounter dangerous suspects, Brooks said. He estimates that the system would cost $5 million and wants it installed in two to five years.

“Law enforcement has to adapt,” Brooks said. “Criminals are always thinking of quicker and better ways to do things.”

Brooks also plans to survey crime victims throughout the county. The “satisfaction survey” mailers will ask victims if patrol officers were courteous, responded quickly and followed up after the initial call.

The survey is part of Brooks’ plan to restructure the administration of patrol squads. Brooks considers patrol the heart of police work and wants one commander in charge of an entire countywide patrol division, not separate forces for the east and west county.

Brooks called Carpenter, sheriff for the past six years, his mentor. He said Carpenter’s effort to shield the department from budget cuts was a top accomplishment.

Carpenter helped lead a countywide drive four years ago that resulted in county supervisors passing a law that shielded county public safety agencies from budget cuts.

“We’d shut down a jail and were really going downhill,” Brooks said. “He went directly to the public” to build financial support for the department.

Next week, Brooks is scheduled to travel to San Diego for a conference of California sheriffs, at which Carpenter plans to introduce his successor to colleagues.