TAPS; LEADERS, FRIENDS REMEMBER BLOCK.

Byline: David R. Baker Daily News Staff Writer

For a few hours Sunday, the bitter fight to replace Los Angeles County's late sheriff paused as politicians, peace officers and thousands of mourners gathered at the Hollywood Bowl to remember Sherman Block.

The longtime sheriff, who died Thursday in the midst of a pitched re-election campaign, was tough, funny, kind and wily, speakers said. A mentor to younger officers and an obsessive grandfather, Block was a self-effacing man who could tell a fine story and write a good song.

``He was one hell of a human being and always, to the last, a fighter for what he believed in,'' said Gov. Pete Wilson, speaking before a sea of green and navy uniforms. ``Sherm did it his way, and we are incredibly better off.''

The increasingly bizarre battle for Block's job barely strayed into Sunday's memorial service, held in the concert amphitheater to accommodate a crowd of 6,000. Most speakers avoided any mention of the 74-year-old Block's re-election bid, which is soldiering on even after his death. And none talked about challenger Lee Baca, a former Sheriff's Department chief whom Block repeatedly slammed as unqualified to head the agency.

But the fight continued Sunday morning in the Bowl's aisles and parking lot. Some Block backers urged residents to vote for the deceased in Tuesday's election, a move that would let the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors appoint an interim sheriff. And despite earlier reports that he was not invited to Sunday's memorial service, a somber Baca shook hands with officers in the crowd before listening to the eulogies.

``I was invited by Undersheriff (Jerry) Harper, and out of respect for Sheriff Block and our 30-year friendship, I came to pay my respects to his family and to the sheriff,'' Baca said in an interview.

Block, a resident of West Hills, died of cerebral hemorrhaging several days after surgery to remove a blood clot from his brain. He had been hospitalized since Oct. 24, after he fell at home and hit his head. Block had survived two bouts with cancer and regularly underwent kidney dialysis. His health had been a key issue in his race for a fifth term as sheriff.

To the public officials and uniformed deputies listening under a hot fall sun, Block was as much an institution as the immense organization he led for almost 17 years. The only man to move through every rank in the department, Block had learned the agency from the inside out and knew how to move it forward, speakers said.

County Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke called him a tough lawman and skilled administrator who could adapt and change as the situation demanded. Even when she didn't agree with him, she said, Block had her respect.

``There was always a belief that he'd find a way to make things right,'' Burke said.

Wilson praised Block for helping hold Greater Los Angeles together during some of the area's worst natural and man-made disasters.

``After the Northridge Earthquake, during the civil unrest that shook this city to its core, Sherm was this community's Gibraltar,'' he said.

Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan marveled at the devotion of someone who entered policing relatively late in life, after years of working behind a deli counter. In 1956, Block was so impressed with the professionalism and courtesy of an officer who gave him a traffic ticket that he decided to go into law enforcement.

``He had the traits I admire most in people: grit, determination, integrity and compassion for others,'' Riordan said.

Standing next to Block's flag-draped coffin, others dwelled on their personal love for the man, for his kindness and humility. His rabbi, Jerry Cutler, remembered being stunned that the sheriff wanted to join his congregation.

``I was blown away,'' Cutler told the crowd. ``I said, `My God, you're the Sandy Koufax of law enforcement.' He said, `Rabbi, I used to work in the delicatessen business. Don't hand me that baloney.' ''

After that, Block blended right in with the temple congregation, except that he was the only one to show up for every service on time, Cutler said.

When Block's casket was finally carried from the stage, tears streaked the faces of some of the hundreds of uniformed officers standing at attention. A 21-gun salute cracked through the theater as a wedge of helicopters roared overhead.

``He's been an inspirational leader,'' said sheriff's Sgt. Susan Cross of Simi Valley, eyes brimming behind her glasses. ``It's hard to imagine doing without him.''

A private burial was held later Sunday at Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City.

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

PHOTO (1 -- color) Uniformed law enforcement personnel salute Sheriff Sherman Block at his funeral Sunday.

Evan Yee/Daily News

(2 -- color) Sherman Block's granddaughter Katy Persten shovels dirt onto her grandfather's casket at Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City.

Bernardo Alps

(3 -- color) The Sheriff's Department Honor Guard folds the flag used to cover Sherman Block's casket until his burial Sunday in Culver City.

Bernardo Alps

(4 -- color) Rival candidates Gray Davis, left, and Dan Lungren, right, greet each other, and CHP head Spike Helmick.