Person:James Hazlett (2)

James Allen Hazlett, 76, was born in Monona, Iowa, to Irwin and Florence Thompson Hazlett. A graduate of Monona High School and Iowa State Teacher’s College (now University of Northern Iowa), he served two-and-half years in the U.S. Army at the Port of Embarkation in Beremerhaven, Germany. In 1962, he married Frances K. Finn, his college sweetheart, and they had three children.

With a strong desire to serve the public, Jim became a police officer, first in Monona and then in Iowa City. He was an expert at police procedure, crowd control, radar systems, and defensive driving, and occasionally he taught courses on those topics in Iowa City and also at the Cedar Rapids Police Academy. He represented the Iowa City patrol officers in the negotiations for their first collective bargaining contract. Jim served for 23 years on the ICPD, achieving the rank of Sergeant.

Jim enjoyed sports and was an avid baseball and football fan, cheering for the Chicago Cubs and Bears. During the school year, he followed his children’s sports teams. Summers found Jim coaching boys’ baseball and managing the police department’s softball team. He also enjoyed outdoor sports, including hunting and fishing.

An on-the-job back injury led to early retirement, a move to Dover, Tennessee, and more time with his grandchildren. Jim continued to be civic-minded by serving as his county’s Disaster Coordinator, Kiwanis Club President, and by volunteering on several boards. Jim passed away after an extended illness on February 5, 2014. He was preceded in death by his parents, brother Edgar, sister Vivienne, and son David.