It was the end of a long day, at the end of a long, distinguished career, and the cop sat surrounded by memories.
Gary Brennan, a 34-year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department, glanced around his office -- at the boxes of files stacked on top of one another and the dozens of wrapped-up photographs and plaques that once hung on the walls. Most of it, he knew, would be packed away in a garage or attic.
Brennan, 57, needs only three photographs to remember what he has accomplished and why he gave so much of his life to the department.
The black-and-white images all look roughly the same: rows of cadets the day they graduated from the Los Angeles Police Academy. In one sits a young, ambitious Brennan. In the second, his father. In the third, a great-uncle.
Every day since 1923 at least one Brennan has worn a badge for the LAPD. On Friday, the youngest among them walked out of the department's headquarters for the last time, probably bringing an end to the legacy that has also included a brother and other relatives.
"That man has bled LAPD for a long time," said Lt. Paul Vernon, who served under Brennan in several assignments. "And he did it in a way that was a service to the communities he worked in and the cops he led."
Since graduating first in his recruit class and his first assignment as a rookie patrol officer in the city's Newton Division in 1974, Brennan held 28 positions in the LAPD, touching down on nearly every aspect of policing -- including stints in vice squads, the anti-terrorism division and internal affairs. He served under several police chiefs and was identified early on as a smart, level-headed officer as he rose steadily through the ranks.
In 2002, Chief William J. Bratton promoted Brennan to deputy chief -- the third-highest rank in the department and a higher rank than any of his relatives achieved -- and placed him in a newly created position at the head of the department's detective bureau.
Bratton credits Brennan with raising the stature of the bureau, which had long been run by lower-ranking officers and languished in "second-class status." He improved diversity among detectives and made strides in the department's work solving sex crimes and cold cases, Bratton said.
"He is the consummate professional," Bratton said. "Every day you got 100% from him."
For Brennan, not every assignment was as rewarding as others. All in all, though, there are no regrets.
