On Nov. 3, 1970, the people of Madera County spoke, and Edward Bryant Bates celebrated his 45th birthday by being elected sheriff! He defeated E.H. Daulton, his runoff opponent, 7,059 to 4,652. Bates was the majority choice in 80 of the county’s 86 voting precincts.
For the next decade Bates had a running battle on two fronts — fighting criminals and politicians.
Bates’ fight with criminals took him all over the county. Many of our residents remember the 22-Mile House murder, the serial killer in Chowchilla, and the annual struggle with the Hells Angels at Bass Lake. Every one of these episodes made headlines, but it was the Chowchilla Kidnapping that riveted the world’s attention on Madera County and its Sheriff.