LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — Friends and colleagues around Lake County and the North Coast are remembering and honoring the life of a former Lakeport and Healdsburg police chief.

Kevin Burke, who last year retired as the chief of police for the city of Healdsburg, where he had served after leaving the Lakeport Police Department, has died. He was 55.

Burke’s body was found in his Healdsburg home on Tuesday evening by officers from his former department following a request for a welfare check, said his friend, Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen. Burke is reported to have died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“We’re all in shock,” said Margaret Silveira, a friend of Burke’s who retired as Lakeport city manager in 2020.

“I just can’t believe he’s gone,” Silveira said.

Rasmussen said he had gotten the news on Tuesday night and began notifying friends of Burke’s, as did Jason Ferguson, chief of the Cloverdale Police Department, who also had worked with Burke while he was at Lakeport Police.

“I didn’t sleep last night at all,” said Rasmussen on Wednesday afternoon, noting Ferguson also passed a sleepless night after receiving the news and trying to notify people.

On Wednesday evening, Ferguson posted on Facebook, “Truly heartbroken over the loss of this man who was a dear friend and mentor. I will forever cherish the memories and opportunities that he made possible during my career.”

In a statement posted on its Facebook page on Wednesday, the city of Healdsburg said it was mourning the passing of Burke, who had been chief from 2010 to 2021. Officials called him “a true wit, a friend and advisor to his colleagues, and a respected member of the City team.”

“The loss of Kevin Burke, our former Police Chief, will be felt by countless members of our community,” said Healdsburg Mayor Ozzy Jimenez. “His light and kind heart will be missed by so many. Our Healdsburg Police Department has lost a great leader and friend.”

“We are heartbroken and saddened over Kevin’s passing,” stated current Police Chief Matt Jenkins. “As his Healdsburg Police Department family mourns the loss, we remember him for everything he did for the department and the community. He was a mentor and a friend, and he led us through many difficult times with courage and dignity.”

The city of Lakeport’s Facebook page memorialized Burke in a Facebook post on Wednesday that said, “This is terribly sad news for anyone who knew Kevin. Some of us were fortunate to work with him while he was our Police Chief and Interim City Manager. Our sincere condolences to all of his friends, family and loved ones.”

“Kevin was a phenomenal leader both as Lakeport Police Chief and City Manager. He made many positive improvements to the department that are still in place today and have continually helped move us forward. I am where I am today because of his leadership,” Rasmussen told Lake County News.

An accomplished career

Burke, the son of a longtime teacher, grew up in St. Helena with his siblings, a brother and a sister.

He received a bachelor's degree in economics from Whittier College, a law degree from University of California, Berkeley's law school and later, while working for Lakeport, a master's degree from Johns Hopkins University in public safety management.

Throughout his life, he was an extensive traveler, taking trips around the world. He also was an outdoorsman, hunter and athlete.

Before entering policing, he worked as a deputy district attorney in Orange County. Later, he went to work for the Los Angeles Police Department, rising to the rank of sergeant before he arrived as the city of Lakeport’s new chief in March 2006.

Lisa Morrow, executive director of Lake Family Resource Center, said Burke was the first to invite the center to the chiefs’ meeting, which includes the sheriff, the two city police chiefs and the probation chief.

“It is how we started training. He was the most compassionate and realistic advocate,” Morrow said.

Morrow also credited Burke with helping create the strong and collaborative relationship between Lake Family Resource Center and law enforcement. Today, the organization is partnering with Lakeport Police to put a crisis intervention specialist on the streets along with officers.

While serving as chief, Burke, members of his staff and the sheriff’s office attended the National Peace Officers’ Memorial Day Services in Washington, DC in 2007 and 2008.

Burke worked for the city of Lakeport for just over four and a half years. During that time, he spent nearly two years doing double-duty as the interim city manager. In that role, he managed to balance the budget and avoid layoffs during a challenging time for the city.

“He was the interim city manager when I got there and he was just so gracious in assisting me with getting on board,” said Silveira. Although they only worked together for about nine months, she said they were memorable ones.

She recalled him as a man of great intelligence, wit and grace, who was fun to be with.

He also was an adventurer. Silveira recalled taking sailing lessons with him and said they also went sky diving together — even though his knuckles were a bit white on that trip.

“He just was fun. And funny,” she said.

Longtime city staffer Andrew Britton said Burke was “always professional, always prepared,” and was willing to step up when the city needed his leadership as interim city manager.

“The bonus was he was a very kind and gracious man,” Britton said.

Burke then went on to Healdsburg, his second and final chief’s job.

In a 2010 interview with Lake County News, Burke — then just 44 — said he was looking forward to taking on “some additional responsibility with a larger organization and some new challenges.”

Even when moving into a larger department, Burke intended to keep his hands-on approach to policing. “It's kind of my style anyway,” he said.

He said at that time that he would miss the people he’d met — co-workers, friends and city staff. “I've worked in a lot of places over the years and in Lakeport I've made a lot of good friends, and never lived in a place that made me feel so welcome so quickly,” he said.

During his 10 years as Healdsburg chief, he made an impact. The city of Healdsburg said Burke “played a lead role in the community’s response to the Kincade Fire, the pandemic, and a national dialogue over police reform. Committed to community policing, Chief Burke also created a program within the police department wherein a social worker works with sworn officers to provide services to community members.”

He retired from Healdsburg last year and appeared headed for a busy retirement of trips, and time with friends and his beloved dogs.

Britton said he appreciated that Burke maintained a relationship with Lakeport and some of the people he worked with more than a decade after he left. “That’s pretty rare in my experience.”

Burke came to Lakeport for Public Works Director Doug Grider’s retirement party last December, at which point Britton said he got a chance to say hi and congratulate him on his retirement.

“The man touched a lot of lives. All positively as far as I can tell,” Britton said.

‘This career gets to the best of us’

In January Burke announced he was planning to run for the Sonoma County sheriff’s job.

Burke amassed numerous key endorsements early in his campaign, including from Sonoma County Supervisor James Gore and District Attorney Jill Ravitch, Santa Rosa Mayor Chris Rogers, Healdsburg Mayor Ozzy Jimenez and Sebastopol Mayor Patrick Slayter, council members from Cloverdale, Healdsburg and Santa Rosa, as well as unions and the Sonoma County Democratic Party.

But in early March, just two months into the campaign, Burke suddenly withdrew, citing health issues.

Mauricio Barreto, a Clearlake Police officer and former Lake County deputy sheriff, was a friend of Burke, who he said was a “bright light in this world,” and “a true leader and a great human being.”

Barreto said Burke often participated in road bike rides to benefit law enforcement, and he credited Burke with getting him into road bike racing.

They also worked out together, along with Deputy Jake Steely, who died after he was injured on the Mendocino Coast while trying to rescue his son from the ocean in April 2016.

Barreto said the day before Burke quit the sheriff’s race, there was a campaign event and he looked great. “I don’t understand what happened.”

However, Barreto added, “This career gets to the best of us.”

Barreto said he had last spoken to Burke about a month and a half ago as they were supposed to go on a bike ride. Barreto said Burke was doing great.

“We were supposed to go on a ride together and he told me he was going to have plenty of time soon. We had coffee one afternoon and talked about life. I never would have expected him to end his life. I’m heartbroken and very sad about his passing,” Barreto said.

Rasmussen said he was traveling through Healdsburg last Wednesday and called Burke to connect but didn’t hear back. He said that wasn’t entirely unusual, as it would often be several days before he would get a call back from Burke if he was on a trip.

He said he believes that Burke was depressed about not being in law enforcement any longer.

Retirement is rough for law enforcement officers, said Rasmussen, noting that a high number of cops are dying by suicide.

Rasmussen pointed to another former chief he knew — retired Fortuna Police chief, William Dobberstein, who was found dead in his home at the end of March, also of an apparent suicide. Dobberstein, who was 53, had retired in January of 2020.

Richard Persons, who was chief executive officer of the Lake County Fair during Burke’s tenure at the Lakeport Police Department, said he’s worked with a lot of law enforcement professionals over nearly four decades, nearly all of them smart, selfless, caring people.

“Kevin was one of the smartest people I've ever met. He was always warm, witty, firm and focused,” he said.

“Kevin was small in stature, but he was a very big human being. He leaves behind communities that are better for his having been part of them. I'll miss him, and I know many others will as well,” Persons said.

Individuals in distress and needing support and mental health resources can get help around the clocks at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/. If you need help, please ask for it; your life matters — more than you can ever know.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.