Longtime retired Laclede County Sheriff Richard E. Wrinkle died Friday at his home. He was 76.
He served in law enforcement for more than 50 years, including three terms as Laclede County Sheriff. Wrinkle was first elected sheriff in 2001.
He was born April 5, 1948, in Springfield to Virgil Jasper and Marjorie Bernice Kelly Wrinkle.
Wrinkle attended Lebanon Public Schools and graduated in 1966. He then attended Southwest Missouri State College for two years before entering the U.S. Army. He returned to SMS for a short time before being hired as a patrolman with the Lebanon Police Department in 1971.
In 1980, he graduated from Drury College, receiving an Associate Degree in Criminal Justice Administration and a Bachelor of Science, Magna Cum Laude, in Criminal Justice and History in 1981. In addition, he attended Webster University’s extension classes at Fort Leonard Wood and received a Masters of Science in Public Administration in 1983.
Wrinkle served in the U.S. Army on two different occasions. He also served four years in the Missouri Army National Guard as a CID agent.
He began his law enforcement career with the Lebanon Police Department in 1971 and was assigned as Lebanon’s first detective. He also had worked for the Laclede County Sheriff’s Office and the Kansas City (Mo.) Police Department.
For more on this story, see Wednesday's LCR.
