After serving over 30 years as the chief of Mandeville’s Police Department, Tom Buell may soon be calling it quits.

The thought about retirement comes after a tumultuous 2008, where the usually quiet Buell became the center of controversy after he admitted using funds from his department’s charitable organization to buy gifts for Mayor Eddie Price.

In August, an investigation by the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s office revealed numerous mishaps within the city’s government and police department. In the report Buell was highlighted for his unscrupulous handling of the police department’s charitable fund, the Citizen Service Fund, known to most for its Christmas toy-collecting program.

Buell was cited in the report for spending thousands of donated funds on celebratory events for city employees.

Those allegations have tainted the police chief’s 41-year tenure in law enforcement. And now, contemplating retirement, Buell reflects on days gone by.

Buell started working as an officer with the Mandeville Police Department in 1971. It was much different back then, he said.

“Everyone knew everyone, we even knew the criminals,” Buell said, laughing and pointing out the occasions he would stop the troublemakers, and knowing what to do, they would immediately “spread eagle,” as Buell called it.

There weren’t high-tech crimes like stolen credit cards or identity theft. It was basic burglaries, Buell said, and on the very rare occasion, there was even a murder.

“It was very seldom we had a major crime, mostly domestic issues,” Buell said.

Those were also the days when officers drove the mammoth, all metal Plymouth and Ford police cruisers with the single “bubblegum-machine lights.”

“Now you have electronic LED lights that cost a whole lot of money, but they have directional arrows built into them and like eight different patterns to choose from,” Buell said. “We thought we were lucky when they put lights on each side of the bubblegum lights.”

Buell moved up in rank quickly and became chief in 1974 under Mayor Paul Cordes when the city had barely 1,200 people and two neighborhoods, Old and New Golden Shores.

Interstate 12 had also barely opened, Rip’s On the Lake was Cliff’s On the Beach, a handful of businesses lined Girod Street (when it was Gerard Street) like Foster’s Barbershop, the city had four schools (compared to the current seven), and the hospital, Kmart nor anything along that stretch of U.S. Highway 190 had been constructed yet.

When Bernard Smith took Cordez’ seat as mayor, Buell joined the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office. After a four-year stint there, in 1980 Ray Foil was elected mayor and reappointed Buell as police chief, where he’s been ever since.

After Foil there was Mayor Paul Spitzfadden, who served several terms before Mayor Eddie Price took over.

That’s five mayors Buell has seen take office in his tenure.

“You have to adjust to each one,” Buell said.

After watching a handful of mayors come and go, dozens of officers and staff members retire and the city grow into a suburban oasis, Buell, 58, is contemplating changing with the times thanks to the serious allegations against him.

Speaking through his attorney Richard Greenland at Thursday night’s City Council meeting, Buell said they met with Price, council members Jerry Coogan and Trilby Lenfant and several others about his decision, which Greenland labeled as “contemplating retirement.”

From January 2002 through December 2007, the police department solicited and received donations for its Citizen Service Fund totaling $217,938, according to the auditor’s report.

Of those funds, only 28 percent of the expenditures, $56,773, were made to support activities such as the toy program or helping residents in need, the report states.

Expenditures totaling $146,329 were made for gifts, food, celebrations and sponsorships for city events and parties, including the annual employee Christmas party.

Buell admitted to using money from the benevolent fund to buy Price Christmas gifts, including a $780 gun cabinet.

This, he said, he did to prevent asking his income-strapped officers to donate money for Price’s gifts.

Now, state and federal authorities have subpoenaed documents from Buell for their own ongoing investigations.

Buell’s lawyer refused to say if this decision is a direct result of those investigations, but he did say a concrete choice of whether the chief will retire will likely be made very soon.

Price, also hammered in the auditor’s report for shoddy dealings, said Buell’s decision is a disappointing one.

“I’m pretty saddened by it. He’s done an excellent job for us,” Price said.