ONE-TIME HERO PLEADS NOT GUILTY IN DRUG CASE

PUBLIC OFFICIAL: School superintendent urges Ray Gonzales to step down from
post.

In 1993, Ray Gonzales was hailed as a hero for saving the Oxnard mayor's
wife during one of Ventura County's most notorious crimes.

Friday, the Oxnard School District trustee stood in a blue Ventura County
Jail jumpsuit and pleaded not guilty to accusations he sold methamphetamine
to a Los Angeles man during a street-level drug deal.

Gonzales' latest troubles could signal the final thud to a fall that has
happened as quickly as he was thrust into the public light for his heroic
act seven years ago.

Oxnard Superintendent Richard Duarte called for him to step down from the
Board of Turstees, which is researching ways to get him removed from his
position. Under state law, he can't be removed unless he is convicted of a
felony or a crime related to his official duties as a trustee. The board
will meet Wednesday to discuss Gonzales' future.

"He has an obligation to serve the entire community as well as the children
of this community," Duarte said. "By his actions, he's demonstrated that
he's not able to fulfill those responsibilities."

Fellow Trustee Francisco Dominguez also urged Gonzales to step down, and
Tom Nielsen, a member of the Oxnard Council of the PTA, was candid in his
criticism.

"He should resign in a heartbeat," Nielsen said. "It's a terrible role
model for teachers, parents and students. You cannot act and behave this
way repeatedly. He's run amok."

Gonzales, 42, who was convicted of misdemeanor spousal abuse in September
for pushing his wife during an argument, missed the board's last three
meetings, according to attendance records. Since Dec. 1, he has missed nine
of 16 meetings.

He sold his home a few months ago and has been living in his car with his
wife and at least one child, said Wendy MacFarlane, the deputy district
attorney who prosecuted the spousal abuse case.

On Wednesday night, he was spotted by Oxnard police officers in what
appeared to be a drug deal with another man. When officers pulled Gonzales
over at Channel Islands Boulevard and Ventura Road in Port Hueneme, they
found several grams of methamphetamine in his car, Detective Robert
Coughlin said.

They arrested Gonzales on suspicion of sale of a controlled substance, drug
possession for sale and violation of probation in connection with his
spousal abuse conviction.

They also arrested Darryl EdwinWarren, 32, on suspicion of similar
offenses. Gonzales remained jailed Friday with bail set at $55,000. Warren
bailed out of jail.

The first time Gonzales made headlines in Ventura County was for his
heroism, not his shortcomings.

OnDec. 2, 1993, a gunman named Alan Winterbourne killed three people at the
Oxnard Employment Development Office. He injured four others, including
Irma Lopez, wife of Oxnard Mayor Manuel Lopez.

As Irma Lopez, who worked as a supervisor at the office, stumbled out of
the building with two gunshot wounds, Gonzales grabbed her, put her in his
truck and rushed her to the hospital, where she eventually recovered.

The Ventura County Board of Supervisors honored him for his bravery.

During the next few years, Gonzales was viewed as a promising political
candidate and was backed by the Lopezes and "the Oxnard political machine,"
said Nielsen, who considers himself Gonzales' friend.

The Lopezes did not return repeated phone calls Friday seeking comment
about Gonzales' arrest.

In 1997, he was elected chairman of Oxnard's Inter Neighborhood Council
Committee. At the time, he urged committee critics to get involved and stop
complaining.

In 1997 and 1998 he served on the Oxnard Planning Commission.

In November 1998, he was elected to the Oxnard School District Board of
Trustees, and supporters anticipated a long political career, Nielsen said.

But "not everyone can handle the stress," he said. "He couldn't live up to
the expectations."

Gonzales' problems began in March 1999, when he was arrested in the spousal
abuse case.

In August, he was fired from his $58,619-a-year job as director of a
CalWORKS office designed to help welfare recipients get back on their feet.
Those who worked for him said he had an overbearing management style.

One month later, he was convicted in the spousal abuse case and received
three years' probation.

Now he faces a June 16 preliminary hearing to see if he will go on trial
for the drug-dealing charges.

"It seems incongruous that all of this could have happened to one person in
this period of time," Trustee Dorothie Sterling said. "He has to decide
what is best for himself and also what is best for the board."