Debra Murley speaks
‘I am very proud of him’



GUILDERLAND — When Guilderland started a police force 35 years ago, James Murley was one of it’s first officers.

His identity has been tied to his leadership role there.
"They even called him ‘Chief’ when he was just a young man," said his wife of 22 years, Debra Murley.

James Murley could not be reached for comment this week and many town officials declined to comment on his work.
"If nobody wants to say anything about his work, then I will," Debra Murley told The Enterprise. "I’m very proud of him and proud of his accomplishments"This has been very hard for us.
"He lived in Guilderland for 50 years. He loved his work and he loves this town," Mrs. Murley said
He always checked in with his office "on weekends, on vacation, and just about every night," she said, adding, "Even if he was driving up the street, and he saw something, he would call the office."

Mrs. Murley said she and her husband have lived in their home together since 1985 and have watched both the town and the police force grow over the years.
"He has a lot of character. He is a proud man," she said. "I’ve never been embarrassed by him, and I will never be embarrassed by him."

The recent charges, and now, his retirement, have been like losing a family, said Mrs. Murley.
"Jim cared deeply about his staff and the department was like a family to him, the office staff and the officers," she said. "He still feels that way and that is why this is so hard for him"not even being allowed to go on the town property he protected for over 30 years."

She said earlier that Murley had even given up walking his dog on the town park across from their house.
Mrs. Murley said that she couldn’t speak for her husband or about the investigation, but she did say, "He’s an honest man, who would never take anything in his life"He wouldn’t take a postage stamp from the town of Guilderland."

His work in the community was evident around the police station, she said.
"There were countless letters on the bulletin board in the office from people in the community, thanking the department"They spoke volumes of what is being done over there," said Mrs. Murley. "He took the time to personally write back to each and every letter. People used to ask if I helped him write them because I’m a writer, but I never did."
The one thing the chief never did, said his wife, was fix tickets or other "favors" for people.
"If someone asked him to fix a ticket or something, he would say, ‘I’ll help you pay for the ticket if you need it, but I won’t fix it for you,’" she said.
Mrs. Murley said her husband is very healthy and not the type to do "typical retirement stuff."
"He’s not the type to sit around or the kind to sit in the sun for the rest of his days and go fishing"although he does love to fly fish," she said. "He’ll find something to do with himself"Whatever he does, he’ll do really well at it."