Steve Magarian, who started as a reserve deputy and worked his way through the ranks to be elected Fresno County sheriff, died Monday of cancer with his family at his side at their home.

Mr. Magarian, a mentor to sheriffs and often sought out for his sage political advice, was 82 years old.

“He was my mentor,” former Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims told GV Wire. “The perfect description of Steve came from (Fresno political consultant) Dr. Tim Baker. He called him a perfect  combination of Marshal Dillon and Billy Graham” — referencing the lead character in TV’s “Gunsmoke” and the world-famous evangelist.

The Fresno native won election to lead the sheriff’s office in 1986, succeeding Hal McKinney, and served three terms, the last of which concluded in 1999.

His death was announced Monday by the sheriff’s office.

He Got to See the Sheriff’s Memorial

Mr. Magarian graduated from Roosevelt High School and soon began his law enforcement career as a reserve with the sheriff’s office in 1966. Two years later, he became a deputy and worked in the jail and courts, as well as on patrol. All the while, he continued the education instrumental in his professional career by earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Fresno State.

“Steve put up a fierce battle with cancer. We now know he is no longer suffering and is in a better place,” said Fresno County Sheriff John Zanoni said in a statement. “Steve was a great man who cared for his family and our agency. His life may have ended, but his legacy here at the Fresno County Sheriff’s will be forever remembered by all of us.”

Following his retirement, Mr. Magarian remained active and advised Zanoni’s predecessor, Mims, who became the county’s first female sheriff in 2006 and served four terms.

He also recently teamed with Zanoni and Mims to create the Fresno Sheriff’s Memorial. It is  scheduled to open next month at the Area Two Substation at Armstrong and Belmont avenues.

“Steve really wanted to see the memorial ribbon-cutting, and we knew that wasn’t going to happen,” Mims said. “On the way from the hospital to home, American Ambulance took him by the memorial and put him on a gurney. He got to see the statues that are in place, and we were so grateful to get that done for him. Kudos to American Ambulance, that was very important to him.”

Mentor to Sheriffs and Other Politicians

Many local politicians sought Mr. Magarian’s endorsement knowing that the weight of his backing could sway high-propensity voters on both sides of the aisle.

“His advice was so good I used it myself when people would ask about running for office,” Mims said. “Steve always first tried to talk people out of running. He wanted to make sure they had a fire in the belly for serving the public and knew all that was required.”

The Ewell Case

The most notable crime during his time as sheriff was Ewell family murders, which attracted national attention. In April, 1992, Dale, Glee and Tiffany Ewell were discovered shot to death in their Sunnyside home. After eliminating other suspects and examining the forensic evidence, detectives focused on the surviving member of the family, 21 year-old Dana Ewell.

It would take three years and siphoned the office’s resources, but detectives put together a case showing that Dana Ewell had hired a college friend, Joel Radovcich, to commit the murders to gain control of his parent’s multi-million dollar estate.

Ewell and Radovcich were convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole.

“His passing is a tremendous loss,” said Austin Ewell, a State Center Community College District trustee. “The sheriff meant a lot to our community. He was very helpful and supportive to our family through a terrible time and remained a close friend. We are tremendously grateful for his service and share our thoughts and prayers with his family for his loss.”

Other Accomplishments

On his watch the office switched over from the original tan uniforms to the standardized state sheriff’s uniform of tan shirts and green pants.

Mr. Magarian also initiated the office’s helicopter program. While he was sheriff, the agency became one of the first in the nation to be equipped with a computerized field reporting system, a wireless network that allowed deputies to access law enforcement data bases from their vehicles and to prepare and submit reports from the field.

Additionally, Mr. Magarian’s accomplishments included overseeing the completed construction of the Main Jail and North Annex Jail and being a prime mover in creating the Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium to combat street gangs.

(GV Wire’s David Taub contributed to this article.)