WEST FORK, Ark. — There is a new police chief in West Fork, and he’s already hard at work.
Bruce Halliburton has been the police chief of West Fork for less than a month, but his career in law enforcement started 32 years ago. He says everyone he’s met so far has been great.
“They’ve welcomed me— people are coming up shaking my hand, people have come to the office to introduce themselves. I've really enjoyed the populace so far,” said Bruce Halliburton.
He retired from the East Point Police Department which is a suburb of Atlanta where they had 130 officers and a more than 200-bed jail, so West Fork is quite the change of pace with just six full-time officers, five part-time and no jail.
“I'm originally from Southeast Missouri, so ... I'm used to small-town life. And I quite enjoyed it as I've gotten older,” said Chief Halliburton.
Halliburton is the first African American police chief of the city, and he says it’s always great to be the first to do something. His hope for the department is that they continue with community policing.
“I want to make sure that we are truly integrated into the community where we build a trusting relationship. And I want to do that through community policing and transparency. Unless it involves a case directly, we shouldn't be hiding anything from the public and all our actions should be open to the people that we serve,” said Chief Halliburton.
Former West Fork Police Chief John Nelson retired at the beginning of 2023 and passed away in June. Halliburton knows he was very well-liked in the community, but says he’s not content to just follow in other's footsteps, he likes to blaze his own path.
“There'll be some things that we do similarly. I, unfortunately, didn't get a chance to meet him. So, I can't speak to his character's personality. But I know me, and I want to put my stamp on the department and everybody to know that 'Hey, Bruce Halliburton, is running this thing. And he's running it right,'” said the new chief.
In Chief Halliburton’s five-year plan, he wants the department to become accredited through the State of Arkansas Law Enforcement Accreditation Program. He says they can accomplish that with training and equipment.
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