The end of 17 years of service and duty has been bittersweet for Bakersfield College campus police Officer Joe Johnson.

Johnson announced his retirement earlier this year because he believes he received what he describes as a raw deal from BC administration. Johnson maintains that administrators want to get rid of campus police, demoting them to security guards.

“It appeared that we were part of the bargain that was made to get rid of the campus security,” said Johnson.

BC has provided great memories for Johnson, those of colorful Homecoming floats, helping troubled youth find the right path in life and, of course, the interaction of people throughout the campus. His retirement does not come from actions of students or faculty, but from his belief that BC President Dr. Sandra Serrano plans to end any authority held by campus police.

“It appeared to me it was her direction to get rid of us,” said Johnson.

Starting almost two years ago, the Bakersfield College Security Task Force came together to evaluate and make recommendations on what course of action to take in response to new training laws for campus police officers.

State law requires that all campus police officers should have minimum Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) certification before July 2002.

Options included designating the department as police and providing training, contracting out to law enforcement or designating the department as security only.

In the course of six sessions that took place, the BC Security Task Force recommended that the campus police department be designated as a police department since BC officers met state law requirements for training, maintained a safe and secure environment and there was a need to enhance the sense of safety on campus, according to an April 6, 2000, board of trustees report.

Serrano recommended that BC maintain a security department yet law enforcement should be provided by an appropriate outside agency.

An agreement was reached through the board that the security department would keep its current designation and have a Bakersfield Police officer on campus.

Johnson maintains that there was never a fair exchange of ideas concerning the security department because people are intimidated by the administration.

“I can understand some of the faculty there. Some of them are in a position where they need a job, so they can’t speak out against this mafia,” said Johnson.

Johnson said Serrano is not alone in her scare tactics. He also blamed Linda Quinones-Vaughan, executive director of external relations and administrative services.

“She’s got a second-in-command that’s as terrible as she is. I call her Vaughan Taliban. We call the president bin Laden because they work in the same way and union,” said Johnson.

Serrano and Quinones-Vaughan, however, disagree with Johnson’s accusations.

Serrano maintained that her decisions regarding the security department were only based on what she thought was the best course of action for BC and the decision ultimately was that of the board of trustees.

“My role as the president of Bakersfield College is to evaluate options and make a recommendation on what I believe is best for this institution, taking into consideration our mission and certainly in this instance, student, employee and public safety,” she said. “And based on what I know about this institution, I made a presentation that provided several options with an analysis of those options and I also indicated what, in my opinion, would work for Bakersfield College. Ultimately, even my initial proposal (which) was to maintain the security department was modified to include an enhancement which would be provided in partnership with the Bakersfield Police Department. And that is the option that the board chose.”

She also said that people had an opportunity to voice their opinions on the decision.

“I truly believe that there was ample opportunity for people to come forward … and they did,” she said, noting that Johnson was either aware of or attended every meeting in which the security department was discussed.

Quinones-Vaughan also disagreed with Johnson’s comment.

“I am quite clearly disappointed with the statement he made,” said Quinones-Vaughan. She said she appreciated the job he did at BC, especially at the personal level.

“I value Joe. I had the responsibility of the security unit for (a) little over six months and Joe has always done a beautiful job of working directly with the student constituency and been able to defuse issues before they became problems,” Quinones-Vaughan said.

She also maintained that there was never a time in which any officer, including Johnson, was targeted during the security department decision.

“There has not been any discussions specific to one officer,” she said.

Even though he left under emotional circumstances, Johnson said he plans to enjoy the time he now has tending to the little things, such as fixing the sprinkler heads in his yard or catching a matinee. In the future, Johnson said he may run for a position on the board of trustees, but as of now, his concerns center on the safety of students at BC.

“That’s the worst part about it, you can no longer protect the student,” he said.