August 14, 1934 — October 18, 2007
Former sheriff’s captain, communications center manager, consultant and writer Alan Burton died October 18, 2007 at age 73 after a battle with ALS.
He passed away at home in Vacaville (N. Calif.) after finishing his third novel, the type of writing he really wanted to do after a career that included writing crime reports, technical manuals and news articles.
Alan was born in Richmond (N. Calif.) and grew up in nearby Martinez, the son of George Burton, who was a member of the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department from 1935. His father was an early radio pioneer and first developed the radio repeater, a technology that is now used in a wide variety of communication fields. The Sheriff’s Office honored George Burton by naming its communications center for him in 1989.
Alan grew up around law enforcement officers and radio technicians, a combination that would mold his future endeavors.
Alan would fondly recall a childhood adventure he had at the small airport along the Sacramento River near his home. Alan and two friends, all about 9 years-old, had made a deal with an airplane owner to do some work in exchange for a flight on an airplane. As Alan waited, his buddies dared him to climb the 150-foot tower used by the sheriff’s radio system (KCQE)–so he climbed it. Meanwhile, his father (chief radio engineer for the sheriff’s Department at the time) spotted a figure on the tower and called the sheriff’s office to report it. Soon a caravan of sheriff’s cars was headed to the scene–including Alan’s father. It was a long climb down that tower, Alan later said, after his father discovered who the tower trespasser turned out to be.
He graduated from Diablo Valley College (N. Calif.), and then served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War with the 3rd Infantry Division. He returned to work at various jobs, including at a Martinez television shop and a service station. Alan recalled that the former business was so bad that the store owner would lay him off each Friday, and then call him each Sunday to return to work on Monday. At the latter business he was robbed one night at gunpoint and left tied up with “baling wire” in a bathroom.
Alan said he never considered working for the sheriff’s office until he agreed to accompany a neighbor who planned to take the test for Communication Clerk in 1959. He decided to also take the test, passed it, and was hired as a dispatcher for $295 a month.
Alan excelled at the dispatching job, and took the deputy sheriff’s exam two years later and passed. He was promoted to deputy sheriff in September, 1961 at $395 a month, and was immediately assigned to the jail.
He was promoted to sergeant in June, 1966, lieutenant in May, 1969, and Captain in July, 1971. In those positions he served in virtually every unit of the department. At the department’s expense, he even attended the Columbia School of Broadcasting in Los Angeles to gain video-making skills the department needed to create training tapes. He also tackled many small and large projects, including the design and construction of a new jail facility.
During his years working in and supervising the sheriff’s comm center, he recognized the lack of formal training materials for dispatchers. So he wrote the nation’s first standardized training manual for new dispatchers, which became the basis for many state dispatcher certification programs. He also wrote several other reference and procedure manuals on dispatching and comm center topics. He was active in the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) during this period.
He attended the FBI Academy in Quantico (Virg.) while working at the sheriff’s office, and he also was elected to the Martinez Board of Education and served as its president in 1978. He was active in the Boy Scouts and accompanied his son Stan to many camp-outs in Oregon. His son recalls that Alan would prepare for the hikes by using the stairs to reach the 7th-floor sheriff’s comm center, instead of using the elevator. For the Scout camp-outs, Alan would bring along a tape recorder and a telephone to the camp-outs, and then allow homesick campers to “call home.” When they did, all they heard was the busy-signal that Alan had previously recorded, and then played back through the phone. It may have been deceptive, but it made the Scouts feel much better, Stan Burton recalls.
Alan sang in the church choir, participated in Toastmasters International and competed at the state level for the group.
Alan retired from the sheriff’s office in 1984, ending his law enforcement career as the Captain in charge of the sheriff’s comm center, exactly as his father had done. Afterward, he briefly was communications manager for the East Bay Regional Park District (N. Calif.).
He then joined Command Data Systems (Pleasanton, Calif.), a public safety software company, to prepare bid proposals and technical materials. During this time he began writing a simple newsletter on dispatching, and sending it to friends and colleagues. But by 1987 the publication had grown into DISPATCH Monthly Magazine, a full-fledged monthly publication with paid subscribers and advertising.
Alan left the software company in 1989 to consult full-time on public safety radio and comm center operations through what is now Frank Thatcher Associates Inc. (SF). He moved to Eugene (Ore.) at one point to live on top of what he called “Burton’s mountain,” but then returned to the Bay Area for a while, and then moved back to Grants Pass (Oreg.). During this second stay he lived in a home along the scenic Rogue River, and served on the board of the Josephine County 9-1-1 agency. Eventually he moved back to the Bay Area once again to be closer to his family, settling in Vacaville north of San Francisco.
He joined the editorial advisory board of “9-1-1 Magazine” in March, 1991. He was appointed editor of the publication in May, 1991 and performed that job until 1995. He also wrote a regular column for the International Municipal Signal Association (IMSA) during these years.
In 1999 he retired from DISPATCH Monthly Magazine, transferring the publication to Gary Allen, who had written for the publication since 1989, and who was then assistant editor.
He continued to do consulting on radio and comm center projects, but the travel it required took up lots of time. So he “retired” once again, and turned to novel writing full-time, which is what he really wanted to do in the first place. Naturally, his writing was related to law enforcement. His first book was “Duty! A Cop’s Story,” which some believe is auto-biographical. His next novel was “Terrorist,” about an attack scenario. He finished his latest novel in the weeks before he died, writing about his great-grandfather’s life in Ogden (Utah).
Alan was named a Life Member of APCO in 2006, recognizing his achievements in public safety communications over nearly 50 years.
All along the way Alan was approachable, personable and helpful to everyone he ever met. During his professional career he provided insights, solutions, advice and guidance to thousands of people through his books, writings and personal contacts. He was an expert on the technical issues of radio and telephones, but also on the personnel issues of hiring, training and staffing. He realilzed and always advised that it was the human element–not technology–that made a great comm center.
His brother Ken died of ALS in 2000. Alan is survived by his brother Stan, who works for Contra Costa County’s Department of General Services, and his granddaughter Cheryl Burton, who is a Dispatcher I at the sheriff’s communications center. He also leaves behind his wife of 30 years, Anne; children Deborah Ward of Novato, Gregg Burton of Boston, Steven Burton of Palm Springs, Richard Black of Ogden, Utah, Sue Martinez of Vacaville and David Black of Oroville; sisters, Canary Burton of Cape Cod, Carry Burton of Chico, Linda Durrer and Irene Wright of Red Bluff; brother, Randy Sturgeon of Ridgecrest; numerous grandchildren; great-grandchildren; cousins; and one aunt, Norma Willer of Berkeley; “and a friend or two.”
A memorial service for Alan was held at 1 p.m. on October 24, 2007 at Connolly and Taylor Funeral Home, 4000 Alhambra Ave., Martinez. It was attended by his many friends and colleagues, including many from the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office. In lieu of flowers, the family asked that donations be made to the ALS Association Greater Bay Area Chapter; www.webba.alsa.org.
Gary Allen
I wrote a news account of Alan’s death here.
In February, 2007 I interviewed Alan at his home in Vacaville, to gain some insights into his career, from “accidental” public safety dispatcher, to sheriff’s deputy and captain, and finally to retirement. Listen to the interview in two parts:
Part 1 – He joins the Sheriff’s Office as a dispatcher. [22:17, mp3]
Part 2 - His career takes him through all the sheriff’s units. [27:34, mp3]