Family Matters Most as Police Chief Lanning Is Saluted Upon Retirement

San Diego Police Chief William Lansdowne, local FBI office head Keith Slotter and San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore were among 260 people packing a room that boasted a dozen law enforcement luminaries, including three former La Mesa police chiefs.

So Al Lanning could have talked shop, listing highlights of his 35-year La Mesa police career and the legacies of his six years as chief.

Instead, he focused on his family.

“When you get to this point in life … you think back to what is important,” he said at his $15-a-head retirement party Thursday night at the La Mesa Community Center.

“The best thing, the greatest things we have done, when I think about that … has nothing to do with my work or career.

“My greatest accomplishment is my daughter, Kristin.”

Lanning shared how Kristin, who works in Ventura County, patiently helps children with autism.

“I couldn’t be more proud of her—that she chose a career of service,” he said.

Applause and another bouquet also followed for Lanning’s wife, Karen—described as a supportive and sympathetic spouse who, on a recent wedding anniversary, accompanied Lanning to an El Cajon Elks Lodge law enforcement dinner.

“He was very ambitious, very intelligent, knew what he was doing. … a great field supervisor,” said Ramona’s Doug Oliver, a near lifetime La Mesan who started work as an officer in 1972 and retired in 2004.

Oliver—now the owner of in Ramona and looks the part with his western coat and cowboy hat—said Lanning worked the streets and “knows what it’s like to be a real cop.”

 “He knew the Penal Code. He knew all the codes,” Oliver said near the buffet line. “Dealt well with all the other guys.”

Also among the celebrants Thursday night was former City Manager Sandra Kerl, who elevated Lanning to chief in 2005. She said he—like Capt. Ed Aceves this year—was the only in-house candidate for chief, one of about 40 applicants.

“[Lanning] brought the skills to the table,” Kerl said in an interview.

An Alpine resident who now works as deputy general manager of the County Water Authority, she said: “It was a very clear choice.”

With Aceves—now interim police chief—acting as emcee, the hour-long series of presentations assumed the tone of a gentle roast.

Thirty-five years “takes a lot out of you,” Aceves told a barbecue-feasting crowd that included council members Mark Arapostathis, Ernie Ewin and Ruth Sterling. “[People say] chief years are measured in dog years, so if that’s the case … it’s a 77-year career right now.”

Aceves lightly acknowledged the fact that his own hopes to succeed Lanning as chief are in the hands of City Manager Dave Witt, who watched with amusement.

“We have plenty of presentations,” Aceves said. “The only one who can speak as long as he wants is Dave Witt.”

Witt soon took the stage, and turned to Aceves.

“Ed, relax,” he said with a smile.

Capt. Carlos Medero handled arrangements for the party (with advice from the women in his life, he noted). A slide show of Lanning at various points in his life and career was projected on a screen next to the stage.

Medero noted that with Lanning’s retirement, he becomes the longest serving police employee, at 30 years.

Recurring jokes revolved around two themes: Who had the biggest plaques to present Lanning? And the FBI’s reputation for hogging the spotlight.

Gag gifts included a golf club and a plaque with an old-time “wanted” poster on it.

But Lanning also received a check for $2,500 from Officer Jeff Raybould on behalf of the La Mesa Police Officers Association. (Raybould is president of the labor union/social club). Raybould joked that he could use the money to get golf lessons.

In the end, Lanning reflected on the chiefs who counseled him on his career and suggested early that he might someday become chief.

He also recalled how—in visits to workshops around the nation, including the FBI Academy—he discovered that “our department can hold its head up against any other department in the country.”

He said the La Mesa Police Department “did so well in how we tackled issues, how we took care of people in the department, how we served the community. I’m proud of the department for what we’ve been and what we continue to be.”

Lanning concluded: “To everyone in the Police Department, everyone in the community—to all of you I’ve worked with—I thank you so much for your friendship, your support.

“It’s been my honor to serve as chief of police.”