Doug McCloskey hangs up badge, ends nearly 40-year career

Wrangell Police Chief Doug McCloskey was recognized for his service to the community at last week's borough assembly meeting. With his recent retirement at the end of June, McCloskey has closed out 38 years of police work. His career in law enforcement started almost 40 years ago in Montana. His first job was as a reserve officer in the Madison County jail. Then, in 1981, he began working for the sheriff's department of Beaverhead County, Montana. What inspired him to work in law enforcement, he said, were all the people and friends who inspired him to continue down that path.

"Johnny France hired me," McCloskey said. "I'd been working in the welding shops and stuff, and he hired me to go work in the jail and dispatch. Basically, he was the one that said 'No, you need to get out and be a sheriff's deputy.' So then I went over to Beaverhead County, which is the next county over ... It was just the people early on that encouraged me and some of the friends I made along the way."

McCloskey worked in Beaverhead County from 1981 to 1992, then decided it was time for another change. His family had always wanted to try living in Alaska, he said and the Wrangell Police Department was offering a nice retirement plan. He was hired by the Wrangell police department in 1992. By 2003, McCloskey had worked his way up to chief.

"I wouldn't have guessed it had been that long ago," he said.

In the early years as chief, McCloskey said that one of the big challenges his department faced was the drug trade. According to a 2005 report by the McDowell Group, an Alaskan research and consulting firm, in 2003 there were an estimated 17,400 arrests made due to alcohol or drug abuse. The total cost to the state of Alaska from alcohol and drug abuse was estimated at $367 million in "lost productivity." Half of this cost came from deaths from alcohol or drug abuse, and another 11 percent came from incarceration. McCloskey said that the drug trade is still an issue his department faces today, but there is also an additional challenge of recruiting new, qualified police officers to the force.

That is not to say his time as police chief has been one challenge after another. McCloskey said that he has enjoyed most of his time on the job. People often only see police when they're doing the dirty work of their job, he said. However, the positive moments on the job often make up for it.

"I would agree there are a lot of things they didn't tell me when I hired on," he said. "Mostly it's been positive. What most people see police doing is all the ugly stuff, dealing with people usually at their worst. The best part of policing is when you actually get to see where you do some good and help people. It's a matter of trying to work with the community to make positive change."

A new police chief has not been selected yet, though Mayor Steve Prysunka and Assembly Member Patty Gilbert were appointed to the search committee to find one last week during their assembly meeting. McCloskey said he is proud of his department and is confident they will manage without his leadership.

"I think we've got some really good people hired," he said. "I've had the opportunity to work with some really outstanding folks along the way. I think they'll do well."

A retirement party for McCloskey was held at the American Legion building last Saturday, June 29. The official end of his job came at midnight, June 30. With a laugh, McCloskey said he liked to tell people that he was going to move down south after retiring, but only a few miles. His retirement plans involve moving out to 12 mile on Zimovia Highway and building his new home there, and getting in some fishing in his spare time. He will not be going very far, and will still be a familiar face around town.

"Thanks to the community," he said. "There's been some really rewarding relationships with the people in town."