tool name

Friday, Sep. 04, 2009

Livingston police chief calling it quits

LIVINGSTON -- Even though Livingston Police Chief Bill Eldridge's official retirement day isn't till Oct. 1, all the pictures have been taken down from his office's walls. He has a month left to tighten up loose ends, but his last day in the office was Thursday.

While he was in shorts and a Hawaiian shirt Thursday -- and often wore similar clothes when off duty -- attire hasn't mattered much to Eldridge when it came to fulfilling his duty in Livingston over the past 17 years.

"In all honesty, I could be naked and do the job I'm doing," he said

Now that the 60-year-old Hoboken, N.J.-born law enforcement officer is taking off his badge forever, he can wear shorts and a T-shirt every day. "I'm leaving because if I don't, I will never retire," he said.

Livingston's Mayor Daniel Varela said the city tried to entice him to stay, without success.

"This is an individual that has really, really come to recognize the needs of our community," said Varela.

In many ways Eldridge has been more than a police chief. He has been a constant presence as city managers and councils have come and go.

Beyond leading the police through murder investigations and fighting gangs, he has been a consistent voice of sanity for a city often at odds with itself.

Before he came to Livingston, he'd already had a lot of experience. His career has spanned more than four decades. He's witnessed the changing face of crime and law enforcement.

Back when he got into law enforcement, working as a deputy for the sheriff, duties were much simpler. Just back from a tour in Vietnam, Eldridge signed up with the department. "Basically, as a deputy you were given a badge and told where to go to work," he said.

At the time the department was just beginning to send deputies to the police academy. While there was little training, deputies learned quickly to keep their wits about them, since help was sometimes a long way off. "It was hands on," said Eldridge.

Their equipment consisted of a baton, handcuffs and a rat- or beaver-tail sap (they were still legal) for when they needed to smack someone. You learned quickly to talk your way out of a lot of tight spots: "You can't fight everybody and win," he said.

Eventually, he became a detective and then volunteered for administrative duty, a job few wanted. Then in 1992 the sheriff tapped Eldridge to fill in as Livingston's interim chief.

At the time, the city's department didn't enjoy a good reputation.

"If you would have told me 25 years ago that I would work Livingston, I'd have laughed in your face," said Eldridge. "We all looked down on Livingston."

When he got to Livingston the city had five bars. After 9 p.m.. you couldn't walk down Main Street with your family, he said. On top of the drunk and rowdy bar crowds, said Eldridge, gang members were so blatant they would walk down Main Street and literally push people out of their path. "They were running the city in their way," he said.

The department's resources didn't give officers a lot to work with. It fielded five cops, two patrol cars and an office that flooded and was rat-infested. Over the next eight years, Chief Eldridge applied for grants that helped the department modernize. He also cleaned up the bar scene by busting drunk drivers and doing a lot of walk-throughs in the bars. He clamped down on the previously unchecked intimidation by gangs.

Now the department has 20 officers, as many patrol cars and a new police station.

While Eldridge plans to travel across the U.S. in his RV during his retirement, he worries over Livingston's biggest law enforcement problem -- gangs. The city has 145 confirmed gang members. Keeping an eye on them is a constant battle.

But that fight will now have to be taken up by whoever the City Council chooses as the city's next chief of police.

Until then, interim chief Lt. Sharon Silva will keep watch.

Eldridge will be in his shorts and Hawaiian shirt.

Reporter Jonah Owen Lamb can be reached at (209) 385-2484 or jlamb@mercedsun-star.com