Longboat Key Police Chief Al Hogle died the afternoon of May 14 after a motorcycle accident in North Carolina.
The news was released by Dave Bullock, Longboat Key town administrator. “We ask that everyone keep Chief Hogle’s family in their prayers during this sad and difficult time,” Bullock said in an email to town employees.
Hogle was a veteran of the Sarasota Police Department, rising through the ranks to retire as a captain. He then was appointed to the Sarasota City Commission to fill the seat of Nora Patterson, who had been appointed to the County Commission. Hogle subsequently ran for and won the seat. He was elected mayor in the third year of his four-year term.
However, he quit the City Commission to take the job of Bradenton Police Chief for two years. In 2002, he accepted the position of Longboat Key Police chief.
Long-time Longoboat Town Manager Bruce St. Dennis recalls Hogle used to enjoy loading his motorcycle on a trailer and heading off to North Carolina with friends for a long weekend. It was on just such a jaunt that he had an accident and succumbed to his injuries May 14.
Hogle was born in Gulfport, Miss. He spent most of his life in Sarasota, graduating from Sarasota High School in 1966. He joined the Sarasota Police Department in 1970 after a tour of duty in the U.S. Air Force. He is survived by his wife, Leslie.
In addition to being an active motorcyclist, he was a longstanding sailor and member of the Sarasota Sailing Squadron. He told the Longboat Key News in 2010, “I love speed – high performance motorcycles.” He was the owner of a 1,098cc Ducati, one of the fastest production motorcycles in the world.