A Captain is Promoted

Sheriff Stan Sniff promoted Lieutenant Leonard Purvis to the rank of Captain on Dec. 10, 2015. Captain Purvis will command the Sheriff’s Professional Standards Bureau (Internal Affairs) later this month. He replaces Captain Brandon Ford who will take over as Commander of the Perris Station. Sheriff Sniff said, “Captain Purvis has served in a variety of diverse assignments throughout his law enforcement career, including patrol, investigations, our courts and corrections. He is well known in our local enforcement communities for his role within both the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and his tenure as a police chief in the San Gorgonio Pass. This range of experience will serve us all well in his new assignment, overseeing our agency’s Internal Affairs Bureau.” Captain Leonard Purvis has over twenty-six years of full-time law enforcement experience. Captain Purvis began his law enforcement career in 1986 as a police explorer, and in 1987, a reserve police officer for the Monterey Park Police Department. In 1988, he was hired by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and after graduating from the academy, he was initially sworn in as a Deputy Sheriff and assigned to the Men’s Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles. In August of 1990, he moved to the San Jacinto/Hemet Valley and lateralled to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. He was assigned to work as a Deputy Sheriff at the Banning Superior Court where he provided court security. In April of 1994, he was assigned to patrol at the Banning Sheriff’s Station. In January of 1998, he was promoted to Investigator and assigned to the Special Investigations Bureau (SIB) in Riverside. He worked in both the Intelligence/Vice/Gang, and the Major Narcotics Units. In July of 1999, he was promoted to Sergeant and assigned to the Lake Elsinore Sheriff’s Station where he supervised patrol, the Community Oriented Policing and Problem Solving Team (COPS) and the station detective bureau operations. In June of 2004, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department took over police services for the City of San Jacinto. He was selected to be part of the initial transition team and assisted with setting up patrol functions at the station. He was assigned to the administrative sergeant position where he oversaw the detective bureau, front office staff, logistics, crime prevention personnel, and volunteers. Captain Purvis lateralled to the Banning Police Department in 2005 and was appointed as Deputy Chief of Police, and later appointed to the position of Acting Chief of Police in 2007. He was appointed to the permanent position of Chief of Police in September 2007 and he served in that role until November of 2013. Captain Purvis returned to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in December of 2013. He served initially as a Sheriff’s Sergeant at the Southwest Station and later in Sheriff’s Administration. In March of 2015, he was promoted to Lieutenant and assigned to the Lake Elsinore Sheriff’s Station. Captain Purvis has a Bachelor of Science degree in Workforce Education and Development from Southern Illinois University. In addition, he is a 2006 graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia. He continues to reside in the San Jacinto/Hemet Valley with his wife and daughter.