SUCCESS STORY SHERIFF'S CAPTAIN IS A TRAILBLAZER.

Byline: Debbie Pfeiffer Trunnel Staff Writer

PICO RIVERA - At 33 and with a family to support, Irma Becerra made a risky move, quitting her job as a Superior Court secretary and enrolling in the Sheriff's Department's training academy.

``I was the oldest in my class and the shortest,'' said Becerra, who stands 5-foot-1. ``It just meant I had to jump a little higher, run a little faster and work a little harder.

``It has been that way ever since.''

Today, at 57, Becerra is a Los Angeles sheriff's captain who heads the department's Pico Rivera station, the first Latina to command a field office. Her rise through the ranks inspired the National Latino Peace Officers Association to recently name her its Latina of the Year.

``She has not only been a role model to young Latinas, she has also been a guiding light for community policing in Pico Rivera,'' said Hank Augilar, a supervising deputy sheriff and national vice president of the association.

``Her success has been a trailblazing event for the department.''

An immigrant from Juarez, Mexico, Becerra came to the United States 45 years ago, arriving at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles as a scared little girl who did not speak a word of English, she recalled.

She and her mother and sister lived for a brief period with relatives, then moved to a converted garage in Pacoima, where her mother found work as a seamstress.

``I remember having my friends drop me off at the house in front of the garage,'' not wanting them to know where she really lived, she said.

``We made dinner on a hot plate. My clothes were hand-me-downs. And things were tight. We couldn't go out to get an ice cream cone or candy.''

After being sworn in as a deputy sheriff in 1981, Becerra worked at the Sybil Brand Institute for Women, the Altadena and Malibu stations, the Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau and at the Hollywood courthouse. Always, she pushed herself toward higher goals.

``It was really for my kids and for my family. I didn't want to turn to welfare or rely on others for support,'' she said.

Attaining the rank of lieutenant in 2001, Becerra was assigned to the sheriff's Pico Rivera station and the North County Correctional Facility.

In 2004, she returned to Pico Rivera as captain of the station, where she oversees 132 deputies and civilian employees.

Lt. Michael Rothans, second-in-command at the Pico Rivera station, said Becerra always makes herself available to the station's employees and to residents of the community east of Los Angeles.

``Whether it's battling crime or (attending) the grand opening of a park, she is there, because she cares so much for this community and what goes on, good or bad,'' he said.

Debbie Pfeiffer Trunnel, [phone]

debbie.pfeiffer(at)sgvn.com

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Photo:

Sheriff's Capt. Irma Becerra, an avid collector of police cars and motorcycles, was recently named Latina of the Year.

Walt Mancini/Staff Photographer