Charles Plummer (1930–2018) was the 21st Sheriff of Alameda County, California from 1987 to 2007. He worked in law enforcement for 54 years prior to his death.

Early life

Charles C. Plummer was born in on August 17, 1930 in

Fort Bragg, California Fort Bragg, officially the City of Fort Bragg, is a city along the Pacific Coast of California along Shoreline Highway in Mendocino County. The city is west of Willits, at an elevation of . Its population was 6,983 at the 2020 census. Fort ...

. Plummer was

hitchhiking Hitchhiking (also known as thumbing, autostop or hitching) is a means of transportation that is gained by asking individuals, usually strangers, for a ride in their car or other vehicle. The ride is usually, but not always, free. Nomads hav ...

and met a

California Highway Patrol The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is a state law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and roads and streets outside city limits, and can exercise law enfor ...

officer. The officer told him he'd make a great police officer. As a result, Plummer enrolled in

Santa Rosa Junior College Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC) is a public community college in Santa Rosa, California with an additional campus in Petaluma and centers in surrounding Sonoma County. Santa Rosa Junior College was modeled as a feeder school for the University ...

's law enforcement academy.

Career

After graduating college, Plummer joined the

Berkeley Police Department The Berkeley Police Department (BPD) is the municipal police department for the city of Berkeley, California, USA. History Shortly after Berkeley was incorporated in 1878, a town marshal and constables were elected to provide law enforcement ...

in 1952. He was a field commander when riots erupted in People's Park in 1969. In 2007, Plummer said: "I wish I would have hit some people harder during the riots. I regret that." In 1976, Plummer was appointed Chief of Police for

Hayward, California Hayward () is a city located in Alameda County, California in the East Bay subregion of the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of 162,954 as of 2020, Hayward is the sixth largest city in the Bay Area and the third largest in Alameda Coun ...

Alameda County Sheriff

In 1986, Plummer was elected the 21st Sheriff of Alameda County. During his tenure, the Alameda Sheriff's Department became the only western law enforcement department to have an accredited

bomb squad Bomb disposal is an explosives engineering profession using the process by which hazardous explosive devices are rendered safe. ''Bomb disposal'' is an all-encompassing term to describe the separate, but interrelated functions in the milit ...

. Plummer retired 13 January 2007 after serving five terms as sheriff.

Gregory J. Ahern Gregory J. Ahern (b. ) was the 22nd Sheriff of Alameda County, California, serving for four terms between 2007 and 2023, losing re-election in 2022 by 21.6% . Early life Ahern graduated from Moreau Catholic High School. He earned a Bachelor ...

, a 26-year veteran of the sheriff's office, was elected to succeed him. Plummer continued to work one or two days a week at the department's Office of Emergency Services as an unofficial "sheriff emeritus" until his death.

Later life and legacy

Plummer had three children, a girl and two boys. Plummer continued to work two days a week at the Alameda Sheriff's Department after retiring as sheriff. He died on March 4, 2018. In the immediate wake of his death, his successor, Gregory Ahern, called Plummer "one of the most dedicated and respected law enforcement leaders in our nation" and an "American hero."

References

Footnotes

Sources

Honoring Sheriff Charles C. Plummer , Capitol Words

ALAMEDA COUNTY / Sheriff appoints his son to key anti-terrorism post

* ttp://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_3538329

External links

History of the Alameda County Sheriff's Office
with details on Plummer's tenure {{DEFAULTSORT:Plummer, Charles 2018 deaths Alameda County sheriffs 1930 deaths People from Fort Bragg, California