Photo Credit: Chief Denton Carlson / Dentoncarlson.com / Image of Danville Town Council Candidate Denton Carlson (center-left) and his family.
(DANVILLE, Calif.) – The name Denton Carlson may have been familiar even before he began his campaign for a seat on the Danville Town Council. With an extensive career in law enforcement spanning 27 years, including three as the Chief of Police in San Ramon, Carlson is no stranger to public service.
Carlson is running for one of two seats in the Town Council to be decided upon by voters next week. His contenders are incumbent Vice Mayor Robert Storer and political newcomer Pratima Sonavne.
Running on a “commitment to…public safety, fiscal responsibility, well-managed growth, [and] enhanced government efficiency,” Carlson said that he would encourage “a thriving economic environment while preserving the beauty of our historic Downtown Danville.”
Photo Credit: Jeanita Lyman / Danville Area Chamber of Commerce / Danville Town Council Candidates (left to right) Denton Carlson, Pratima Sonavne, Robert Storer after a candidate forum in September.
As reported by OpGov.News, Carlson retired as the chief of the San Ramon Police Department less than a year ago, in December 2025. At this time he was recognized by California's District 10 Representative Mark DeSaulnier (D) on the floor of the House of Representatives. According to Representative Desaulnier, Carlson's “leadership was instrumental” in the establishment of multiple police projects, and he was “deeply respected in the community.”
In addition to serving as chief of police, Carlson was also a member of SWAT, a sniper, a detective, and was behind the city’s social media outreach program.
Today, with active law enforcement behind him, the retired chief said he is, amongst other things, a “small business owner.” This statement is included on his website, and elsewhere, including the news source Patch. Research shows that Carlson is the “Founder & Principal Consultant” at Resolute Response, a law enforcement consulting firm. He is the only listed consultant on the company's menuless, three page website.
OpGov.News reached out to Resolute Response to determine more about the company. Notably inquiring as to if it is a single-consultant agency, and in effect, a DBA for an independent venture by Carlson, or a more traditional small business with employees. At the time of this publication, a response had not been received.
Beyond Resolute Response, Carlson is also the Public Safety Ambassador for Longeye, Inc., “an artificial intelligence company that specializes in criminal justice evidence processing.” The company boasts that they “think like detectives…[a]nd build like engineers.” Essentially, the corporation's product is designed for “helping investigators make sense of massive volumes of digital evidence up to 100x faster.”
Carlson also presently serves a variety of functions in many organizations, including as “a faculty member within the Master’s Program in Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership at the University of San Diego.” Though perhaps biased, the university lists numerous comments from unspecified former students between 2019 and 2024, all of whom give Carlson a positive rating. He had no reviews on the popular student tool ratemyprofessors.com.
While working in the MS program at USD, Carlson himself holds a Master’s degree in Emergency Service Administration from Long Beach State University, amongst other credentials. According to the candidate, and perhaps illustrated by his achievements, Carlson has also found the importance of continual growth.
“For the past decade, I’ve been dedicated to leadership and lifelong learning.” Carlson said.
According to his campaign website, Carlson's endorsements include the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County and numerous Danville council members, such as his opponent, and incumbent Vice Mayor, Robert Storer.
While the race for the Danville Town Council has three candidates for two seats, and is not completely uncontested, there are less than two candidates per seat. Of these options, Carlson and his listed supporter Storer, are well entrenched in the status quo of regional community leadership roles. This was not forgotten by Carlson, who said, “I am excited to bring my experience and decision-making to the forefront.”
This he said is “to ensure the Danville Town Council does everything within its power not just to maintain, but to enhance the quality of life we enjoy every day.”
As election day draws near, Carlson said via Instagram that “it's crunch time.” But with Carlson's resume, status, and influential endorsements, including from one-half of his own opponents, how much crunching is necessary?
To add to or correct any information in this report, please contact me at robert.m@lead4earth.org or leave a comment below with your thoughts.
0
0
Comments