Paul Bruce Carpenter (February 24, 1928 – January 24, 2002) was an American psychologist and politician.

Early life

Born in

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury County, Iowa, Woodbury and Plymouth County, Iowa, Plymouth counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, fo ...

, Carpenter attended the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

and received a doctorate degree in experimental psychology from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

. He moved to

Orange County, California Orange County (officially the County of Orange; often initialized O.C.) is a county (United States), county located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population ...

in 1960 and worked as a psychologist.

Political career

He was involved with the Democratic Party. From 1974 to 1976, Carpenter served in the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...

. He then served in the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...

from 1976 to 1986. In 1982, Carpenter ran for the Democratic Party nomination for U.S. Senate but lost to then-governor

Jerry Brown Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic P ...

. Carpenter also served on the

California Board of Equalization The California State Board of Equalization (BOE) is a public agency charged with Tax, tax administration and Fee, fee collection in the state of California in the United States. The authorities of the Board attempt to ensure that counties fairl ...

from 1987 to 1990. Despite being convicted of corruption charges in 1990, he won re-election to the board but was barred from serving because of the conviction. Carpenter chaired his Senate caucus election fund-raising work from 1980 to 1985, which led to accusations of corruption. In 1990, Carpenter was convicted of racketeering, conspiracy and extortion as part of the

BRISPEC sting operation The Bribery and Special Interest (BRISPEC) sting operation was a sting operation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation that investigated corruption in the California State Legislature from 1986 to 1988. The operation, later known as Sh ...

. He fled to

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

before sentencing, claiming it was for prostate cancer treatment and was subsequently extradited to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. He served a prison term from 1995 until 1999.

Later life

Carpenter's only child, Jana Carpenter-Koklich (born January 1, 1960), went missing from her home in

Lakewood, California Lakewood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 82,496 at the 2020 census. It is bordered by Long Beach on the west, northwest and south, Bellflower on the north, Cerritos on the northeast, Cypress on t ...

in August 2001 and has never been found. Her husband Bruce Koklich was convicted of her murder in 2004, incarcerated for 15 years to life; in 2023, he was denied parole for the fifth time, and will not be eligible again until 2028. For many years, Carpenter lived in

Cypress, California Cypress is a city in northwestern Orange County, California. Its population was 50,151 as of the 2020 census. History Cypress originally was nicknamed "Waterville" due to the preponderance of artesian wells in the area, but was incorporated ...

. Carpenter died of cancer in 2002 at his home in

San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...

, where he had been living since his release from prison in 1999.Paul Carpenter, 73; Former Legislator Went to Prison
/ref>

References

External links

Join California Paul B. Carpenter
1928 births 2002 deaths People from Cypress, California Politicians from Iowa City, Iowa Politicians from San Antonio University of Iowa alumni Florida State University alumni 20th-century American psychologists Democratic Party California state senators Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly California politicians convicted of crimes 20th-century members of the California State Legislature {{California-CASenate-stub