Marty Corley has dedicated his life to keeping his longtime home of Michigan City safe. Everyday he wakes up and heads to the Michigan City Police Department to serve his community. His job can be testing, dangerous, and exhaustive, but Corley would not be happier anywhere else. Service is ingrained in Corley’s being; he is heavily involved in many local organizations and politics in addition to his demanding job.
“I know it sounds cliche to say I am here to protect, serve, and help. But when you start this job all you want to do is help people. It is not about the money and the action part can look appealing, but really it is all about helping people,” said Corley.
Corley was born in Michigan City and attended Riley and Niemann Elementary School, Krueger Middle School, and Michigan CIty Rogers High School. He then attended Saint Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana, where he earned a major in social work and a minor in criminal justice.
“My mom said when I was little I always said I wanted to be a police officer. In high school the school resource officer was Sue Harrison, and I asked her about the ATF. She gave me some information and from then on I was interested. Years down the road when I got hired at the police department, my training officer was Sue Harrison,” explained Corley.
Next Corley worked as a probation officer for a few years before being hired at Michigan City Police Department, but his education did not stop there. Corley attended the Police Academy and Investigative Interviewing school and is a certified instructor through the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy. He went through specialized training for SWAT, Homeland Security, and Drug Recognition Expert as well.
“I am currently assigned to the Street Crimes Unit as a detective which is basically the narcotics task force for Michigan City Police Department. But we deal with a little bit of everything. Just last year I got assigned a homicide. We do narcotics investigations and serious crime investigations,” Corley explained.
This is Corley’s second tour in the narcotics department, but since his career began in 2000, he has worked in many different departments including Uniformed Patrol, Criminal Investigations Division, Field Training Officer, School Resource Officer, Special Operations Group, DUI Task Force, Fugitive Task Force, and Special Weapons and Tactics. In his service Corley has earned the distinction of Michigan City Police Department Officer of the Month multiple times, Michigan City Police Department Exceptional Service Award, Michigan City Police Department 9 Letters of Commendation, and Chicago Police Department Joint Operations Award.
“I have done a little bit of everything here, but my favorite is working in the narcotics division. One plus is not having to be clean shaven all the time. But mainly you work with the same guys all of the time, and you really click. You may work a sixteen hour day with the guys, go home and sleep for five hours, come back and do it all again,” Corley said.
Corley was assigned to be a detective by his superiors for his attention to detail and tendency to go the extra mile while starting out in Street Patrol. Perhaps the officers also noticed how much passion Corley has for his job.
“My favorite part is interacting with people. Simple things like giving directions or advice and seeing someone walk away satisfied. When I arrest someone, such as a teenager, there is a time in the car driving to the station where we can talk. I get the time to give them some insight and get some insight about them. I like being there for people if they need some advice or direction,” Corley commented.
Corley extends interacting with others beyond his career. He is an elected member of the Michigan City Area Schools Board of Trustees, member and subcommittee chairman for Stepping Stone Shelter for Women, treasurer for Michigan City Commission on the Social Status of African American Males, commissioner for the Michigan City Human Rights Commission, Vice Chairman of the La Porte County Community Corrections Advisory Board, member of the Michigan City Housing Authority Family Self Sufficiency and Voucher Program, member of the Drug Free Partnership of La Porte County, coordinator of S.M.A.S.H Underage Drinking Task Force, graduate of Leadership La Porte County’s 29th Class, member of People Against Violence Everyone of La Porte County, and a member of Fraternal of Police, Freemasons, Northwest Indiana Leaders-Young Professional Network, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Indiana Black Expo.
“We are a small community where pretty much everybody knows everybody or at least has a connection. We have such potential to do big things with such a small knit community. We have a lot of development projects in the works, and I think that has to do with the strong relationships in the area and people buying into the ideas. I think everyone will come together and make this area prosper,” Corley elaborated.
Corley has done an exponential amount of work to benefit the community he has so much faith in, such as serving as a mentor for Hours 4 Ours, serving on various elementary Parent-Teacher groups, tutoring for Grace Learning Center, teaching at New Creation Vineyard Church, volunteering for the Unity Foundation of La Porte County Scholarship Committee, and the founder and director of Guiding Our Descendant’s Inc., a non for profit providing afterschool and summer programs for at risk youth.
The community has recognized Corley’s commitment to service and he has been awarded Michigan City Exchange Club Officer of the Year in 2012, and most recently Michiana 40 Under 40 Class of 2013.
“In the future I plan to continue to serve people. I do not know in what capacity yet. I am trying to take everything that I have going on now and make the best of it. My immediate future plans are to continue my career at the police department and work to gain more responsibility and play a more viable role in making this place prosper. I want to do the best I can for my city,” Corley commented.
In his spare time Corley likes to read, exercise, and hang out with his family and friends which includes his three children Eileen, Ciara, and Malik.
“My advice for the youth is to believe in the power of five. If you want to do the right thing and want to see things change, then the best thing you can do is get five people to buy in to what you are doing, and get those five people to each have another five buy in. That is how the world can be changed. That is how problems can be solved. Everyone has their own skill sets, and if only the best birds in the forest sang, there would not be any music. Take the best that you have and do the best with it,” Corley closed.