Duane Garrett

I was born July 29, 1954 in Fresno, CA. In 1972 I graduated from Fresno High School and in 1974 joined the Fresno Police Department as a Cadet. In 1975 I was sent to the Police Academy and after graduation I was promoted to Police Officer. I worked the midnight shift for two years and then the afternoon and day shifts. I was trained to recognize people under the influence of heroin and other drugs. As a result most of my time was spent on Fresno’s “skid row” and in the downtown area.

 I married my wife Karen in 1990 and became stepfather to her son and daughter. After 20 years of police service I enrolled at Fresno State to study Mathematics and Geography. I graduated with two bachelor’s degrees. In 1998 I became a math teacher at Fresno High School.

 In 2000 I was hired as an Environmental Planner for the California Department of Transportation (CalTrans). In 2004 I transferred to the California Board of Equalization (BOE) as a Tax Fraud Investigator in the Cigarette & Tobacco Division. Unfortunately my wife Karen died in 2007 from pancreatic cancer. She was 52. My mother died the next year, also from cancer. I retired one month later on September 1, 2008.

 In 2010 I moved to Riverside County to be near my younger brother. In 2019 he died from a heart attack. In 2020 I returned to Fresno and last year moved to Morro Bay where I intend to stay.

 Thank you for the opportunity to join the SLO Chapter of RAMS