Toney armstrong memphis police biography

By Yolanda Jones of The Commercial Appeal

Posted: Jan. 27,

Three days before Memphis Police Director Toney Armstrong was set to leave his job, his office was empty.

Gone were the family photos and Dallas Cowboys paraphernalia that lined the shelves of his 12th floor office at Poplar for the last five years.

After 27 years of protecting his hometown, Armstrong is set to turn in his badge on Jan.

He's heading to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital on Feb. 1 where he will be in charge of security for the facility.

He is leaving behind a law enforcement career where he said he never aspired to be its top cop.

But at the age of 44, in he became the department's youngest director. Just a few years earlier he was first introduced to the world on A&E's homicide documentary series "The First "

In his last interview as the leader of one of the largest police departments in the country, Armstrong discussed