Ventura County D.A. to Bow Out

After 24 years as Ventura County’s top law enforcement official, Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury announced Monday that he will not seek reelection next year.

The tough-talking cowboy lawman, a possible appointee for U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, issued a statement saying he plans to serve out his current term and then spend more time with his family.

“I have decided that in January of 2003 it will be time to move on to new adventures,” Bradbury said in the statement. “I will not seek reelection.”

With his announcement, the 59-year-old Bradbury effectively clears the field for his top deputy, Chief Assistant Dist. Atty. Greg Totten, who announced Monday that he will run for the post. He has already received endorsements from his boss and Ventura County Sheriff Bob Brooks.

Totten, 47, will face a challenge in the March primary from Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Ron Bamieh, 35, who had said he would run if Bradbury stepped down. He started fund-raising this month.

It will be the first contested election for district attorney in Ventura County in two decades.

As news of Bradbury’s announcement spread through the courthouse and government center on Monday, prosecutors, defense attorneys and public officials praised his contributions to public safety.

They described Bradbury as a shrewd politician and a conservative, no-nonsense lawman. Even his harshest critics said he would be missed.

“Mike and I differ politically and philosophically and, in spite of all that, I think he was a good district attorney and I wish that he would continue on,” said James Farley, a longtime criminal defense lawyer.

Ventura County Supervisor John K. Flynn, who has been at odds with Bradbury in the past, said the district attorney effectively fought for increased funding for law enforcement agencies and developed a reputation as a man to be reckoned with.

“He was a force in the community,” Flynn said. “And you better listen to him.”

In his statement, Bradbury, who lives on an Ojai ranch named Hang ‘Em High, said he plans to “spend more time with my family and friends and enjoy more sunsets from the back of a horse.”

‘A Good Ally for Law Enforcement’

But those who know him say Bradbury, who has twice served as president of the California District Attorneys Assn., will not be riding off into the sunset any time soon.

“I think he’s interested in the U.S. attorney’s job primarily, but there are also some federal judgeships that are going to come open soon,” Sheriff Brooks said.

“We’ll certainly miss him,” Brooks said. “He’s been a good ally for law enforcement. I hope he gets the appointment he’s looking for.”

Bradbury was in Washington, D.C., last month for interviews with Justice Department officials about the federal prosecutor’s job, which represents the state’s Central District extending from Orange County to San Luis Obispo.

He is reportedly one of nine candidates, including Assemblyman Rod Pacheco (R-Riverside) and Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Debra Yang.

“We expected word [about the U.S. attorney’s position] by the middle of this month, which is now,” said Gary Auer, chief of the district attorney’s Bureau of Investigation and former head of the FBI’s Ventura office. “I don’t know what the New York attack does to this, and I know Mike doesn’t know either.”

Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Maeve Fox, who heads the union representing county prosecutors and public defenders, said lawyers in her office had anticipated an announcement about Bradbury leaving.

But Fox said they were still taken aback by his announcement.

“We’re all kind of stunned,” Fox said. “Mr. Bradbury has been such a presence in this county for so long.”

Took Hard Stance on Plea Bargaining

First elected in 1978, Bradbury is one of the longest-serving district attorneys in California and established a well-chronicled policy against plea bargaining in felony and drunk-driving cases.

Longtime prosecutors say the policy has produced sentences that are among the toughest in the state.

Under Bradbury’s watch, prosecutors in his office have spearheaded new legislation, including tougher sentences for second-degree murder of police officers in certain circumstances.

Bradbury also has been influential in judicial appointments. “His recommendations always carried a lot of weight, even in Democratic administrations,” Flynn said.

Bradbury took on his most politically perilous investigation nearly a decade ago, when he criticized the motives of Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies who shot and killed Malibu millionaire Don Scott in a misbegotten drug raid in 1992.

In recent months, Bradbury stepped back from the media spotlight, often referring questions on high-profile cases to Totten.

Bradbury’s decision to retire left some deputies in his office feeling a deep sense of loss.

“I thought of all the lawyers and all the investigators that have gone through this place,” Auer said, “and Mike’s been the one constant that’s made it great.”

But according to Bradbury, it was time to leave.

“At the end of my current term, I will have worked almost 33 years as a prosecutor in Ventura County,” Bradbury said in his statement. “I cannot imagine a more fulfilling career. Simply put, I have been blessed with the greatest job in the world.”

Times staff writer Catherine Saillant contributed to this story.