CHARLESTON, W.Va. — You may find Charleston Deputy Police Chief Tony Hazelett floating in the middle of the Greenbrier River in the next couple of days.
And who could blame him.
Hazelett retired Friday after 27 years with the Charleston Police Department.
The Huntington area native was hired by the CPD in 1999. In 2002 he went to the department’s Detective Bureau where he spent 10 years. He was promoted to sergeant and worked the road and then former Chief Steve Cooper moved him to assistant chief of detectives. He later became chief of detectives and then deputy chief under current Chief Scott Dempsey. Hazelett has been the department spokesman for several years.
Hazelett said Friday he had no specific plans for retirement other than spending some time on the river. He said he has a “couple of irons in the fire” for possible future jobs.
His advice to a young officer?
“Your reputation in the community can take years to build but seconds to lose, so stay honest, stay the course by remembering your safety tactics and remembering your training,” Hazelett said on 580Live with Dave Allen Friday on 580 WCHS.
Communication is a key to good policing, Hazelett said.
“Emotions are high with families when they have tragedy. I always wanted to do it in person. You sit down with them and tell them you’ve made an arrest and you go through the process. They are so thankful especially when you do it in person,” Hazelett said.
He said one of the most memorable cases was the 2007 arrest of the “Plaid Shirt Bandit” Joseph Paul Young who robbed banks in Charleston and several other states.
“He robbed almost 40 banks along the east coast including three in Charleston,” Hazelett said. “We were able to solve it—he went to an ATM at one of the banks he was going to rob to check his account balance.”
Hazelett said he had several chances to take other law enforcement jobs over the years but stuck with Charleston.
“My family had a very tragic incident in 2006 and the Charleston Police Department took care of me to the point that I won’t ever forget it. I knew right then I was going to give my life to the Charleston Police Department,” Hazelett said.