A PLACE TO REMEMBER; PEACE OFFICERS MEMORIAL TO BE UNVEILED IN OCTOBER.

Byline: David Greenberg Daily News Staff Writer

The unveiling of the Peace Officers Memorial monument in the works the past two years will resurrect a flood of memories for Ventura County sheriff's Sgt. Larry Baugher.

Among the 28 names etched in granite of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty, including seven since 1990, will be friends he sorely misses.

Sgt. Tom Collins, a bowling partner of Baugher's, died Oct. 25, 1975, in a helicopter crash while he searched for trespassers in the Santa Clara River bottom.

Oxnard police Officer James O'Brien, who taught karate at the same Oxnard studio where Baugher's son took lessons, died Dec. 2, 1993, while he pursued a man who had already killed three people and wounded four others at an unemployment office.

James Jensen, who worked under Baugher's supervision at the county honor farm before becoming an Oxnard Police Department officer, was accidentally shot by another officer during a drug raid March 13, 1996.

``I hope nobody else I know goes on there,'' Baugher said about the names on the monument.

More than 300 peace officers, widows and other survivors of victims, politicians and community leaders are expected to attend the dedication ceremony for the monument, now veiled with a tarpaulin. Open to the public, the ceremony will be at 10 a.m. Oct. 5 at the Ventura County Government Center.

The monument has been erected on a grassy expanse near the corner of Thille Road and Victoria Avenue.

``It's the community's memorial as well as the police officers','' said Marc Vertin, chairman of the Peace Officers Memorial Committee.

Seven Rotary Club members and seven peace officers serve on the committee that spearheaded the two-year project. Each of the 22 Rotary Clubs in Ventura County donated $500 to $2,500, and other area residents and businesses also helped.

Sponsors say the $60,000 monument, created by the Santa Barbara Monumental Co., will be in a more appropriate place than the older memorial by the jail's entrance. That one is a concrete block, 4 feet high and 2 feet wide, with a brass plate featuring victims' names.

``It's been a gathering place for people visiting the jail,'' said Baugher. ``They were smoking cigarettes and sometimes putting their cigarettes out on it. They were using it like an end table. We needed something a little larger and nicer to honor those making the ultimate sacrifice.''

The new monument is about 6 feet high and 8 feet wide. It is made from solid granite and covered with shiny granite tiles, Vertin said.

``This is extremely high-profile,'' Vertin said. ``As people commute up and down Victoria, they'll see it, and it might give them a reason to pause and think about these police officers who put their lives on the line 24 hours a day.''

While recalling 28 tragic deaths, the monument also provides a small sense of comfort for Baugher.

``At least you know that if you happen to get killed on duty, you won't be forgotten,'' he said.

IN THE LINE OF DUTY

Here is a list of Ventura County law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Lisa Whitney: Killed Aug. 12 in a traffic collision while trying to cross an intersection where a power outage had knocked out traffic signals.

Ventura Harbor Patrol Officer Paul Douglas Korber: Drowned March 15 while rescuing a mother and two of her sons caught in a riptide off the south jetty at Ventura Harbor.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Peter John Aguirre: Shot and killed July 17, 1996, while responding to a report of a domestic dispute in Meiners Oaks.

Oxnard police Officer James R. Jensen Jr.: Killed March 13, 1996, during a drug raid when he was accidentally shot by another officer.

Simi Valley police Officer Michael F. Clark: Shot and killed Aug. 4, 1995, while responding to a report of a man threatening to commit suicide.

Oxnard police Officer James E. O'Brien: Killed Dec. 2, 1993, while chasing a man who had shot up the unemployment office in Oxnard, killing three and wounding four.

California Highway Patrol Officer James O'Connor: Killed Nov. 15, 1990, when an oncoming car slammed head-on into his motorcycle.

CHP Officer David Copleman: Killed April 6, 1985, in a head-on crash while pursuing a suspect.

Oxnard police Officer John Adair: Shot and killed Oct. 7, 1980, while responding to a call of a family disturbance. His wife, a civilian who was on a ride-along in her husband's patrol car, saw the shooting.

Ventura police Sgt. Darlon Dowell: Shot and killed Aug. 7, 1978, while trying to arrest two armed-robbery suspects.

Ventura County sheriff's Sgt. Thomas Collins: Killed Oct. 25, 1975, when the main rotor of the helicopter he was piloting was snagged by power lines. The craft crashed in the Santa Clara River bed.

Ventura College police Officer James Doyle: Shot and killed March 23, 1975, by a suspicious individual he was checking out.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Harvey ``Hank'' Varat: Died Oct. 20, 1973, from Rocky Mountain spotted fever contracted when he was bitten by a tick while on a training exercise in the Santa Susana Mountains near Simi Valley.

Oxnard police Officer Frederick Clark: Shot and killed Oct. 12, 1971, after responding to a call of a family disturbance.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Donald E. Haynie: Shot and killed by a 78-year-old Fillmore man June 5, 1969, while trying to arrest the man's son for selling drugs.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Chester Larson: Swept away in a flood Jan. 20, 1969, while trying to rescue six Boy Scouts and their adult leader from overflowing Sespe Creek north of Ojai. His body never was found.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Donald Gregory: Killed Sept. 9, 1961, when an oncoming car forced his patrol car off the road and into a power pole.

Ventura County sheriff's Deputy Earl Mendenhall: Killed June 15, 1961, when a prisoner he was taking to the county jail grabbed the wheel of his patrol car, causing it to collide with another vehicle.

Ventura County reserve sheriff's Deputy Bryce Patton: A Ventura High School English teacher working as a volunteer officer, Patton was shot and killed Aug. 19, 1960, by two suspects while working at a roadblock aimed at stopping the suspects in a $150 liquor-store robbery.

CHP Officer Robert E. Reed: Shot with his own gun Oct. 8, 1960, during a struggle with a suspect he was taking to the county's psychiatric ward.

Oxnard police Detective Albert Gasperetti: Died April 15, 1956, of injuries suffered while directing traffic in 1950.

Santa Paula police Officer James E. Barmore: Killed Feb. 7, 1953, when his motorcycle skidded out of control on loose gravel and slammed into a parked pickup truck.

CHP Officer James H. Vande Weg: Killed June 12, 1945, while speeding to the scene of a reported traffic collision when his motorcycle was hit by a U.S. Navy truck that ran a stoplight.

Ojai City Constable Harry Hunt: Killed March 3, 1943.

Ventura County Sheriff Edward G. McMartin: Shot and killed Aug. 20, 1921, during a shootout in Owensmouth (now Canoga Park) with a murder suspect.

Oxnard City Constable W.E. Kelly: Shot and killed Aug. 20, 1921, while trying to help McMartin apprehend the murder suspect.

Santa Paula City Marshal Henry N. Norman: Shot and killed Nov. 25, 1913, by a man he tried to arrest for disturbing the peace.

Deputy Constable Andrew W. McNaughton: Shot and killed March 16, 1906, while walking a beat in China Alley in Oxnard.

SOURCE: Ventura County Peace Officers Association, police departments.

CAPTION(S):

Photo, Box

PHOTO (Color in Conejo Edition only) In the background, David Hartman, president of Century Constructors, watches work on a peace officers memorial in Ventura.

Michael Owen Baker/Daily News

BOX: IN THE LINE OF DUTY (See text)