Kutcher Set To Retire After 33 Years Of Service

Officer Gary Kutcher

August 13th, 2022

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The halls at Oskaloosa Community School will have a new school resource officer, as Officer Gary Kutcher will be hanging it up after 33 years of service to Oskaloosa and the school district.

Kutcher graduated from Keokuk in 1985 and then joined the military and served in the military police.

Once he left the military, he went back to school and started testing with various law enforcement agencies for fun.

Eleven months after leaving the military, he got a call from Oskaloosa and Chief of Police Mark Diamond to join the department in April of 1989. “I’ve been here ever since.”

Kutcher was the second hire from the list, as former officer Barb Saville was hired in November 1988.

Kutcher was a young officer in a new town, and he describes those first months as interesting and fell back on his experience as a military policeman during that time. “That was a big adjustment.”

“I nearly left and went back into the service during my first year,” Kutcher admits. “But then some of the officers from back in the day reached out to me and made me feel more welcome after I was here a while.”

Kutcher has been asked many times over the years how law enforcement has changed from when he first started compared to today.

“Technology is the biggest change,” Kutcher says. He talked about some of those new technologies like dash and body cameras, computers in cars, and “old rinky-dink radios with four channels and those big analog buttons you had to push in.”

Personal gear has also changed; today, officers carry pepper spray, tasers, and more.

Kutcher also spoke of the way those dreaded tickets have changed a lot as well. In the past, tickets were handwritten; today, they are printed up from that computer in the squad car.

Reports are much the same. In the past, an officer used a typewriter or an ink pen; today, they use a keyboard attached to a computer.

“I love all the automated computer-type stuff if everything’s working. But, you know, if something goes wrong, it could really spoil your day or spoil what you intend to do at work that day,” Kutcher says. “I mean, back in the day, if your pen ran out of ink, you just grab another pen.”

Kutcher says that he believes that today’s officers that are being hired are “a bit more professional and more educated.”

Before he became a school resource officer, Kutcher says he used to tell young officers to keep a journal of the interesting things that happened, good or bad. “[It’s] something that I wish I’d done when I was younger.”

When it comes to making a difference during his time in law enforcement, “there’s a lot of little things. Changing somebody’s tire for them.”

But when it comes to making the most significant impact, Kutcher believes it’s his time with the DARE program. “I like to think that there were plenty of kids that really got the message and helped them make better decisions.”

He also says that being able to connect law enforcement with the youth. “I think [it] has paid off in spades.”

There are those bad memories as a law enforcement officer as well. The death of children, terrible car accidents, and even more are just some things that impact not only officers but also first responders in general.

Kutcher says he’s got a support system to help him during those times when unpleasant experiences impact his life.

On why Kutcher stayed in Oskaloosa versus joining another department, “I started raising my family, and I felt really fortunate that I didn’t leave Oskaloosa because I thought this is a much better place to raise my family than a big city somewhere. I didn’t need the action so much.

“I’m proud of my career. I’m proud to have served the citizens of Oskaloosa, and it’s going to remain my hometown. I’m not going anywhere,” said Kutcher. “Thank you so much for the support you’ve given over the years and for allowing me to serve this community which I call my home now.”