Herb Cooley: The Law Enforcement Legacy of My Father

By Zach Cooley

A legendary figure in Virginia and North Carolina law enforcement for the past fifty years, Herb Cooley has achieved the highest laurels awarded to a police officer. A native of rural Grayson County, he enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard and went to work for the High Point Police Department, where he was a patrolmen, motorcycle cop and detective in the thick of the Civil Rights group when suchnotoriously dangerous groups as the BlackPanthers moved through town. Herb alsomaintained a clean record as an officer at a timewhen his police department was under tremendous scrutiny. He eventually moved to the Office of the Public Defender, solving high profile cases for the state of North Carolina. Herb earned hisMaster's degree in Criminal Justice Administration and graduating from the prestigious FBI NationalAcademy. He was selected as Chief Deputy of the Wythe County Sheriff's Office in Virginia where, for the next fourteen years, he and his longtime friend, Sheriff Wayne Pike, rebuilt the entire department by creating countless drugand traffic safety programs that are still saving lives today. Working on countless civiccommittees and even serving as President of thelocal Chamber of Commerce, Herb made anunsuccessful bid for Wythe County Clerk ofCourt in 1991. In 1994, Herb achieved the rank ofChief of Police in Pulaski, Virginia, where heinstituted everything from new drug laws to even arevamping of the patrol car design. Herbcompleted his career as Chief of Police in Vinton, Virginia, where he turned a virtually disgraceddepartment into one of the few fully accreditedagencies in the state. Retiring after 45 years, Herb has lived in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina andFancy Gap, Virginia, where he has enjoyedspending time with family in the coast andmountains. In this unprecedented look intohis legacy, including nearly 80 rare photos, Herb's impressive story is told by the most unique of authors: his son, longtime journalist, Zach Cooley, who endeavored to discover his father as he never knew him before: a legendary officer who has dedicated his life to protecting others.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 154031054X
• ISBN13: 9781540310545
• Release Date: November 2016
• Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 358 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.0" x 9.0"