Capt. Alan McDearmond promoted as interim Hartselle police chief
Hartselle Police Capt. Alan McDearmond was selected by the City Council to serve as the interim Hartselle chief of police during a council meeting Tuesday night.
The move comes after Hartselle Chief Justin Barley announced his retirement in December after serving in that role since 2019. He will officially retire next week.
McDearmond said he hopes to become the permanent chief and reflected on the work he and Barley have completed in the last 26 years, which includes implementing technologies within the department such as license plate reading software to assist officers looking for individuals involved in criminal activity.
“I just want to keep the department moving forward with technology and educating the officers with training,” McDearmond said. “For 26 years, me and the chief have worked in investigations and … a lot of the processes we have now are what we have put together. As far as making any changes, I don’t really plan on doing anything other than trying to make the processes we have as good as they are and better.”
McDearmond said that if approved as permanent chief, he will continue hiring officers who align with his vision for Hartselle — those who are “empathetic, hardworking and committed to doing a good job.”
McDearmond, 53, began his law enforcement career as a reserve officer with the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office in Florida after earning an associate’s degree from Okaloosa Technical College. An Air Force veteran, he joined the Hartselle Police Department on Jan. 25, 1999.
“I started as a booking clerk,” McDearmond said. “There was a position that was obtained through a grant and I was the third person to have that job at the Police Department. I stayed in that position until the fall of 1999 and applied to the patrol position and went to police academy.”
After working patrol for a few years, McDearmond transferred to the investigations unit where he remained for the next 20 years, rising through the ranks to become a sergeant and later lieutenant over the entire investigations team. He was promoted to captain after the previous captain retired.
“I’ve done pretty much everything you can do at the department,” McDearmond said. “The only thing I haven’t done is work as a school resource officer.”
City Council President Kenny Thompson said McDearmond was an exemplary public servant and even solved the case of some burglaries that occurred at Thompson’s residence several years ago.
“Our house got broke into twice and he was the investigator both times and he caught both of the culprits,” Thompson said. “He’s done a good job here and he is easy to get along with. Just a real nice guy.”
Thompson said two council members were absent Tuesday night, but the rest of the council voted to approve McDearmond’s promotion.
Thompson said he hopes to see McDearmond become the permanent police chief because of his experience working with Barley and Morgan County Sheriff Ron Puckett, who served as Hartselle’s police chief before Barley.
“It’s his turn now,” Thompson said of McDearmond. “He’s my choice for permanent chief unless someone really strong comes in. He’s put his time in, and he’s got almost 30 years of experience.”
