First Responders Month: Values stay the same as Glueck steers ship while awaiting new department leader

Career Cape Girardeau Police Department officer Adam Glueck continues to steer "the ship" of the interim chief as officers await an appointment of a chief.

Glueck started his career in Cape Girardeau law enforcement as a part-time administrative clerk in 1999 and has remained with the department since. He received a degree in criminal justice at Southeast Missouri State University.

Glueck said that while he was pursuing his degree at SEMO, he started working as a clerk in a grant-funded position for the department.

"This was prior to us having an automated phone system, so anytime someone called the police department, they talked to somebody," Glueck said.

He said the police department saw a lot of change in a short amount of time with chief Wes Blair and assistant chief Rodney Barker retiring from the department within a few months. Glueck said Blair's retirement "unfolded rather rapidly".

"That presented some challenges," he said. "A lot of extra duties that I'm trying to keep up with, and I've had a lot of help with our current staff, too, right and, you know, I wouldn't have been able to get where I am today without the people that currently work here, and then the people that work here, that don't anymore and then the people prior to me."

He said he is wearing "a lot of hats" in the department at the moment. Glueck said his role at this time is to "steer the ship" and a chief will "chart the course".

He said his place as chief is unique, so he doesn't want to make "enormous" changes in an interim position. He does acknowlege while not making certain changes there are certain things that can't be overlooked, including "hard dedcisions".

Glueck said while he can acknowledge there are differences between his and Blair's leadership and different supervisory styles, he said one difference is the lengthy time Glueck has had with the Cape Girardeau Police Department.

He said he's lived in the area, went to SEMO and spent his entire law enforcement career in the Cape Girardeau Police Department, serving the department in various capacities. Glueck said he has served in the patrol division, as a school resource officer, public information officer, training coordinator and jail administrator.

"I've seen this department from a lot of different angles that somebody coming from the outside doesn't really have," Glueck said. "Somebody coming from the outside is gonna have to rely a lot on his staff to kind of fill him in on what the issues are and what the problems are. With me being here and seeing those issues firsthand, I think it does give me the tools necessary to address some of those issues."

He said the values he holds as a police officer haven't changed even since being a part-time clerk.

"Just the mission of the Cape Girardeau Police Department — protect life, property and the rights of persons, and then enforce ordinances and laws and preserve peace, order and safety," Glueck said. "That doesn't change."

He also pointed to piece of a paper on the wall in his office where the police department's code of ethics is printed. Glueck said he keeps it there to stay in his mind daily.