Lost Hills Deputy Mike Treinen Mourned After Sudden Death

MALIBU, CA — Retired Lost Hills Deputy Michael Treinen has died, the Malibu-Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station reported. Treinen, 57, of Canoga Park, served over 30 years at the LASD, most of which were spent at Lost Hills, according to the department.

Treinen served as Malibu’s official homeless liaison, and trained many of the deputies still working at the station today.

“Our LASD – Lost Hills Family are deeply saddened to report the untimely death of Deputy Michael Treinen,” the department said in a Facebook post. “Deputy Treinen was beloved by his community and by those who worked alongside him. Rest in Peace Mike, your service, humility and quiet strength will never be forgotten.”

"Deputy Treinen was an important member of the Malibu community for many years," Malibu Mayor Mikke Pierson wrote in a statement released by the city. "In addition to being universally loved and respected by our residents, his personal connection to many homeless individuals in Malibu was a critical factor in so many of them getting the services they needed and eventually finding permanent housing. Our hearts go out to his wife and children, as well as his brothers and sisters in the Sheriff's Department."

The Lost Hills Facebook post garnered 72 comments and 59 shares within six hours of its posting. Some comments came from Treiner’s former trainees. “My T.O. [training officer],” wrote one user. “Thank you Sir for all you taught me about not just LE [law enforcement], but life. Still trying to wrap my brain around this news. RIP Sir. Gone too soon.”

“While working in Malibu I had a chance to meet him and talk to him while he was still an officer and even after he retired he still stopped by to visit us at work,” another user wrote. “Always a cool guy with and without his uniform...what’s even more shocking is that my co worker had just saw him surfing yesterday.”

This is the second untimely passing of a Lost Hills deputy in less than a month. On March 17, Michael Churney, a 44-year-old motorcycle officer who had been with the station since 1996, died of what the LASD described as a “sudden illness.”

Churney was memorialized with a procession of sheriff’s deputies and fire department personnel as his body was moved from Henry Mayo Hospital in Valencia, according to the Malibu Times.