Charles Hazelton, 74, died at home, surrounded by his loving family. The son of Edward and Julianna Hazelton, and brother of Orvil, Paul, James, and Philip, he was raised in La Crescenta, California where he attended Crescenta Valley High School and La Crescenta Presbyterian Church.

Charles started his career in law enforcement in Pasadena Police Department (1968-1976), followed by deputy sheriff roles in Orange County (1976-1978) and Inyo County (1978-1980). In 1980 he became one of the first police sergeants in the newly incorporated city of Atascadero and later became the city’s first police lieutenant.

In 1988, he joined the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office, where he served as a prosecutor until 2010.

Charles loved to learn, including earning his law degree from Taft University and a Masters in Management from Claremont Graduate University. He was later honored to join the Taft faculty, where he taught law students. He read 100 books a year and enjoyed asking others what they were reading. He was a spiritual man who endeavored to do good and be good.

Called “Grandpa Dodger” by his loving grandchildren, Rene, Riley, and Sloane, Charles was a true blue Dodger fan. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of the game and could recall details from nearly all of the thousands of games he attended, including his favorite, game three of the 2018 World Series, the longest game in World Series history.

He also loved 1960s music and has fond memories of seeing The Doors play at his high school in 1967, watching Paul McCartney play the last show at Candlestick Park, and taking frequent trips to Las Vegas to watch the Beatles cover band, The Fab Four.

Extremely hard working, he was committed to providing for his family, including wife, Felicia, and children, Garrett, Catherine, and Caroline. He filled his children’s lives with endless board games, sweet treats, and trips to theme parks, arcades, and the pool. He loved writing parody songs and performing magic and pranks. His drawers were filled with joy buzzers and card tricks.

Minutes before Charles passed, his family gathered around him to dramatically retell his favorite bedtime story, one he had told his children hundreds of times. It featured a ghoul who haunted children with the spooky line, “Give me back my liver!” It was a fitting and hilarious ending for a family man with cancer in his liver and a lifelong love of practical jokes.