Sheriff’s candidates – listed alphabetically:
Climbing out of Poverty
Born in 1976 in Fort Worth, Texas to a 16-year old single mother, Damon Dunn grew up in dire poverty; living in a three-bedroom trailer with ten people. Damon grew up hunting and fishing as means to provide food, and wore Salvation Army clothes. From these humble beginnings, Damon learned the value – and the rewards-of hard work, which he has demonstrated throughout his life.
Excelling in Education and Athletics
In high school, Damon was an honor student and earned recognition as a Texas All-State Football player. On these merits he was awarded a scholarship to Stanford University.
At Stanford Damon had a record setting college football career, ran track and earned many academic and athletic awards, including the NCAA Academic Scholarship, All-PAC 10 Honors and Academic All-Pac 10 Honors, and the NFL and College Hall of Fame Award.
Upon graduation Damon played in the NFL for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns, New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys. Damon had the privilege to play under and be mentored by coaching legends such as Bill Walsh, Bill Parcells, Tyrone Willingham and Tom Coughlin.
Leading Through Public Service
Despite these achievements, Damon has never forgotten what it is like to go to sleep hungry and wake with a sense of hopelessness. This is why Damon has committed himself to serve others; to show them there is another way and to help them find it for themselves.
While at Stanford University, Damon served as Executive Director of the East Palo Alto Stanford Summer Academy, which provided tutoring and mentorship to underprivileged Latino and African American students from East Palo Alto, Ca-. In recognition of his work at the Academy and elsewhere in the community, Damon received the James W. Lyons Award and JE Wallace Sterling Book Award given to students who demonstrated outstanding service to the greater Stanford community.
In the NFL, Damon worked with the Make a Wish Foundation to visit kids with terminal illnesses. He started the Fighting Giants Ministry that ministers to children with life-changing injuries. He also worked with St. Augustine Soup Kitchen, the Cops-N-Kids program, and the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.
Damon currently volunteers in Santa Ana elementary schools implementing the Latino Educational Attainment Initiative (LEA). The purpose of the LEA is to help Latino parents become more effective advocates for their children, particularly as it relates to their education.
Acting on His Faith
During his undergraduate days at Stanford, Damon served as associate pastor at Jerusalem Baptist Church where he managed the children’s and youth ministries. Since his time at Stanford and the NFL, Damon has started the Joshua Project, a leadership development ministry that mentors aspiring young Christian leaders.
Damon has served as president of his local Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) chapter and has spoken nationally at FCA events. Damon is currently a licensed Baptist minister and a member of Saddleback Baptist Church.
Building a Successful Business
Upon retiring from the NFL in 2002, Damon co-founded a successful real estate firm with holdings across the country.
From this national perspective, he saw how certain governmental entities aided individuals and entrepreneurs to meet their full potential while protecting the environment whereas others did not. He saw how the communities that provided the best education opportunities and kept its people safe, were those that had thriving business communities with good paying jobs. In contrast, he saw how the California business environment was choking innovation and the potential of the entrepreneur, the two characteristics which had made California great in the first place.
Candidate for San Diego Sheriff
Selected by County Supervisor Ron Roberts as his Chief of Staff in 2008, Jim Duffy has followed in the footsteps of his late father, San Diego County Sheriff John Duffy, in providing decades of service to the citizens of San Diego County. Jim Duffy is a 27 year veteran of law enforcement and joined the Sheriff’s Department in 1986 as a deputy sheriff and was promoted to sergeant in 1993. He served in detentions, patrol, public affairs, and special investigations. Since being promoted to lieutenant in 1998, he worked in the Community Policing Detail, Human Resources Bureau, Encinitas Patrol Station, Communications Division, San Diego Central Jail, and the Las Colinas Detention Facility.
Jim is the immediate
past president of the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association of San Diego County
having served six years on its Board
of Directors. Currently he serves on the Board of Directors for the San Diego
County Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation, the
Peace Officer’s Research Association of California - San Diego and
Imperial Counties Chapter, the San Diego County Crime Commission and is a
member of California State Sheriffs’ Association, National Latino Peace
Officers’ Association and the San Diego County Law Enforcement Emerald
Society.
Prior to joining the Sheriff’s Department, Jim worked for the Carlsbad
and Calipatria Police Departments. A native San Diegan born in La Mesa, Jim
lives in Oceanside with his five year old son, Ethan, and has two adult children,
Jimmy and Ashley, whom he raised as a single parent, and recently welcomed
his first grandson, Jordan.
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Candidate for San Diego Sheriff
In June 2009 the County Board of Supervisors appointed then under-Sheriff
Bill Gore to fill the rest of retiring Sheriff Bill Kolender’s term,
which would have ended in January 2011. Prior to becoming Sheriff, Bill Gore
was responsible for day-to-day operations of one of the largest law enforcement
agencies in the nation. His field deputies patrol a jurisdiction of over 4,000
square miles. He oversees a jail operation with 5,100 inmates at seven different
detention facilities. He is responsible for a staff of 4,000 with an annual
budget of over $500 million.
A second-generation San Diegan, Bill Gore’s dad was a San Diego police officer. After graduation from Crawford High School and the University of San Diego, Bill joined the FBI. After 32 years of service, Bill Gore left the FBI and was appointed by Bill Kolender to serve as Assistant Sheriff overseeing the Law Enforcement Services Bureau, responsible for all patrol and investigation operations, as well as the communications center and the crime laboratory. In 2005, he was promoted to Undersheriff.
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Candidate for San Diego Sheriff
Former Undersheriff Jay La Suer was a San Diego Peace Officer for 31 years, 6 years on the San Diego Police Department and 25 years on the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. After graduating from El Cajon Valley High School, Jay enlisted in the U.S. Army where he proudly served as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division until he was honorably discharged.
Jay is married to his wife of 46 years. He and Lynn have two daughters and three grandsons. After his discharge from the U.S. Army, Jay joined the San Diego Police Department. After serving on the police department for six years, he resigned to attend college. He graduated from San Diego State with a Bachelors Degree in Public Administration. He then joined the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. He advanced through the ranks and was ultimately appointed Undersheriff. During his career with the Sheriff’s Department, Jay worked as a Patrol Deputy, Detective, SWAT Team Leader then SWAT Team Commander, Patrol Supervisor, Sub-Station Commander, Station Commander, Academy Commander, Jail Commander and Undersheriff. Jay attended and graduated from the FBI National Academy and holds a life time teaching credential at the Community College level.
Jay was elected to
and served on the La Mesa City Council for ten years. He also was elected
to and served the maximum number of terms allowed by law in the California
State Assembly.
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