Caleb Bailey does not shy away from the word “leader.” Nor does his leader at the Knoxville Police Department (KPD), Lt. Dylan Bradley, who heads up the East District Patrol Squad.
We asked Bradley to tell us about this six-year KPD officer. “Caleb is a hard-working and dedicated officer. He puts his best foot forward every day. Our squad performs at an extremely high level, and Caleb is a big reason for that. We jokingly refer to him as a ‘Corporal,’ as he is one of the leaders of our squad. Our department and community are lucky to have him.” Note that his official rank is “officer” – not corporal.
Officer Caleb Bailey
Bailey, 27, an Our Town Hero, is a Halls, Knox County, native who grew up with his family in Grainger County, where his parents still live. He’s well-spoken, soft-spoken, and grounded in maturity beyond his years. What has six years at KPD and on the patrol beat meant to him?
“It has developed me into the person I am today. It’s making me a better leader of my family and I didn’t have those skills. I want to be a leader in our department, but in a very professional and respectful manner. It has shown me how to have empathy for some people I would not have had for them.”
Bailey and his wife, Karen, are expecting their first child in their Fountain City home in September. “We’re just waiting, and we’re excited,” he said. So are his parents – Lynn and Mark. Lynn is a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) at the University of Tennessee Medical Center and Mark has been a nurse for more than 20 years at what is now Dolly Parton Children’s Hospital.
In years past, Mother Lynn was busy at home – she home-schooled Caleb and also home-schooled his older brothers, Ben and Andrew, and younger sister Bethany. Ben completed his medical residency in Virginia last year and is working as an M.D. now. Andrew still lives with his parents and works at a local winery near their home. Bethany is an R.N. at Dolly Parton Children’s Hospital like her father.
Bailey graduated from high school in 2017. His mother also played a part in his job choice. “Mom was in the Army for a few years, and we talked about that, and I got interested in joining a related field, and I settled on law enforcement,” he explained. Next was enrolling at Pellissippi State Community College and earning an A.A. degree in Criminal Justice in 2019. Next was applying to the KPD. He was hired in 2020 and graduated from the Police Academy in August 2020.
Why KPD? “It’s the premier department here, and I’d met a few of their officers and talked with them, and that got me interested, and here I am,” he said. “I’ve been assigned to the East District all six of my years, and I enjoy it. I’m also an FTO (Field Training Officer) for new cops, and it’s the most tiring thing I’ve done here. But I enjoy getting to know them.”
He’s also on the KPD Search & Rescue team and helped during the deadly Hurricane Helene event in western North Carolina and East Tennessee. It made an impression. “To see the incredible destruction it caused was really eye-opening. The amount of remoteness it created – little communities cut off from everything – was shocking. A small community fire station and its engine completely disappeared. Just gone.”
Let’s circle back to a part of Lt. Bradley’s comments about Bailey: “He puts his best foot forward every day.” He has twice been honored as KPD’s Officer of the Month, in both 2023 and 2024.
In 2023, he was honored for his role in apprehending a man KPD had been trying to locate for two months. “He was real high on our wanted list and at first we though he was in an apartment complex. We checked that and found out he was at his girlfriend’s Mom’s house. We asked if he was there, and they said no,” Bailey said. “We asked if we could search, and they said OK. We found him hiding in a bedroom closet. He fought with me, but we cuffed him and arrested him.”
What happened to Bailey in December 2023 was incredible. He was lucky. It was on Christmas Eve morning, still dark at 5:30 a.m., when Bailey responded near Lakeside Street and Ace Miller Way in East Knoxville, responding to a domestic call involving a suspect who was wearing an ankle monitor. This man had fired into nearby homes, then fled when KPD arrived and subsequently crashed into a fence. Bailey found the man and ordered him to drop his weapon, a short-barreled rifle. From about 10 feet away, the man fired three times at Bailey, missing him but hitting his cruiser near Bailey. When Bailey returned fire and missed, the man ran into some nearby woods and was eventually captured. That and other arrests he made earned him the award in January 2024.
How did he get over this life-threatening situation? “A lot of prayer, and I mean a lot. I had some PTSD. It happened fast. I was lucky.”
Every job has its issues. Here are Bailey’s:
- Having to be in court on days off
- Rotating shift hours and the effects on the family
- Paperwork
- “Wears your body down dealing with stressful people.”
- “People not knowing what we really do. And it’s hard to make friends outside of the policing world.”
A few of the things he’s learned in the last six years that surprised him are eye-opening. “The people who are truly the homeless are happy. The homeless who are mentally ill and alone are miserable. Women in domestic violence relationships just keep on living in it out of fear. And the general public has no idea what’s going on in their neighborhoods and in town when it comes to crime.”
To escape the stresses, he has a pretty simple plan … he works out, spends time with his wife and the rest of the family – parents, his brother and sister, nieces and nephews – at the pool, hiking, and playing a game he enjoys – Ultimate Frisbee.
Let’s end with a question Bailey wanted to consider before replying, which he did: Why did you become a police officer? His answer is revealing and uplifting: “Being an officer is an irreplaceable role in our community – vitally important to its safety, stability, and trust. It demands integrity, accountability, and a willingness to serve. Each day presents an opportunity to make a tangible difference — offering people reassurance during difficult times or simply being a steady presence they can rely on. It is rarely easy on the job, but it is meaningful work and a job I have been led to by my values and faith.”
Tom King has been the editor of newspapers in Texas and California, and also worked in Tennessee and Georgia. If you have someone you think we should consider featuring, please email Tom at the link with his name or text him at 865-659-3562.
Aubrey’s Restaurants sponsors Our Town Hero.
