Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station Captain Roosevelt Johnson, who will have held his post as SCV’s top cop for three full years at the end of this month, has been promoted to rank of commander.
“Yes, I am now a commander,” Johnson told The Signal Tuesday when asked. “There was an internal announcement that was made but the formal announcement has not yet been made.”
Johnson said he doesn’t know yet which commander post he’s headed to but is looking forward to the assignment.
“Some of the posts are for patrol, or the custody section, or the detective division, all have a commander position and I’ll go wherever the LASD sends me,” he said.
Official news of his promotion is expected to be announced in the next couple of days.
In a sit-down interview with The Signal in March 2013 when he first sat in the Captain’s chair, Johnson said his goal was to preserve Santa Clarita Valley’s reputation as one of the safest communities in the country.
“This community remains one of the safest in the country, and I’m going to make sure it stays that way,” he told The Signal three years ago. “And I’m going to be doing it in a professional way, not waiting for things to occur.”
Johnson interviewed with The Signal’s Austin Dave in April 2014.
The LASD’s latest statistics show Captain Johnson has met his goal.
News of his promotion comes the day after The Signal reported LASD crime statistics showing crime in the Santa Clarita Valley dropping more than four percent last year compared to crime reported in 2015.
He was 46 when he was made Captain. At 49, he’s now an LASD Commander.
During his 3-year term, Johnson initiated programs aimed at addressing and curbing domestic violence in the SCV and at ensuring a specially-trained mental health deputy accompany deputies responding to mental health calls.
Johnson, an SCV resident for close to three decades, was operations lieutenant at the Altadena Sheriff’s Station for more than two years, before he was made Captain.
In May 2012 he left that post to serve as aide to Chief Neal Tyler at Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Headquarters in Monterey Park.
After Tyler retired, Johnson became aide to former Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station Cmdr. Anthony LaBerge, who was promoted to head up the county’s North Patrol Division.
That division included Santa Clarita, Lancaster, Palmdale, Malibu/Lost Hills, Westlake Village and West Hollywood. Until last year it included Altadena.
It is not known when Johnson would leave, if assigned elsewhere, nor whom would take over as Captain in the Santa Clarita Valley – a selection process which involves the city of Santa Clarita.
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