Former Sheriff John F. Duffy

John Frederick Duffy

June 10, 1930 – March 21, 1993

Born in Galveston, Texas on June 10, 1930, John Duffy came to San Diego when he was 16 and later graduated from Grossmont High School in 1948. He served as a sergeant in the Marine Corps during the Korean War. On May 25, 1953, John Duffy became a deputy sheriff after posting the highest score on the entrance exam. He quickly ascended through the ranks to captain. In 1970 he was elected as the 26^th Sheriff of San Diego County and took office on January 4,1971. He was reelected four times and retired on January 4, 1991.

During his 20-year tenure as Sheriff, John Duffy modernized the department and gained national and international recognition as a law enforcement leader. As the department grew from 500 to over 2200 members with a most recent budget of over $110 million, John Duffy continued the pursuit of excellence within his organization which exemplified “Law Enforcement at Its Best.” The department became the first Sheriffs Department in California to become accredited under the leadership of John Duffy.

Sheriff Duffy organized a citizen support group known as the Honorary Deputy Sheriffs' Association (HDSA) which donated over $1 million towards law enforcement safety, education and training. Their most significant accomplishment was the city block, state-of-the-art training facility at Camp Elliott known as “Duffy's Town.” In 1984 through the HDSA the John F. Duffy Foundation was established to provide funds for all police and sheriffs' departments in the county. During his tenure there were 26 Masters Scholarships, 21 Senior Management Institute Scholarships, and numerous other grants awarded.

Locally, Sheriff Duffy was a member of the San Diego Police Chiefs' and Sheriff's Association. He was active in numerous professional and civic organizations, including MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), Tough on Drugs, Inc., the San Diego Kiwanis Club, Boy Scout Council, Boys' Clubs, Institute for Burn Medicine, Leukemia Society, March of Dimes, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Nice Guys, University Club, Rest and Aspiration Club, and the Mexican and American Foundation.

On a statewide level he served as president of both the California State Sheriffs' Association and California Peace Officers' Association. He was former Governor Reagan's appointment to the California Council on Criminal Justice as the Sheriff representative, and he served on former Governor Deukmejian's Executive Committee for the California Stop Crime Coalition and Peace Officer Memorial Commission. He served with the California Attorney General as one of two Policy Board members from the state of California for the Western States Information Network, which focused on drug interdiction.

Nationally, Sheriff Duffy served as the Chairman of the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies and President of the Police Executive Research Forum based in Washington, D.C. He was a board member of the National Sheriffs' Association, chaired their Law and Legislative Committee and was a faculty member of the National Sheriff's Institute in Quantico, Virginia where he provided instruction to over 2,000 first time sheriffs throughout the nation. He was a member of the Advisory Board for the National Institute of Justice and served President Reagan as a member of the Justice-Treasury Advisory Committee on State and Local Law Enforcement Training. He also served on the Advisory Board of the Northwestern University Traffic Institute, National Law Enforcement Exploring Committee, and Police Foundation Child Abuse Committee.

Sheriff Duffy was the recipient of many awards for professional service to the community. He was especially proud of the Law Enforcement Commendation Medal awarded to him in 1976 by the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. He was also proud of the Golden Man and Boy Award from the entire County `s Boys' Clubs. In 1980 he was selected Irishman of the Year by the San Diego Chapter of the Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick, In 1982 he was the co-honoree of the San Diego-Imperial Counties' Central Labor Council's Histadrut Dinner. In 1986 he was honored as “Nice Guy of the Year” by the Nice Guys, Inc. and in October of 1990 John F. Duffy was presented with the Arthur Bloom Humanitarian Award by the San Diego Crime Commission.

Following his retirement from office in January 1991, he continued his leadership role in law enforcement. Incorporating as John F. Duffy and Associates, he consulted for national and international concerns on police management and administration. He established the Star and Shield Recreation Club to provide high quality and affordable family-oriented recreation to active and retired federal, state, and local law enforcement personnel.

In September of 1992 former Sheriff Duffy accepted an invitation from the U.S. Justice Department to serve as a consultant and principal advisor to El Salvador in building a police force under the accords that ended El Salvador's 12-year-old civil war.

His wife Linda and four children from a previous marriage survive him. His youngest son Jim is a lieutenant with the Sheriff's Department. He was the grandfather of ten and great-grandfather of two more, all living in San Diego County.