By DOUGLAS W. MOTLEY
Senior Writer
A Sunday afternoon ride-along with Sheriff’s Deputy William Cowles on July 6 began with a follow-up on a reported criminal threats case in which a Running Springs woman was allegedly assaulted by her brother, who reportedly broke two of her telephones and took another one away from her. This case is still active and ongoing.
Cowles, who grew up in a small town in New York, joined the Air Force when he finished high school and enrolled in some college classes, where he learned about avionics before attending the Sheriff’s Academy in Devore in 2023. With his training in avionics, he worked for Gulfstream Aviation, which manufactures private jets. With that training, he became an avionics technician and was sent to Afghanistan and Djibouti in Africa, where he operated drones for the Air Force.
Deputy William Cowles stopped to see if this unidentified driver on Old Mill Road
needed help. As it turned out, his license had been suspended.
During the ride-along with Deputy Cowles, several motorists were cited for unrelated offenses, the first of which involved driving with a burned-out taillight. Such was the case when one motorist was pulled over in Rimforest, in which case he was issued a fix-it ticket.
The next incident involved a driver whose car was parked on a dirt shoulder along the side of Old Mill Road with its hood open with the driver standing next to it, just short of Highway 138, which is still closed following the recent Lake Fire near Silverwood Lake. This in itself was not a citable offense; however, when Deputy Cowles radioed the sheriff’s dispatch center, he learned that the driver’s license had been suspended.
When your driver’s license is suspended in California, you are legally prohibited from driving a motor vehicle. Potential penalties include fines, jail time and impounding of your vehicle. Cowles, who noticed the smell of marijuana inside the vehicle, said he couldn’t cite the driver for driving under the influence because he wasn’t driving the vehicle at the time. Subsequently, the driver called a family member to drive him and the car safely away from the scene.
When asked what crimes are trending in the mountaintop communities, Cowles cited vandalism, drugs, domestic violence, rape and crimes involving children. “Dealing with all of this makes you versatile and well-rounded,” he said.
The most danger he has faced as a sheriff’s deputy, Cowles said, is when he has been called to respond to domestic disturbances and barricaded residences and vehicles, in which it becomes necessary to draw his gun. “During search warrant service, you have to have your gun drawn, because everything happens so fast.”
If needed, Deputy Cowles has immediate access to a Glock 45 pistol, an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, Remington 12-gage shotgun, a bean bag shotgun and a less-than-lethal Taser. “I’ve never had to use the Taser. I was trained to only use reasonable force when necessary,” he noted.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department is currently seeking individuals who would like to become trained sheriff’s deputies. If you are interested in this exciting line of work – helping the community stay safe – visit their website at https://sheriffsjobs.sbcounty.gov/.
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