by Timothy Rutt
In a goodbye marked with strong emotion, Altadena Sheriff Capt. Steven McLean announced his retirement at Tuesday night’s Altadena Town Council meeting.
Word of the announcement had gotten out earlier that day, and McLean, who has been captain for two years, received a standing ovation when he took the lectern to give the sheriff’s report.
“I’ve been in this business now for 38 years, since I was a teenager,” McLean said. “I’ve been sworn for the last 32 years, and the bottom line is, for those of you who get to know me, you know that everything I do, I do for my family. My two little girls want their daddy home -- my very patient wife who wants her husband back.
“You see, being a cop is not what I do, it’s what I am, and what I’ve done my entire life,” McLean said, his voice breaking. “But after 32 years, I’m leaving on my terms, at the top of my game, still young enough to go out and do other things that I want to do with my life, other challenges, so the timing is perfect.”
McLean said that he had gotten a letter from the pension board that said “if you can retire this year, you should probably consider it.” From the letter to the announcement took about a week, McLean said.
“It’s been an honor, it’s been a blessing in my life,” McLean said “Please be happy for me, this is a good thing. I think I’ve done my time. I think I need to get back to God’s original plan with what he wants me to do with my life, and I think I need to get back to that ... I leave a very grateful, a very humble, and very blessed captain.”
McLean will be at Altadena station for the remainder of the week, and then take vacation time. There will be a community -wide retirement celebration sometime in April, according to community safety volunteer Carolyn Seitz.
Pictured: Altadena Sheriff Capt. Steven McLean announces his retirement at the Altadena Town Council meeting, Feb. 21, 2012.
