Longtime Galveston County sheriff dies
Taylor, ‘first-class’ leader who served 19 years, is credited with modernizing the department
Joe Max Taylor, an iconic law enforcement official and political stalwart, who served as Galveston County sheriff for 19 years, died Monday at his home in Galveston. He was 86.
During his tenure as Galveston County sheriff from 1981 through 2000, Taylor was credited with transforming and modernizing the department, from major expansions like establishing a mental health response unit and beach patrol, to mundane details like the style of uniforms and patrol cars. His impact was celebrated with the 2006 unveiling of a law enforcement center in Galveston bearing his name.
Former colleagues hailed Taylor as a “first-class” leader and dedicated husband and father, and fiercely loyal to his employees, no matter their rank or title.
Current Sheriff Henry Trochesset called Taylor a “second father” and the “heart” of the department. Taylor hired Trochesset at 19, instilling in him a work ethic and discipline that helped him climb the ladder and eventually claim his mentor’s job. After Trochesset was elected sheriff in 2012, Taylor swore him into office.
“He saw something in me that I’m not sure I saw in myself,” Trochesset said.
Taylor was born in Tyler on Nov. 5, 1932, during the height of the Great Depression. After attending Rusk High School, Taylor joined the Air Force during the Korean War.
He was stationed in Alaska, where he worked as an administrative assistant at a hospital, honing skills such as typing that would help boost his rise in law enforcement.
When he moved to Galveston after the Air Force and joined the sheriff ’s office in 1957, Taylor’s talents helped professionalize and organize the relatively small department.
When Sheriff J.B. Kline’s health began to decline during the 1970s, Taylor was named “undersheriff ” and essentially ran the day-to-day operations of the department. He was elected sheriff in 1980.
Taylor is credited with instituting a chain of command structure in the department that carries over to this day. He established a mental health response unit, one of the first of its kind in the state, and expanded the sheriff ’s office from a small, insular department to a collaborative agency with a diverse array of specialized units.
“He transformed the sheriff’s office, took them from old school cops to a more modern entity,” said Galveston Mayor Jim Yarbrough. “He created programs and joint partnerships, narcotics task force, crime task force, auto crimes task forces, all those types of programs.”
A lifelong Democrat who regularly triumphed in local elections, Taylor was known as a political power broker but hardly an ideologue. He had powerful friends on the other side of the aisle, including former U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.
In his later life, Taylor served on the board of directors for both the American National Insurance Co. and Landry’s Inc., the latter owned by Galveston native and current Houston Rockets CEO Tillman Fertitta.
“It is sad when we lose a great, passionate Galvestonian who devoted his life to law enforcement but especially hard when it is a special friend,” Fertitta said in a statement to the Houston Chronicle. “Joe Max was always loyal and supportive and served actively on my Board of Directors for 18 years while Landry’s was a publicly traded company.”
Taylor is survived by his wife of 63 years, Anita, and four children, Joe Max Jr., Melanie, Troy, and Missy. He had 10 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
There will be a Rosary and brief memorial service for Taylor on Feb. 18 at the Galveston Convention Center.
A viewing will be held for law enforcement personnel at the Joe Max Taylor Law Enforcement Center in Galveston on Feb. 19, followed by a funeral and reception at the convention center.