The April Senior Men's Club was treated to the speaker's experience in law enforcement and how these experiences are being used as background material to write a series of novels. The guest speaker for the April meeting at Woodside Country Club was Robert Clark. Clark had been in law enforcement for more than 35 years as a New York State trooper and private investigator in Plattsburgh, New York, prior to retiring. His first published novel is a detective story "Borderline Terror" based on his state trooper and private investigator experience.
Clark explained that state troopers patrol rural areas not patrolled by town or village police departments. Clark described in some detail a domestic violence case he was involved with in the Plattsburgh area. He and his trooper partner were following up on a woman's call around midnight to the police barracks. She said her husband had been drinking and had gone "berserk." The woman said her husband had left the house with both a rifle and a revolver.
As the troopers approached the house, the husband met them in the road and fired his rifle at the two troopers in the patrol car. Clark's partner was struck in the leg as he was leaving the vehicle. Clark had ducked below the dashboard. A shot came through the car windshield where Clark had been sitting just moments earlier and exited out the back. The husband fled into the woods. Clark summoned police backup and medical help for his partner and then re-engaged the husband by calling to him to come out from the woods so he could "talk to him".
The man appeared and Clark put the man in the beam of his two police car spotlights and fired as the man again raised his rifle to shoot. Clark hit the man on one of his hands holding the rifle and the man spun to the ground losing his weapon. Clark advanced and handcuffed the man before back-up help arrived. Clark reported that the man served 4 years in a mental intuition. In October, 1973 Trooper Robert Clark was presented with the General Douglas MacArthur award for "valor under fire" by the Plattsburgh substation. He also received a commendation letter from President Nixon for his participation in this harrowing event.
As a private investigator Clark described a case of suspected marital unfaithfulness and of being hired by the suspicious wife. Using his wits and training, Bob ascertained that the husband was indeed cheating, tracking the man in his easily spotted luxurious Mercedes-Benz to the rendezvous location. With the details provided by Clark, the wife divorced this man, a prominent doctor in the small town where he lived. Newspaper headlines and gossip forced the doctor to subsequently leave the area.
Clark really enjoys his retirement in Aiken and his passion for writing. He has been working on a second novel and has ideas for a third book based on his experience in law enforcement.
The speaker for the May 20 meeting of the Senior Men's Club will be Clyde Smith reflecting on the Normandy Invasion of World War II. Reservations for the luncheon or inquires about membership may be made by calling 649-6116.