Lasting Memories

Bill E. Eastman
Dec. 1, 1940-June 29, 2026
Pleasanton, California

William (Bill) Ellis Eastman was born on Dec. 1, 1940 in St. Louis, MO. He passed away peacefully in the hospital on June 29th, 2026 at 85 years old with family close by his side. Bill was a cherished husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, great-grandfather, uncle, pet parent, and friend. His essence, presence and sense of humor will deeply be missed. 

Bill started his path in Southern California in the 1950’s. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and received undergraduate and master’s degrees from Pepperdine University and the University of Southern California. Bill had a long and distinguished career as a police officer in Culver City, CA until he was hired as Police Chief in Pleasanton, CA. in 1981. His service as Pleasanton’s Police Chief was just shy of 20 years before his retirement.  Bill also served several years as President of the California Police Chiefs Association as well as the Chairman of boxing for the California State Athletic Commission, a position appointed by Governor Wilson in the 1990s.

Bill took his 34 + year career in public service very seriously. He was a no-nonsense, intelligent leader that strived to keep the streets of Pleasanton safe for all who lived and visited there while he served as chief. Bill was instrumental in positioning Pleasanton to become a safe and thriving community to live in while enormous population growth was taking place during the 80s and 90s.

His family can attest that Bill whole-heartedly took it upon himself to see that victim’s rights were of the forefront of his efforts to bring perpetrators to justice. There is a certain toll that takes place that no one sees outside of law enforcement. He took crimes against his citizens extremely personally, that happened on “his and his department’s watch”. Tina Faelz and Vannesa Lei Samson were high-profile cases but to Bill, this was personal as if they were his own daughters. This bothered him exponentially and only increased his will to seek justice for the victims and their families.

He taught the importance of taking responsibility and accountability for one’s own actions and was always there to help others, be it an elderly lady who fell and hit her head, to the elderly who couldn’t find their vehicles in the Stoneridge Mall parking lot to the mistreatment of children and animals. He was truly a man who rested on his beliefs and principles and had a complete propensity towards justice on and off his watch.   To those of whom truly knew him, he was a loving, passionate and devoted family man. He was pragmatic in his approach to everything he took on; this included his sense of humor. It was keen, it was fast and sharp and often caught you of guard. He was always the life of the party taking things a bit too far but nonetheless it would often conclude to be the funniest thing you have ever witnessed in your life, which is what he strived for. Bill had a profoundly serious side but then it was offset by this sense of humor that would show itself in a completely unguarded way.   Along with his comedic side, Bill was also highly creative and an avid artist that loved to teach his daughters how to draw when they were young. Bill also built his own bike seats for his daughters so that they could enjoy riding along with him on the strand in Manhattan Beach, CA.   As an enthused writer, he had a supreme gift when it came to the written word as his mother, Zetta did. He spent many hours crafting police novels as well as also authoring books on America and it’s principles for his grandchildren to read. 

Bill is survived by his wife DiAnn, daughters Jennifer and Erica, sons-in-law Darrin and John as well as 7 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren. Bill’s life was a testament in putting others before himself in service. He is now in eternal peace. Matthew 5:9: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God".