About Speaker

Dave Armstrong decided to pursue a career in law enforcement when he was a sophomore in high school. Originally from northern Minnesota, Armstrong joined the U.S. Army after graduating and worked as a military police officer.

Eventually, the Army took Armstrong to then-Fort Ritchie in Washington County for three years. When he left the Army in 1990, Armstrong sent out police applications around that area, and he started working at the Frederick, Maryland, Police Department that same year.

Armstrong retired from FPD in 2011 and thought he’d be done with police work — but not long after, a friend called him and urged him to come work in Thurmont. Armstrong rose through the ranks in Thurmont as a patrolman, detective, corporal, sergeant and eventually deputy chief and lieutenant. Since 2023, he has served as Thurmont's police chief.