The best sheriff in America

San Francisco's Michael Hennessey, the longest-serving sheriff in California, has brought art and acupuncture to his jails, thinks the war on drugs is a fiasco and likes listening to "loud, obnoxious music."

By Jenn Shreve

Jun 7, 1999 | As sheriff of the city and county of San Francisco, Michael Hennessey runs the county jails, provides security in the courtrooms and enforces civil judgments, such as evictions and wage garnishments. But during more than 19 years in the post, Hennessey, 52, has significantly expanded his duties, addressing problems of crime and poverty with innovative rehabilitation and education programs -- from providing acupuncture for drug-addicted prisoners to offering employment counseling to ex-offenders. I met with Hennessey at his cavernous office in San Francisco's newly renovated City Hall. With the scent of freshly applied varnish tickling our noses, we discussed the origins of criminal behavior, the difficulty of enforcing laws you don't personally agree with and the tenuous link between entertainment and teen violence.

How did you become sheriff?

I came to San Francisco to attend law school in 1970. When I finished in 1974, I became a VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) lawyer; it was sort of the domestic version of the Peace Corps. I made $190 a month, plus food stamps and medical. During my one year with VISTA, I started a legal-services program for county jail inmates; then I peddled it around for grant money. I ran that program from '74 to '79.

In 1979, San Francisco changed sheriffs. I was unhappy with how the new sheriff was running the department, so I decided I was going to quit and get, as my mother would say, "a real job." Some people in the department suggested that I run for sheriff instead. I hadn't considered it before. Aside from voting, I'd never been involved in politics. But I knew a lot about jails because I'd worked inside them for five years. So I quit my job and ran for sheriff full time for five months in 1979. I got elected and have been here ever since.

You had Richard Ramirez, the "Nightstalker," in your custody. What was it like to deal with such an infamous character?

Whenever you have a high-profile celebrity prisoner, you have additional problems. Ramirez, in particular, was a very bizarre guy. When he was in our jail, he had already been convicted of 13 murders in Los Angeles. He was with us off and on for three years. He was more staff-intensive than your common, everyday prisoner. He had lots of girlfriends that visited him and lots of media that wanted to visit him -- everybody from "Evening Magazine" to Hustler to local press. He enjoyed giving interviews. He was a media hound. With that many visitors, you have concerns that someone's going to give him something improper, or that he'll do something improper with somebody. We certainly did find things in his cell that he shouldn't have had. When he was ultimately transferred to San Quentin, he had a handcuff key up his butt, if you'll pardon the expression.

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