By Kaitlin Candelaria
Homewood Police Chief Jim Roberson was led into police work by the desire to make an A.
“I had a grandfather that was a Birmingham police officer for 25 years but he retired by the time I was born,” Roberson said. “I left high school to go to Jacksonville State to be a history teacher, but I had the opportunity to be raised in a small church with (Jefferson County) Sheriff Mel Bailey and when he found out I was going to JSU, he kept trying to steer me into law enforcement.
“At the end of the first year, my grades weren’t great and someone said to take intro to law enforcement and when I did, I found my true passion I couldn’t get enough of it. I wasn’t satisfied with just an A – I wanted the highest score in the class and that’s where my love affair with law enforcement began.”
Roberson, who will be retiring from his position as chief at the beginning of 2016, got his start with the Homewood Police Department before going on to work as a Jefferson County sheriff for 37 years and then returning to Homewood as chief in 2011. He’s handled everything from corrections to the SWAT team and has even gone undercover with long hair and a beard to make drug buys.
“I guess you could say I’ve gone full circle in my career,” Roberson said. “(Homewood) was my first job and I feel like it will be my last job in law enforcement. I’ve always been attached to Homewood – it’s really a great and little unique city. It was a great city when I left the police department and it’s an even better city now.”
Roberson said many things have changed throughout the course of his career, from the types of equipment police officers carry to the types of crimes they fight. He described starting his career with revolvers, a single set of handcuffs and a wooden or plastic baton. He purchased his own bulletproof vest when he started his job.
“I’ve had the opportunity to meet and work with a lot of good people,” Roberson said. “The department has become more diverse and more specialized in a lot of areas simply because law enforcement itself has changed.”
Throughout his career with Homewood, Roberson has been passionate about working with the community to raise funds for the Special Olympics and other organizations through various fundraisers, and about being a member of the community in which he works. One example is Coffee with Cops, a program that allows police officers and community members to come together over a cup of coffee at a local restaurant.
“We frequently talk football with them and we fill up their coffee cup,” he said. “It’s based on the premise of building relationships one cup of coffee at a time.”
Although Roberson said he will miss working with the public and his officers, he said he is excited about having more free time to spend with his family.
“The other day I attended my grandson’s baseball game, and when it was over with I recalled that for the first time I had not looked at my cell phone and no one had called me, and I thought to myself, ‘You know, this is the way it was supposed to be,’” he said. “I have been honored to serve as Homewood’s chief. I hope that the way I’ve conducted myself and tried to administer this department has been a credit to this city and I just wish them well.”
