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Longtime sheriff’s deputy hanging up his hat
Published September 11, 2009
SEGUIN — A baton has been passed at the Guadalupe County Sheriff’s Office.
This week, Carlos Esparza, a veteran officer with experience in just about every aspect of police work, has decided it is time to hang up his badge and his gun.
Esparza, who has worked for Guadalupe County since 1984 and last year was named “Officer of the Year” by Sheriff Arnold Zwicke, was recognized Tuesday in commissioner’s court and in a luncheon that followed.
Over his years at the sheriff’s office, Esparza built a reputation for being tough — when the situation required it — and fair.
“On the street, people call him ‘Don Carlos,’” said Esparza’s niece, Carol Champion, referring to the Spanish term of high respect for a man.
Sheriff’s Investigator Robert Murphy has known Esparza his entire career at the sheriff’s office — and even before that, when he was a Marion police officer back in the days when Esparza and only one other deputy patrolled the county on the night shift.
Murphy always felt better, he said, when he knew Esparza was working in the district that included Marion.
“You knew if you needed help that Carlos would be there for you,” Murphy said of his time in Marion. “It was like having a guardian angel. You knew you could absolutely depend on Carlos to watch your back.”
Esparza worked for Sheriff Melvin Harborth before Zwicke came to the county, starting as a detention officer before moving to patrol work in 1987.
Being a road deputy back then could be a fairly lonesome job, Zwicke said.
“During that time, one or two officers patrolled the entire county,” the sheriff said. “These officers had to rely on themselves because you often couldn’t wait for backup.”
From the beginning, Zwicke said Esparza impressed his superiors and the community he came in contact with through his easy, respectful way with people.
But don’t be fooled, the sheriff said.
“Carlos is known for his way of handling people,” Zwicke said. “He’s capable of being tough when it’s time to be tough, and if you were in trouble, you liked knowing Carlos had been called in to back you up.”
During Esparza’s time in the county jail, Guadalupe County housed high-risk inmates moved here from an overcrowded inner city jail in Washington, D.C.
“These men had nothing to lose, and they knew they were never getting out again,” Zwicke said.
Those inmates learned that in spite of his ready smile and respectful tones even when speaking with a convicted felon, that they had to show Esparza respect, Zwicke said.
Esparza’s law enforcement career began in 1969 when, at age 23, he got a job as a jailer at the Cameron County Jail. From there, he went to Los Fresnos, where he became police chief.
After his stint in the jail and then a tour on patrol duty here in Guadalupe County, Esparza went into the sheriff’s civil process division, serving warrants and court papers, includinßg lawsuits, divorces, evictions and similar actions — often involving people who didn’t want to be served — and who at least figuratively sometimes want to “shoot the messenger.”
“It takes a lot of commitment to handle the jobs Carlos has had over his career,” Zwicke said. “He has proven to be a true law enforcement professional who has represented the Guadalupe County Sheriff’s Office in a highly exemplary, very positive manner.”
For his part, Esparza said he was at a point in his life where he probably would be able to stay occupied enough that he wouldn’t miss law enforcement.
“I put in a lot of years,” the deputy said. “I’m going to go play with Tiger Woods, and drink a lot of coffee at the restaurant.”
Like Murphy, the county’s top investigator, Lt. Kevin Jordan, met Esparza during his days as a Marion police officer.
“I’ve known Carlos since before I started working here,” Jordan said. “He’s always been a super person to work with, and we’re all really going to miss him.”
Zwicke agreed.
“Carlos is a man of few words, but his actions have always spoken volumes. We certainly appreciate the job he did for Guadalupe County, the sheriff’s office and for all the citizens. He’ll certainly be missed, but he’s spent two-thirds of his life in law enforcement, and it’s time for him to enjoy life.”
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