Joseph Messer has spent almost half of his life enforcing laws and keeping the peace.
Messer, 70, recently retired from the El Paso County Sheriff's Office after 12 years, but he only joined that department after spending 31 years with the El Paso Police Department, where he held almost every rank possible, including interim police chief.
Messer recently reflected on his time in law enforcement and the technological advances that have aided in police investigations.
Q: What made you decide to join the Police Department?
A: I was 23 years old. I was discharged from the Army in 1962 and I attended college for a while, and quite frankly I applied for the Police Department because I saw an announcement in the paper.
I didn't have any family in law enforcement. I ventured into it by chance.
Q: What kept you in law enforcement?
A: It proved to be challenging. I enjoyed it.
I didn't find it to be boring and mundane and I did pretty well.
Q: What ranks did you hold?
A: I became a patrol sergeant in 1970 until 1973. After that, I was a patrol lieutenant.
In September 1976, I was promoted to captain, and I was a captain from Sept. 16 until Dec. 7, 1976, when I was named interim acting chief. In December 1976 to early June 1977, I reverted back to inspector.
Q: Why didn't you want the chief job?
A: I was only 35 years old, and quite frankly I could not deal with these politicians. I'm not a very patient person.
I have somewhat of a temper. I knew beforehand I could not deal with the daily interaction with the politicians. The job went to Bill Rodriguez, and he was a very good chief for almost 10 years.
I became acting chief again from August 1986 to February 1987. I reverted back to assistant chief when John Scagno was appointed chief.
Q: When did you join the Sheriff's Office?
A: I retired (from the Police Department) in 1995 and after a hiatus of several years, I went to the Sheriff's Office.
I was 57 years old. I knew what I was getting into. I spent a year (as a detention officer) at the Downtown jail, then Sheriff Leo Samaniego appointed me deputy. Then I spent five years in the civil section serving subpoenas.
The last four years — up until I retired, I was doing warrants and fugitive extraditions.
Q: Why did you decide to retire?
A: I'm 70 years old and I'm still in pretty good condition, but the job I was doing was just getting too difficult for a person of my age.
I can't see too well at night and I was having difficulty during long trips.
I was the oldest person with the Sheriff's Office when I retired. And I was the oldest person at the Police Department when I retired there.
Q: In your time in law enforcement, what were some of the more interesting changes you've noticed?
A: When I started in law enforcement, the Miranda warning was not in effect. It did not go into effect until 1966.
Once the Miranda warning was put into effect, it entails you to have more probable cause and you have to make better arrests.
Also, such things as DNA did not exist.
We used old typewriters and we had one radio mounted in the car.
Now everything has improved. The overall educational level of the average deputy and patrolman is much higher.
The only negative drawbacks that I see are the amount of paperwork has increased and keeps the officer out in the field for a longer amount of time, and the necessity to have a magistrate judge administer the Miranda warning also increases the down time.
That's why it's not so much that police administrators need more men, it's the need for more man hours from the officers you do have.
Those two problems, I don't think there's a solution to it.
Q: What are your plans now?
A: I really don't know. I'll take each day as they come. I don't have any long-range plans.
When you're 70, you'll see what I mean.
