With 13 days to go until retirement, Mark Falk has every reason to smile. The Cook County sherirff is calling it quits after 27 years in law enforcement. Falk’s immediate future plans include riding his Harley, running trails, and helping his wife in her daycare business.
Mark Falk greeted me, said he was tired and then we headed to his office. “Thirteen days to go!” he said as he sat down.
“How far did you run this morning?” I asked.
“Seven miles, mostly on the trails. It was a beautiful morning, 55 degrees and sunny,” he said.
Falk likes to run, but he’s not running for sheriff anymore. After nine-plus years as Cook County sheriff, Falk is stepping aside.
“All good things must come to an end. I’ve loved my job, but it’s time for a change. Change is good, but I will miss the people I work with. I’ve made lifelong friends here,” said Falk.
Falk is retiring after 27 years in law enforcement. Along the way he has had some highs and lows. A lot of history and change have come down the path with him. He shared some of that with the Cook County News-Herald.
“I started my law enforcement career on March 30, 1987 with the Ortonville Police force. I worked there a little more than two years.
“In May of 1989, Stanley Suck hired me to work with the Grand Marais Police Force. In 1991 [Sheriff] John Lyght hired me to work for the county. Dave Wirt [then the new Cook County sheriff] hired me to be chief deputy in 1995, a position I held until June of 1999, when I accepted the job to be the chief of police in Canby.
“Sue [Falk’s wife] and I missed longer, warmer summers, and it was closer to her folks in Ortonville, but it never was really a good fit for us. We stayed eight months and came back and I was hired to be the Cook County communication supervisor and jail administrator. In 2001 I was back as a deputy sheriff and in 2002 Dave Wirt reappointed me as chief deputy. In February 2005 I took over as sheriff when Dave retired. I have been the sheriff ever since.”
When asked what were some of the most notable cases or events he has worked on Falk cited the four large forest fires from 2005 to 2007, (Alpine Lake, Cavity Lake, East Zone Complex and Ham Lake), the court house shooting of 2012 which caused ramifications and safety procedures that he said the county is still addressing, and the Quincy Peterson case, in which a young man from Two Harbors engaged in a shootout with police on Maple Hill that led to the young man’s death.
“I knew his mother and stepfather. But I didn’t know Quincy,” said Falk, who grew up in Two Harbors.
Of course, Mark also talked about the airplane crash that happened on Pine Mountain in August 2003. There were two fatalities and two miracles and a book that has has come from that accident.
“Me and Joe Zallar were looking for the plane, but we weren’t getting good information so we could get a good location about where the plane went down. It was kind of a cloudy, dreary day and the electronic signal from the plane wasn’t being picked up.
“About 4 p.m. the cloud ceiling lifted and Dan Anderson—Sky Dan— located the crash near the Pine Mountain Road. Joe and I started going through the bush, and the nearer we got the more destruction we saw. There was nothing left, no one could survive. I told Joe to start taking pictures. We saw two people who had obviously perished in the crash…And then a little girl poked her head up. We called in Search and Rescue and rescued two little girls, ages 3 and 4. It was a miracle, but it was a tragedy, too. Two people died; their mother died in that crash. Recently the family sent me a copy of the book Falling through the Clouds. I haven’t read it yet, but I will.”
When Falk first came to work for the county sheriff department there were seven law officers, but the department has grown considerably. Today there are 10 deputies, plus Falk and his Chief Deputy Leif Lunde. Part of the reason for that growth occurred when Grand Marais gave up its police force and turned over law enforcement to the county. Falk said two deputies are assigned to patrol Grand Marais and another works in Grand Portage under a contract with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
“The job of sheriff has now become much more administrative than when I first started in law enforcement,” he said.
Much of that is because of what occurred on 9-11, when terrorists attacked the country, he said. “9-11 changed the whole landscape of law enforcement. There are a lot more meetings in the aftermath. Some are terrorist-related, some are hazard-related. Because of 9-11 we have built partnerships with the state and federal government and we work better together than ever before.”
Changes in technology have also been huge, said Falk.
“We essentially have computers in squad cars now. We have enhanced 911 capabilities that can pinpoint where you are calling from. There is also a regional record system and CAD system we can share that is based in St. Louis County. We have developed a lot of partnerships and can offer services we couldn’t afford to offer if we didn’t have those partnerships.”
When asked what he would like to do in the future, Falk replied, “Go to work for my wife in her daycare. I have already taken a physical and passed a test to prepare meals. I think I’m going to my Teamster representative though and ask if I can be cleared from diaper changing duty. I don’t know if that will fly with my employer or not. Probably not,” he said with a laugh.
With his days in office drawing to a close, Falk spent a long moment thinking and reflecting about friends he has made in law enforcement, and lost: Jimmy Dalbec, John Lyght, Dale Honer, Quinton Larson, and others. “They’re gone now, but they were all good men. Good friends. It makes you think.”
He also talked about his current staff, which he said was terrific and hardworking. “I want to mention the dispatchers. Dispatch is the heartbeat of the operation. They are the first line of operation, take the 911 calls and talk to the people. It can be difficult. When they do their job we all work together efficiently.”
While he said he would miss the people, he won’t miss the job.
“It’s time for me to go. I can’t give this the energy or enthusiasm that my staff or the public should expect to get. Eventually we want to move south. For now I want to spend more time with my wife. She deserves it more than anybody.
“A lot of people don’t realize the stress a sheriff ’s job plays on a family. I have been blessed to have three good children. What do they say about preacher’s kids and cop’s kids? Seth is 26, works at Dunham Sports in Willmar where he went to school. Sasha is 23, recently married to Alex and lives in Waconia. She’s an LPN. Sarissa is going to be a sophomore at Hamline.”
Falk has a “bucket list” that includes finishing trail races of 50 miles and 100 miles and qualifying for the Boston Marathon by the time he is 50.
“When I started I weighed 280 pounds and I was a power lifter. Hard to imagine now,” he said with a laugh.
“I also want to enjoy riding my Harley and spending time with Sue.”
“When I became sheriff I went to the new sheriff ’s school in the Cities for a week-long class. The speaker said to us, ‘You have a front row seat to the greatest show on earth.’ And he was right.”
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