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KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The local California Highway Patrol office has welcomed a new commander, who brings with him an extensive law enforcement background and roots on the North Coast.
Lt. Greg Baarts took over the leadership of the CHP's Clear Lake Area office in May, with his appointment becoming official at the start of July.
The 43-year-old North Coast native and father of three succeeds Lt. Mark Loveless, who accepted a commander position in the Trinity River area, 45 minutes from Redding.
Baarts said his emphasis is keeping local roadways safe and drivers informed, which he hopes will lead to a reduced number of collisions and driving under the influence cases.
“Our job is to save lives,” he said.
Baarts, who has been in law enforcement for 20 years, is a second-generation law enforcement professional.
His father, Mert Baarts, was a 32-year veteran of the CHP, serving as a commander at the CHP's Garberville and Humboldt offices. The senior Baarts worked with Steve Davis and Jerry Mills, now-retired Clear Lake commanders, as well as two current Clear Lake area officers, Sgt. Bill Holcomb and Officer Kory Reynolds.
“It's a small world,” said the new commander.
Baarts' sister is a retired CHP sergeant and his brother is a sergeant with the Ukiah Police Department.
After serving in the military Greg Baarts decided to get into law enforcement, but he said he wasn't sure at first that he wanted to be in the CHP due to its focus on traffic.
He began his law enforcement career as a deputy in the Humboldt County Sheriff's Office. Baarts later served for six and a half years at the Ukiah Police Department, where he worked as a detective and was a drug task force member. He also did a stint with the Mendocino County District Attorney's Office as an investigator.
Eventually, he decided that the CHP was really where he wanted to be. “When I joined the highway patrol I had a lot of prior experience,” he said.
He said the CHP offers its employees the chance to go anywhere in the state, fly airplanes and helicopters or do motorcycle patrol. They also have the opportunity to undertake plain clothes assignments, such as protective details for the governor and other dignitaries; work as an auto theft investigator; or be a drug task force agent.
“It's a very highly respected agency and it's a very professional agency, and that's what attracted me to the highway patrol,” he said.
In 1998 he entered the CHP Academy. The agency doesn't allow lateral transfers from other agencies, so Baarts – at age 30, with wife Teresa and two small children at home – found himself back at school for the 27-week academy.
“It's pretty brutal,” he said of the academy. Although he was in the Army and was an infantryman, “It was harder than that.”
But he passed, and his first assignment was central Los Angeles. “It's a training ground,” he said of the busy Southern California area.
It took him two years to be able to return to the North Coast, when he received an assignment in the Clear Lake office. He was in Lake County from 2000 to 2001 before he was transferred to Ukiah. He promoted to sergeant and was assigned to the Crescent City Area for one year.
From there he spent six and a half years in Garberville before he got the opportunity to promote to lieutenant and return to lead the Clear Lake Area office.
In his new job he'll oversee an office that currently has 21 officers – 25 are budgeted, with four so far unfilled – as well as three sergeants, three clerical staff and one auto technician.
The office continues to pursue grants – like the Five Alive grant that runs out later this month – to reduce drunk driving crashes and motorcycle related crashes. The office's grant writer, Sgt. Dave Stark,
has been successful at bringing grants to the office that help buff up their resources.
Baarts said the Clear Lake office is unique because it has many officers who have been there for a long time, and have roots in the community and a stake in keeping Lake County safe.
“Everybody that's here wants to be here,” Baarts said.
The local office also has a lot of depth both in experience and investigative skills, with Baarts pointing to the office's many talented officers.
While much of Baarts' time will be spent running the office and handling administrative duties, “I try to get out as much as I can” to stay proficient at working the road and keeping his officer backed up. As
such, he worked a recent DUI checkpoint.
One challenge Baarts will have to face is the state budget, which makes an already challenging job harder.
“We're feeling the pain like everyone else but we're getting by,” he said. “If it gets worse I'm not sure what's going to happen.”
Baarts, who has been married for 18 years, has a 17-year-old daughter, a 15-year-old son and a 7-year-old son. He coaches football, and enjoys fishing and camping with his family.
He said he plans to stay in the area for a while, and wants to be actively involved with the community.
“I'm perfectly happy being here,” he said. “This is home for me.”
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