Sgt. Johnny Rodriguez's Retirement Brings Changes to San Angelo Police

Johnny Rodriguez clutched the perfectly-folded flag and silently hugged it to his chest after the Honor Guard ceremony on Tuesday, a quietly visible emotion coming over him as tears began to form and he softly shook.  

For the past 32 years and two months, he’s put on a his uniform and gun belt—both of which have changed over several times—and climbed into his patrol car as an officer, a sergeant and a teacher.  On April 7, it was officially time to say goodbye.

“I’ve spent over half of my life at this department,” Rodriguez, 62, said outside the Chief’s Conference Room at the SAPD Admin building. The sergeant, who had for over three decades been known to have on one of the neatest and tidiest uniforms in the department, now stood in plain clothes. “It’s been a very big part of my life.”

Starting back in the ‘80s six or seven chiefs ago, Rodriguez has seen changes in policing, technology, personnel and mindsets unique to a handful of senior officers still on the force.

“When I first started, the ‘old guys’ as we used to call them, they were guys that pioneered police work,” he said. “They didn’t have car radios, so it was interesting the way they used to get a call. We’ve got radios, we’ve got computers in cars where we can receive our calls and send messages. We have multi-channel radios now, whereas when we started we had two…”

Along with the change of buttons and knobs, Rodriguez said the biggest change he’s seen over the years has been the men and women in uniform. Countless personalities and people dedicated to working for the greater good have walked through the department’s doors over the years, and for decades Rodriguez has had the opportunity to work closely with a lot of them.

One of the individuals he met in the department is his wife Irma, who is still employed with the SAPD. The two started dating approximately five years after Rodriguez joined the department and will celebrate 27 years at the end of the month.

Rodriguez wouldn’t say his wife’s continued employment will make his transition into retirement easier, but noted he plans to remain active in police-oriented organizations.

“I’m going to put a little over 1,000 miles on my bike on Saturday,” Rodriguez said, noting that he’d bought a new motorcycle back in September. “We’re going to do an Ironbutt Run…we’re going to do that and try and raise some funds for a scholarship in the name of Jaime Padron. About a third of the number of miles it will have at the end of that ride I will put on Saturday.”

The Ironbutt Run is an annual event in which members of the Blue Knights, a motorcycle club for past and present law enforcement officers, ride some 1,000 miles in remembrance of former San Angelo police officer Jaime Padron, who was killed on duty on April 6, 2012.

Rodriguez will also be sworn in as a reserve officer and continues to be a member of the Honor Guard.

“We don’t normally present a flag to a retiree, but felt that this was something that was right for Johnny, considering the number of times he’s been in front of that flagpole as part of the Honor Guard, raising the flag and lowering the flag,” Police Chief Tim Vasquez said on Tuesday to a crowd amassed in the parking lot. 

Humbled and fighting back tears, Rodriguez accepted the flag and said a few words before introducing his successor, former detective Ali Shah.

A rather young sergeant in terms of tenure, Shah joined the SAPD as a patrol officer in April 2009 and transferred to the Criminal Investigations Division three years later, in April 2012.

His supervisor in CID, Sgt. Fred Sturm, said he was sorry to see Shah transfer out but was proud to know that another of his detectives has moved up the ranks to sergeant. Recently, detective Matthew Vaughn also promoted to sergeant and went back to patrol, which has its benefits for the department, Sturm explained.

“With Ali Shah becoming a sergeant, working for me, he learned investigations—all kinds of investigations, he worked all cases upstairs—so with him being on the street that’s going to help us in knowing when a detective needs to be called to the scene on certain crimes,” Sturm said.

As Shah finished taking the oath to protect and serve, his mother and father crossed the parking lot and approached their son. Presented with a new badge bearing the title “Sergeant”, Shah’s mother pinned the insignia to her son’s uniform and gave him a hug, completing the ceremony.

Having spent the past three years in CID, Shah said he was ready to get back on the streets.

“I was missing patrol,” he said. “It’s nice to go back, especially as a sergeant. I feel successful in passing the test and everything and honorable in taking his position, making him look good, making everyone look good by doing the best I possibly can.”

Shah has high ambitions for the future, aiming to continue to progress up the ladder to lieutenant one day and eventually return to CID as the commanding officer of the division.

It’s completing the process that draws him to investigative work, Shah said, being there from beginning to end and providing support for the victims throughout the process. Those who spoke of him on Tuesday did so with high regard, all of the opinion that he will make it far in the ranks of the department.

Both Shah and Vaughn worked Sector 2 under Sgt. Sturm in CID until they promoted to sergeant. Vaughn was replaced by James Russell when he went back to patrol as a supervisor and Jason Chegwidden will take Shah’s place in CID.

“It’s just a natural progression of your career,” Chegwidden answered modestly when asked what motivated him to apply to the detective division. “Patrol has its excitement and CID has its excitement.”

Chegwidden, who has been with the department for the past five years, previously relayed an interest in reading books on interview techniques and investigative tactics in his free time out of personal interest and an effort to better himself on the job.

“A big part of it is just making a high-quality work product at the end of the day when you get done,” he said. “Looking back, was my effort productive to the citizens of San Angelo? I think that by doing that stuff that makes you a more productive—whether you’re an investigator, a patrol officer, no matter what your function is, all that stuff plays a role in doing that.”

Comparing the anticipation to the first day of school, Chegwidden said he is a bit nervous about not knowing how to do everything, but says he thinks it will all come together once he gets situated in the position

“It’s just getting your wings under you,” he said.