Recognizing Detective Megan Boedeker
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- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
By Jennifer Webb
Megan Boedeker always dreamed of badges and sirens. She remembers her dad serving as an auxiliary police officer for Independence County. As a kid, she was fascinated with police cars and always wanted to drive one some day.
After she graduated from high school in Batesville, AR, she decided she needed a break from small-town, USA. She went to the University of Central Florida in Orlando, which had around 60,000 students at the time. It was a huge change from her hometown of 10,000. Megan majored in criminal justice with a minor in legal studies. She had longed for warm weather and palm trees but found there were many more adjustments to make than she anticipated, living in a large city and attending a large university. The highlight of her university experience was interning with the U.S. Marshals Service. It was the first time that she got to be in the field, and it gave her a view of law enforcement from the federal perspective.
She thought about applying for a position with the U.S. Marshals Service, but there was a federal hiring freeze when she graduated. Standing at a crossroads in her life, she decided to return to Arkansas to be closer to her family.
Her first official job out of college was as a deputy jailer for White County. She worked there for a year before going to work at the public defender’s office as a legal assistant. After another few years, she moved to the federal court, where she did civil and criminal docketing.
Her job mostly consisted of paperwork, working for specific judges, and making their orders and rulings part of the permanent court records. She also did pro se prisoner docketing. (Pro Se is when an individual represents herself or himself in court.)
She worked almost every aspect of our criminal justice system—from court, to corrections, to legal work, to the federal side with her internship at the U.S. Marshals Office—except for one—being a police officer.
She returned to Searcy around 2019-2020, after taking a few years off to be a stay-at-home mom with her son. She put in her application with the Searcy Police Department while working in the jail with the White County Sheriff’s Office. Her ultimate goal was to get on patrol somewhere, whether it be with the Searcy Police Department or with the White County Sheriff’s Office.
She knew Chief Hernandez from her prior work with the White County Sheriff’s Office. Maybe now was her time? She put in her application with a prayer that someone would take a chance on her.
In March 2022, the call came.
“I always tell Chief Hernandez that he’s my favorite Chief because he took a chance on me.”
- Detective Megan Boedeker
Patrol was just as thrilling as she had dreamed. Every day was different. On patrol, every officer finds a niche that each one is good at; hers was talking to people. She leaned heavily on communication, and given a choice, she would rather talk someone into handcuffs than get into a physical altercation.
Out of that skill came another assignment—SRO (School Resource Officer) at Westside Elementary. On patrol, she usually interacted with people on one of the worst days of their lives. The SRO position was different. Happy kids would give her hugs daily. They were precious, and they restored her faith in humanity. She was determined to do whatever it took to keep them safe.
“What I loved about being at the school was being able to build relationships with the kids. A lot of them already had negative interactions with police, whether it was just seeing someone get arrested, or seeing someone incarcerated in their family. Getting to build relationships with the kids and letting them know we are here to help and not scary was amazing.”
- Detective Megan Boedeker
She would often go out during recess and push swings or play basketball with the kids to help build relationships with them. The kids thrived with the attention, and she quickly became a school favorite.
At the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year, she raced after a kid running in a busy parking lot close to pickup time. The only thing she could think of was, “I’ve got to get this kid so he doesn’t get run over.” She caught him, but felt something in her arm and shoulder tear. The only thing that mattered in the moment was keeping that kid safe. Later, she feared that the injury would be the one that ended her career.
She had torn her bicep and the tendon that attaches it to her shoulder. She underwent surgery in October. Doctors had to physically move where the muscle attached. It was an extended and excruciating rehab process. She could not move her arm and was in a supported sling for a month.
“My husband, Justin, has been nothing but supportive during the injury and rehab and through my career as a whole. I would not have made it through without his support!”
- Detective Megan Boedeker
When she finally got the ok to return to light duty, she stood in front of Chief Hernandez and told him, “ I will go wherever you tell me to go. I’m just happy to be here.” He told her that she’d still be somewhere with a badge and a gun once she returned to full duty. Her next assignment was with the Criminal Investigation Division. (CID)
It was somewhere that she always hoped she might wind up, but had no idea the timing would be now. It was a whole new perspective, and with her other experiences behind her, she leaped in with both feet. She has been working with Detective Joey Corbit, primarily focusing on crimes against children, but also working property cases, crimes against people, and a whole gambit of cases so she can get the whole perspective, learn the processes, and become a well-rounded detective.
She also serves on both the crisis negotiation team and the crisis intervention team. The crisis intervention team focuses more on day-to-day interactions with people who may have conditions or situations that make them more prone to experience law enforcement contact. It’s part of community-oriented policing that focuses on building relations with the people in the community. The crisis negotiation team steps in if there is a big crisis event, such as a hostage situation.
When she is not at work, she finds nature to be therapy. She, Justin, and their son enjoy hiking around the natural state. Their son also plays basketball so much of her “free” time is spent taking him to and from practice, as well as traveling and watching his games.
They are a big sports family, though they all cheer for different teams; yes, they are a house divided on game days. Each year, they take a trip to see at least one NBA basketball game, and she hopes to one day visit every Major League Baseball stadium in the country.
Through every chapter of her career—whether she was handling dockets, working in the jail, guiding students, or answering calls in the dead of night—she has carried the same steady purpose: to serve with heart, humility, and grit.
Now, as a detective, she brings all those experiences with her, turning them into tools that help her protect the most vulnerable and bring clarity to the toughest cases. Her journey hasn’t been linear, and it certainly hasn’t been easy, but each step has shaped her into a better officer.
While she may spend her days navigating crises and seeking justice, she always returns home to the people and the places that ground her. In the end, her story is a reminder that service is not a single role—it’s a lifetime of showing up, growing, and choosing courage again and again.
Read the full issue below.
