Hurd considers chief position in Torrington: GPD boss cites fear of being fired by mayoral hopeful, councilmen

Glenrock Police Department Chief Tim Hurd didn’t think he would get the job. With 19 other applicants vying to be police chief, he thought he didn’t have the credentials to be one of the finalists.
He made it to the final two candidates. In the end, however, Hurd was beat out by Natrona County Sheriff’s Office Investigator David Hulshizer.
Then, after initially accepting the job, Hulshizer called Torrington Mayor Mike Varney and told him he wouldn’t take it for personal reasons. Now, Hurd is headed this week to Torrington to meet with Varney and the Torrington City Council, where he expects to be presented with a contract.
He was first contacted by a headhunting agency, urging him to apply for the job in March. He applied out of a fear for his job with the new members of the council coming in this year.
“I think my job may be in jeopardy come the next election,” Hurd said. “I don’t think that one or more of the people going to run for mayor are going to retain me. I think that they don’t look at community policing the way I do, or look at policing the way I do.”
The move is bittersweet for Hurd. He doesn’t want to leave Glenrock but feels he must.
“I wouldn’t have changed it for the world and it’s with such bittersweet sorrow that I feel I have to leave here. This is the best job and community I have ever had the privilege of working for,” Hurd said. “The changes that we have made have been so positive, it is with a heavy heart that I believe what I have to do is find employment elsewhere rather than stay where I want to stay.”