July 03--ARLINGTON -- If God had thought about creating a motorcycle cop, it's quite likely that Dick Hill would have fit his image.
With his tall frame, trademark mustache and laid-back Texas drawl, Hill -- an Arlington police corporal who is marking his 30th year as a member of the motorcycle unit -- is an iconic figure around town.
To be sure, he's issued thousands of citations for moving violations. Since 2009 alone, he's written 7,000, according to research by the department.
"But I go easy on a lot of people, too," he said Tuesday morning at a media event to highlight his service.
After a knee injury ended a short professional football career that included stints with the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles, Hill was undecided on his future.
Then one night while on a date in Dallas, he saw a motorcycle officer riding along Central Expressway. "I thought that that was something I might want to do," he recalled.
Hill, now 64 and a grandfather, never stayed far from home for long. He graduated from Irving High School and what is now the University of Texas at Arlington, where he majored in history. He played for the school's now-defunct football team but holds out hope that the program will one day be resurrected.
His two sons attended Summit High in Mansfield. One just completed a four-year tour with the Marines and is a candidate to be hired by the Arlington Fire Department. The other has his sights set on joining the Navy SEALs.
Hill, whose total time with the department is nearing 38 years, now helps provide security for Texas Rangers co-owner Ray Davis and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
"I've escorted presidents, vice presidents," he said. "Back when we still had a Memorial Day parade, one time we escorted a tank. We were going down [Texas] 360, and the driver told us he needed to get on Interstate 20. But he couldn't use a bridge. So we blocked off the road and he went down the side and up the embankment to I-20 and kept on going. It was something to see."
Patrick M. Walker, 817-390-7423
Twitter: @patrickmwalker1
Copyright 2012 - Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas
