RALEIGH, N.C. — When Col. Glenn McNeill hangs up his highway patrol uniform for the last time next month, he hopes future state troopers will keep in mind the standards to which they are held.

For the past four years, McNeill has served as the 27th Commander of the N.C. State Highway Patrol. He said it's a job he could not have imagined holding when he was sworn in in May of 1994.

“I'm very fortunate in that I'm a part of the highway patrol family, but I'm not the only state trooper,” he said. “I consider my wife, my son, and my daughters to be state troopers because they've had to sacrifice so much for me over the years.”

McNeill's long career in law enforcement grew out of personal tragedy. When he was 10 years old, his mother, Ethel, was murdered. No suspect has ever been identified in Ethel Johnson McNeill's death. McNeill said at the time, his family took a dim view of law enforcement. That changed when he met a state trooper. By November of 1993, after serving as an MP in the Army, McNeill was in the patrol academy.

Two incidents from his career stand out in his mind. One was a cash seizure he made early in his career. At $600,000, it was the largest such seizure in history at the time. The other was responding to Hurricane Floyd in 1999, when he spent 17 days out of a 21-day period in the field.

McNeill's last few weeks on the job look much like the last few years. Last Thursday, the patrol was busy repositioning troopers in advance of severe weather. There was the usual crush of reports and memos to review. And McNeill was preparing for perhaps the toughest part of his job—burying one of the patrol's own. That week, the patrol lost Trooper Brent Montgomery to COVID-19.

McNeill said he hopes his successor and the troopers who continue to serve will continue to uphold the patrol's standards.

“The uniform that we wear is one of the most recognizable uniforms in the country. The badge that we all wear on our chest symbolizes that we would never want to do anything to tarnish this badge or any of the good and positive relationships with the communities that we serve,” he said. “I would ask them to go to work each and every day mindful of the oath of office that each of us have taken.”

Gov. Roy Cooper will name a successor to McNeill, something highway patrol officials say they expect will happen in the next few weeks. No Senate confirmation is needed.