Webb Will Be Missed

I read the opinions, pro and con, about the retirement of Billy D. Webb, head deputy of the San Fernando branch of the district attorney’s office (“Tough-on-Crime Prosecutor Ends Long Career,” Times Valley Edition, Nov. 21). Your readers deserve a more detailed description of the difference a single individual made for the citizens of the North Valley.

When Webb took over the San Fernando branch office, I was one of many street narcotics agents operating in a constant state of frustration. The difficulty in trying to convince prosecutors, judges, and defense counsel of the damage inflicted by street-level dope dealers had become an exercise in futility.

Literally booking the same sellers repeatedly had become the norm. A sense that we were involved in a lost cause contributed to a general feeling of hopelessness.

What his critics overlook is that Webb didn’t create any stiff, unforgiving anti-drug law. He simply directed a group of dedicated lawyers to prosecute violations of the law as stated in the Penal Code. Whether or not one was guilty actually became the primary issue, as opposed to how “the deal” offered to a narcotic violator was to be structured.

Most first-time drug dealers received a moderate sentence, probation, and a non-negotiable condition that an additional offense would mean no breaks, no plea bargain, and a prison sentence. The word quickly spread through the law enforcement, legal, and--most significantly--criminal communities that a drug prosecution in the San Fernando Courthouse was not likely to be a positive experience.

We still booked drug dealers, but familiar faces became fewer and further between. Eventually, street sales ceased to be our major focus and we began to engage street gangs, inspired by our small success in the war on drugs. Again, Webb’s prosecutors would not engage in compromise for the sake of easing the burden upon themselves.

Several months ago, as I stood in the hallway outside a San Fernando courtroom, I overheard an exasperated drug defendant complaining to his lawyer. He couldn’t understand why he wasn’t being allowed to “cop a plea” and return to the streets.

He was cut short by his lawyer stating: “I told you to go somewhere else. If you would have stayed away, we wouldn’t be in this courthouse, and I could have worked something out.”

It is truly amazing how years of frustration can simply evaporate.

As the old soldier fades away, let us hope someone steps forward to continue the assault on drug dealers. It would be a fitting tribute to a man who will always be able to look back to a small corner of the world, and know that he made a difference.

Enjoy your retirement, Mr. Webb. We’ll miss you.

LT. ERNEST HALCON

Commander, Detective Division San Fernando Police Department