Birth date: May 11, 1937 Death date: May 1, 2021
Elbert James (Jim) Collins peacefully went home to be with the Lord, Saturday May 1. Jim was preceded in death by his parents, Claude and Frances Collins and his brother and sister in law, George “Chip” Collins and Mary Jane Colli Read Obituary
Holly, Scott and family,
Someone so special, will not be forgotten, happy times you could never regret. Wonderful memories will live on forever, in your hearts you will never forget.
With deepest sympathy from your work family,
Sara O'Toole, Jennifer Holden and Janne Hyland
My name is Rod Steckel. I was a rookie Pinellas County deputy sheriff in 1969 when I met (then) Detective Jim Collins at a crime scene. Jim was a no-nonsense, role model of hard work and dedication to his craft. One could definitely call him "old school," and in an era that moved into to what many "old school" deputies thought was "coddling of criminals" (e.g. Miranda Rights) something called "street justice" was often practiced. in 1972 I was a slightly more seasoned deputy sheriff and Jim was my sergeant. We were assigned to the midnight shift for a number of months. This is my most memorable story about Jim. In a rural section north of Pinellas Park, we kept getting prowler calls between about 2 to 4 am. The victims were a young husband and wife. They would call the Sheriff's Office when this prowler was present. This prowler was an obnoxious, normally intoxicated fellow that the young couple did not know. It never was clear why the prowler picked on the same residence, but about every 3rd or 4th night he would perch himself outside on a window and scream obscenities. Their home was in my zone. Every time I arrived the prowler vanished. Jim had a great idea. I should silently park on an adjacent street and wait for the dispatcher to advise of his presence. And as Jim predicted, that faithful call came to me around 3:00 am one night. Despite our long sleeve white shirts, I was able to sneak behind this loud mouth disrupter of a an otherwise peaceful night. He was about my size (5'-11") leaning on the ledge of a bathroom window, screaming profanities. With no experience in this situation, I crept up behind him and used a move from my high school (Clearwater...same as Jim!) wrestling days in PE. I applied a full nelson. (If you're not sure what that is, just Google it). It's an immobilizing move, but not just for the holdee but also the holder...i.e., me. Jim must have been been notified..I was unable to use a radio..and I remember his unmarked cruiser sliding to a stop near my marked cruiser as I full-nelsoned this babbling wacko toward my cruiser. Despite his crimes being only several misdemeanors, for which I booked him into the County Jail, I attribute Sergeant Jim's per-incarceration interrogation as an influencing factor in his future behavior- because that twisted person obviously decided to end his devious ways...after his time in jail, no more prowler or disorderly conduct calls were caused by him. Jim later advanced to lieutenant and, in his long law enforcement career, was a great influence on so many- fellow deputies and citizens, alike. He will be sorely missed!
