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Capt. William Ryan to Assume Command of Compton Sheriff’s Station
By Allison
Jean Eaton
Bulletin Staff
Writer
With the impending departure of Capt. Eric Hamilton, the Compton
Sheriff’s Station is preparing to welcome its new leader.
That person is Capt. William Ryan, who currently is assigned to
the Narcotics Bureau — but not for long.
Both Ryan and the Region II commander planned to attend last night’s
council meeting to officially introduce Ryan as the new head of law enforcement
services in the Compton Service Area.
In a brief telephone interview Monday, Ryan expressed his eagerness
to take command of Compton Station. After two years with the Narcotics
Bureau, which spans the entire county rather than a specific geographical
location, he said he’s looking forward to going to a patrol station.
According to Jeffrey Prang, special assistant to Sheriff Lee Baca,
it is unknown when Ryan will officially start work here, but it will
likely be soon after the first of the year.
Region II Cmdr. Ralph Martin, who oversees Compton Station among
many others, said a request was submitted to Baca to start Ryan on the
new assignment the first or second Sunday in January. But because Baca
has the final call and was, up until Sunday night, out of the country,
no official date existed as of Monday.
The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department employs approximately 60 captains,
Martin explained, and every few years — typically three — much
movement occurs among them. This promotes professional growth and brings
new blood and fresh points-of-view and ideas to the various stations,
bureaus and divisions.
Typically Baca or his executive staff members select and appoint
new captains during such reorganization periods. But not this time around.
“
He has decided to include some of the contract cities in the decision-making
process,” Martin explained. So even though cities like Compton
contract for services, they still have some say.
A panel comprised of City Manager Barbara Kilroy, Mayor Eric Perrodin
and a representative from Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke’s Office chose
Ryan from a pool of three qualified captains selected by the department.
“All three sat in and interviewed every candidate,” said
the commander. “They’re
job was a difficult one.” He declined to name the other two candidates
but tagged them as highly qualified personnel.
Kilroy said in an email that the panel was pleased with all three
interviewees, but Ryan simply stood out.
“We were impressed with all of the candidates but felt that Capt.
Ryan’s background and experience were particularly suited to Compton.
He was creative and focused, and his overall evaluation of the
city’s
needs concurred with our own.”
Cmdr. Martin said he is confident Ryan, whom he described as “a
consummate professional,” will serve Compton well.
“Someone who has the commensurate background he does ... He’s
genuinely passionate about his job and genuinely compassionate with people.”
According to a bio supplied by the department, Ryan has under his
belt a wide range of experience department-wide.
After graduating in 1980 as a deputy from the Training Academy,
Ryan’s first assignment was Men’s Central Jail. Two years
later he was transferred to Lakewood Sheriff’s Station to complete
his patrol training.
Promoted to sergeant in 1987, he worked at Crescenta Valley Station
and the Administrative Services Division before going on loan to another
county police department.
He eventually achieved the rank of lieutenant and worked at Twin
Towers Correctional Facility, Lakewood Station as service area lieutenant
for the city of Bellflower, Custody Support Services, Employee Relations
and the Office of the Assistant Sheriff as an executive aide.
Promoted to captain in April 2005, Ryan took the reigns of the
department’s countywide division dedicated to investigating controlled
substances cases.
The captain, with the department now for 26 years, told The Bulletin
he believes his most recent experience with the Narcotics Bureau will
prove advantageous in tackling the city’s drug problem.
“Primarily, one of the important factors of my experience is that
I’ve worked with state, federal and local agencies [in combating
drugs], and I have a good understanding of how those agencies work
together to solve the problem.”
Asked his feelings on Compton’s concentration of street gangs and
how he might take curbing gang activity to the next level, the captain
stressed the importance of partnerships.
“There’s a significant [gang] problem in Compton, and I think
the department has been very good over the past year at putting more
resources
into the city to address that,” he said. But a gang problem, he
continued, is not just a law enforcement issue; myriad factors
contribute to the proliferation of gang activity in Compton, or anywhere
else, and
it should only be addressed as such.
It’s issues of poverty, unemployment, education, lack of recreational
opportunities for youth, absent and/or poor parental guidance and the
availability and/or effective delivery of city resources and services
to the community, to name a few.
Ryan said once he’s settled in his new digs, he’ll begin
meeting with city officials and the community to forge the partnership
necessary to continue reclaiming the streets of Compton.
The Chino Hills resident holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political
science from Cal State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He has a wife
and two daughters and, besides spending time with them, enjoys outdoor
activities like hunting, fishing and camping.
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