TIM PRATT
STARKVILLE — As John Outlaw relaxed in the living room of his home Wednesday afternoon on Laurel Hill Road, he smiled when looking back at his 31 years of law enforcement experience.
He recalled joining the Starkville Police Department as a patrolman in 1979 under then-Chief John Gray, making about $690 a month and sometimes going an entire night without receiving a call. Some of his friends started to avoid him because he had become a police officer, and Starkville didn’t have as many of the “big city” problems as it does now, like drugs and the occasional violent crime, he said.
But Outlaw smiled even wider when talking about his future plans.
At 55 years old, Outlaw retired as assistant chief of the Starkville Police Department on Jan. 28 and plans to spend the next few months putting the stress of the past three decades behind him.
Outlaw hopes to travel to see his son, Travis Outlaw, play for the Portland Trailblazers of the National Basketball Association. Travis, 25, has been injured this season, but plans to return to the court shortly after the NBA All-Star break, his father said. The All-Star game is this weekend in Dallas.
The elder Outlaw also plans to travel with his wife, Markeeta, who serves as city clerk, and daughter, 13-year-old Kaehla, and to spend time with his oldest son, John Jr., 32, and nephew, Derrick, 24.
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