Derrel Simpson
Instructor
Commander Simpson started with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office in January of 1992 assigned to the Correctional Bureau. He became a Facility Training Officer prior to being reassigned to the Enforcement Bureau as a Patrol Deputy. He was honored to be the first person in the agencies’ history to make both the Tactical Team and SWAT Team while still on probation. SWAT is collateral assignment and he spent 22 years on the team as an Operator, Assistant Team Leader, Team Leader, and Tactical Commander.
During my career, I began to question how effective I truly was. I had led the department in felony arrests on numerous occasions but noticed I was arresting many of the same people over and over. How could I be affecting change in the community when I was not changing individuals’ lives, I contacted regularly? This thought process led me to the conclusion I had been very near sighted. I chose to see the people I knew dealt in narcotics, gangs, insert crime here… as ‘only’ criminals. My first overt step at change was to acknowledge a “criminal” as something else when I saw them behaving well. I started contacting people I had arrested when they were in the park playing catch with their kid or helping their grandmom with the groceries. I let them know I saw the good they were doing and encourage the behavior.
This small, and simple step, led to much bigger things. Not too long after my epiphany I met Jason. We had some shared experiences, and he was clearly on the same path as me. It was also evident he was farther down that path than I was. It was abundantly clear that working with WYSM would accelerate my growth which in turn would amplify the impact I have on the community. This is the simplest way to explain why I have chosen to join the WYSM team. I am a firm believer in Proverbs 27:17 (Look it up).
Derrel Simpson
Once promoted to Sergeant and re-assigned to patrol, he spent 12 years working at all three stations before becoming a Commander. He is currently the Commander of Professional Standards in charge of I.A., Training, and the Public Information Officer.