Published: November 02, 2009 10:46 am      

Harrell retires, plans run for Whitley sheriff

By Adam Sulfridge / Staff Writer

Thirty-two hours before his retirement from the Kentucky State Police was to become official, Colan Harrell publicly announced his intent to run for Whitley County Sheriff.

Harrell worked with KSP since graduating from their academy in 1969 and was a detective for 35 of his 40 years of service. During an interview, he explained why he’ll run against incumbent Lawrence Hodge for sheriff and told stories from his days as a detective, some funny and others heartbreaking.

“I have a desire to give back… with the knowledge and experience I’ve gained through my career with the state police and the two college degrees I earned at Cumberland and Eastern, I think I would bring a lot to Whitley County as sheriff,” he said.

As a boy, Harrell said the law enforcement field appealed to him. “There was a trooper named Bill Hughes who was our neighbor in Knox County, and he really impressed me.

“I entered the cadet class at $457 per month, and at that time it was under the Department of Public Safety instead of the Justice Cabinet,” he recalled. “When I graduated the academy in 1969, I was issued a two-door Ford… you had to raise the seat forward to put a suspect in the back, and we did not have screens or cages in our cars… Of course, you could imagine the situations we had because of that.”

Harrell described a lunchbox-sized first aid kit which he’s kept ever since it was issued to him after graduation.

“There’s enough room for some bandages, tourniquets, and gauze… I kept mine all this time, and now there’s one identical to it in the Kentucky State Police museum in Frankfort,” he said.

“Our radios were state-of-the-art for the time, but in Lee, Owsley, and Estill counties, I sometimes had to drive to the Wolf County line just to call in to our dispatcher; if it rained, we wouldn’t have communications that day.” He laughed a bit and then said, “I even bought my own flashlight when I started.”

Despite working 12-14 hours per day on weekends (without the safeguards and protection today’s officers have), Harrell stayed with the Kentucky State Police and was transferred to Post 11 in London in 1971. Three years later he was promoted to detective and has since worked hundreds of death investigations, some of which have landed him in books.

“I shared top billing with a couple of officers from San Berdino Valley, California,” Harrell said with a grin. “It was a murder mystery, involving an individual who was murdered off East 92... he was murdered for hire.” Recalling facts of the case, he explained, “The two individuals who killed the man went to California and killed two girls out there; they tortured them… any perverted action you can think of, they done to those girls prior to killing them.”

His face grew serious as he said, “It was Greg Marlow and Cynthia Coffman, also known as Sinful… they’ve since been tried in California and are on death row as we speak.”

When asked about the emotional side of his work, Harrell said, “You have to put your emotions aside, especially whenever you investigate homicides, or other crimes of violence… you can’t show fear, and you have to show compassion because without compassion, you’re not good to anyone.”

Away from the crime scene, he said dealing with the stress is a different story. “You do take it home with you, you think about it… I wake up in the middle of the night, sometimes, thinking about how to handle particular cases.

“The cases involving young ones and older people bother me the most,” Harrell said with a tone of frustration. “In 1992, there was a young boy, his grandmother was babysitting him, and she was watching the movie ‘Scarface’ while doing cocaine… she left the cocaine on the nightstand, went downstairs to get a drink of water, and while she was gone, the child ingested the cocaine and died from overdose.”

He then recalled a story of a brutal attack on an elderly lady right outside the Williamsburg city limits.

“On Savoy Road, a lady named Alice Sumner was stabbed 36 times by a juvenile… she was around 76 years old, and we found her bound… she was placed in a bed and then the house was set on fire… there’s two young men in the state penitentiary for it,” he said.

“They destroyed three lives, and that was very sad,” Harrell said before adding, “It’s not the blood, like many people think… these are the ones which hit your heart solid.”

In addition to being noted in books, Harrell has received awards from the state and other law enforcement agencies. He’s been distinguished as a Kentucky Colonel by several governors, received special recognition for his investigative abilities from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a Commissioner’s Commendation and has two awards for bravery from the state police. Both bravery citations resulted from deadly shootouts, one in Woodbine and another along I-75.

Harrell said he has never run for public office, but said he’s always enjoyed serving the public. He said he’s served on the local 911 board since its inception, many years as chairman, and has coached area youth in baseball and football.

He said his goal in running for sheriff would be to “bring a professional sheriff’s department to Whitley County.” He added, “I would employ trained personnel, and I’ll bring the professionalism of my training with the Kentucky State Police to the Whitley County Sheriff’s Office.”

“Right now, the major problem is the abuse of drugs… drug abuse in Whitley County is no longer a recreation thing, it has become a culture and this culture has to be stemmed,” he said. “People consider it a victimless crime, but just go to some houses where children are starving or don’t have clothes on their back… the future for them is bleak, and it’s sometimes because of their parents’ abuse of drugs.”

All things considered, Harrell said he was pleased with his service to the state and is looking forward to the opportunity to serve Whitley County.

When asked to sum up the last 40 years of his life, he paused for a moment and then said, “I’ve enjoyed helping people, and I feel like I’ve done it professionally and with dedication. I always had the desire to do the right thing.”