Detective Dave Talbert retired Wednesday after over 20 years serving the Salem community during his career with the Salem Police Department. Talbert said he would miss the Salem community but was looking forward to enjoying his retirement with his family in Florida. Pictured with Talbert, left, is Police Chief J.T. Panezott. (Photo courtesy Dave Talbert).

Salem Police Detective Dave Talbert has retired after over 20 years of dedicated service with the Salem Police Department.

“I’ve been blessed over the years with the administrations I’ve worked for, my co-workers past and present I’ve collaborated with, current and former prosecutors I’ve worked with, but most importantly I want to thank the community. The success that any law enforcement officer or investigator has relies on the community. I think we have a great community here, and I want to thank them for their years of service,” said Talbert.

A Youngstown native, Talbert graduated from Beaver Local High School following which he served in the military and earned a degree in specialized business from Robert Morris University. Talbert said that it wasn’t until after obtaining his degree he decided he wanted to pursue a career in law enforcement, attending the police academy at Jefferson Community College in 1994. In 1995 Talbert began his career as an officer in Leetonia, where he would remain until he joined the Salem Police Department full-time in July of 1999. Talbert was appointed as a department detective in 2006, the position he would remain in until his retirement.

During his career, Talbert served on several noteworthy task forces including the Ohio Organized Crime Task Force, the Major Crime Task Force and the Columbiana County Prosecutor’s Office Cold Case Task Force. Talbert has also served on the Columbiana County Homicide Task Force since its inception in 2012. Talbert was also nominated for Officer of the Year by the Mahoning Valley Chiefs of Police in 1997 and named the Columbiana County Officer of the Year in 2012.

Talbert said that he was originally drawn to a career in law enforcement due to the variety offered by the role, noting that due to the unique nature of every case it is a career where a person can genuinely learn something new every day.

“I didn’t want the same route, I wanted a job that was going to offer me something different every day that would challenge me,” said Talbert.

Talbert said that his philosophy when approaching a given case is to think that every crime has two victims. Talbert explained that he felt the perpetrator was also a victim as “whether there’s an addiction, or something in their past, or mental illness, there’s something that they fell victim to,” to cause their actions and that while their behavior should not be excused, it was important to remember that.

“When you’re dealing with criminals you need to remember that everyone has a story, including that criminal,” said Talbert.

In his career Talbert has participated in the investigation of several notable cases, including the first corrupt activity case and the first case of a drug dealer being charged with manslaughter for the overdose death of someone they sold drugs to in Columbiana County. Talbert credited the incredible resources and leadership he has had access to in his career for allowing him to pursue cases with a more complex and time-consuming nature.

Arguably the most notable investigation Talbert participated in was the 2007 case against Mexican Mafia “shot-caller” Joseph Garivay in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office in California. Talbert said that Garivay had been hiding out in Salem while on the run for murder, and that he had conducted an interview with Garivay in which he implicated himself in the murders. Talbert testified in the Los Angeles Superior Court five times during the course of the trial. Talbert said through the cooperation of Garivay law enforcement were able to directly link the activity of Mafia-affiliated prison and street gangs for the first time.

Talbert has also been part of over a dozen homicide investigations either as lead investigator or through his role on the homicide task force, experiences Talbert said he’d never forget.

“Those victim’s families will always have a piece of me,” said Talbert.

Talbert also noted that while he witnessed and investigated the cases, the victims’ families were forced to experience the murder of a loved one. A pain Talbert knows all too well as his father was murdered in a case that has remained unsolved for nearly 50 years.

“I’ve seen what that does to a family, how it carries on for years. Not just the unknowns because it carries on for years, but the impact it has, and to think that there’s families every day going through that. It’s sad, very sad,” said Talbert

Situations like this are why Talbert’s advice for anyone looking to pursue a career in law enforcement is to ensure they have a strong familial support system and to learn to compartmentalize their work experiences, keeping them separate from their life at home.

“In this job, I don’t care if you’re a patrolman, whether you’re in a big city, or a small town, you’re going to see stuff and do stuff you never want to see or do again and you have to learn to deal with that,” said Talbert.

Talbert said it was important to remember that while working in law enforcement “is not a job like any other job,” it is still a job, stressing the importance of maintaining a work-life balance and learning to keep those two sides of their life separate, noting he himself had struggled to do so at times in his career.

“When you’re here eight hours a day, or 12, or however long, you need to think about what you’re going to do after that. I’m not saying you don’t do your job. You do your job and do it well, but when you’re not here, you’re not here,” said Talbert.

Talbert cited the love and support of his own family, particularly his wife Nicole and their three children Kierstyn, Landon and Loghan, all adults now, as a major factor in the longevity of his career and in learning to maintain that balance, noting they are often the ones to pick him up when he’s down.

“Without a good, supportive family at home it makes this job very difficult,” said Talbert.

Talbert said the things that had changed the most over his nearly 30-year career in law enforcement were the advancement and availability of technology, the advent of the social media age and public perception of police. Talbert said that not only had increased access to forensic and investigative technology vastly increased, but the advent of the cell phone had also changed a great deal about how police work was conducted. Beyond the ability to take photos, record video and access the internet almost at will Talbert said that looking at a person’s phone, and how they use it could reveal a great deal about them. Talbert said that social media had also benefited officers by increasing their ability to both distribute and receive important information within the community.

Talbert noted that the perception of police and investigative work had changed in a number of ways since his career began. Beyond the influx of negative public perception around law enforcement in recent years online, which Talbert noted fortunately has been minimal within the Salem community, Talbert said perception had been changed by what he described as “the CSI effect.” Talbert explained the popularity of investigative dramas on TV like the CSI series had given many people an unrealistic expectation of there always being some kind trace evidence that will solve a case, and of the time it takes to process forensic evidence.

Talbert said he doesn’t believe he’ll miss working in law enforcement following his retirement, noting that while he would miss his co-workers and the community, he “could never miss the element of crime.” Talbert said that prior to joining the Salem police department he had never been to Salem and had since made it his home for over 20 years, and that the community would always have a place in his heart.

Talbert’s plan is to continue employment outside of law enforcement in Florida, joining his wife and children who moved into their new homes ahead of him while he finished his remaining duties at the department. Talbert described himself and his family as “Disney fanatics” and said they planned to enjoy living so close to Disney World, joking he was looking forward to spending his retirement “where everyone is happy.”

Amongst those remaining duties was the training of Patrolman Craig Crider to serve as the department’s new detective following Talbert’s retirement, ensuring the department’s detective positions will remain in capable hands.

mahart@mojonews.com