Bar Association honors former Camanche police chief
May 8—CLINTON — Former Camanche Police Chief Colin Reid was named the 2021 Liberty Bell recipient Friday by the Clinton County Bar Association.
Each May, the Bar Association gives the Liberty Bell award to an individual or group for outstanding community service, Clinton County Bar Association President Braydon Roberts said at a Camanche City Council meeting in April.
"I'm happy to announce that this year's award has been given to Chief Colin Reid for his years of service to our community," Roberts said in April.
Reid retired as Camanche Police Chief effective April 27 after over four years serving as the police chief in Camanche. Reid served in the Clinton Police Department from 1994 until his hire as Camanche Police Chief in January 2017.
Reid said he was humbled and honored to receive the award from the Clinton County Bar Association.
"I've had a career of attorneys who have not only guided me through the legal processes but have helped me make decisions and with empathy and compassion and just morals and ethics and so much more involved than just the letter of the law," Reid said earlier this week.
"And from (Clinton County Attorney) Mike Wolf's office and all the attorneys that have worked there to my current position, John Frey, Randy Current and Braydon Roberts have been so beneficial to me. I just can't say enough positive about the caliber of attorneys we have in the Clinton County area both that work in private practice and in the county attorney's office," Reid said.
"I've met wonderful defense attorneys in this area over the years that are outstanding people. So to be picked by them certainly is humbling. I know there are many people who are deserving of this award," said Reid.
The 2020 award ceremony was canceled due to COVID. Recipients of the award for 2020 were the essential workers, Wolf said Friday.
As for the 2021 recipient, "I know he's very humble," said Wolf. "He never wants to take that credit for himself."
Frey spearheaded the nomination of Reid, Wolf said. A former law enforcement officer himself, Frey said he's always had respect for officers.
When Frey thinks of Reid, he thinks of courage, honesty, compassion, humility and respect for the law, for officers and for the people they serve—even people who have violated the law, Frey said.
"[He's] shown by his actions what we expect from our law enforcement officers," said Reid.
Reid makes those around him better, said Wolf. He's a good communicator and leads by example.
Roberts came to Frey, Haufe and Current straight out of law school, he said. Because he was young and inexperienced, people sometimes doubted what he told them or questioned his judgment, he said.
"Colin was one of the few people that never questioned me," said Roberts. "He had confidence in me." Reid helped Roberts grow as an attorney.
"You've had more of an impact than I think you could ever know," Roberts told Reid.
Wolf presented a plaque from the Bar Association to Reid, and Camanche City Administrator Andrew Kida gave the former police chief his old name plate and an Iowa flag from the office of Iowa Sen. Chris Cournoyer.
