Thomas E. Le Noir is a 27-year law enforcement veteran with the Arlington Police Department in

Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...

. Currently serving in the Cold Case Unit, Le Noir has worked more than 20 years in the department's homicide division, solving murders.

Early life

Le Noir was born in Bryan, Texas but spent his early years in

Belle Chasse, Louisiana Belle Chasse ( ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the west bank of the Mississippi River. Belle Chasse is part of the Greater New Orleans metropolitan area. The population was 10,579 at the 20 ...

, part of the New Orleans metropolitan area. As a teenager, Le Noir's family returned to Texas, settling in Arlington. Le Noir graduated with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in criminal justice from the

University of Texas at Arlington The University of Texas at Arlington (UTA or UT Arlington) is a public research university in Arlington, Texas. The university was founded in 1895 and was in the Texas A&M University System for several decades until joining the University of Te ...

. Le Noir himself credits his career in the law enforcement field to his father. Aside from serving in the military, Le Noir's father was a

heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the Wo ...

professional boxer who was a natural "protector" of not only his family and friends, but of anyone he felt was being abused or mistreated.

Police career

Le Noir joined the Arlington Police Department in 1980 in the patrol division and in two years earned a spot in the

narcotics The term narcotic (, from ancient Greek ναρκῶ ''narkō'', "to make numb") originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with numbing or paralyzing properties. In the United States, it has since become associated with opiates ...

division and focused on undercover work. Three years later, Le Noir was selected to join the homicide division and was responsible for securing numerous capital convictions. During his distinguished law enforcement career, Le Noir has earned 75 commendations, 11 departmental awards, his Master Police Officer State Certification and the honor of "Officer of the Year." A black belt in

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

since 1975, Le Noir pioneered the Arlington Police Academy's now required program in defensive tactics. He is also a certified instructor in basic and advanced courses in homicide investigation to outside police agencies at the North Texas Regional Police Academy and lectures extensively at colleges, high schools, civic groups and events and citizen police academies throughout the state. Several of Le Noir's homicide cases have earned national media attention – having been featured on A&E's '' Cold Case Files'', Dick Wolf's ''

Arrest & Trial ''Arrest & Trial'' is an American, syndicated nontraditional court show which follows individual criminal cases (commission, police investigation, and actual trial) via a combination of reenactments and real trial footage. Episodes run for 30 ...

'' and

Court TV Court TV is an American digital broadcast network and former cable television channel. It was originally launched in 1991 with a focus on crime-themed programs such as true crime documentary series, legal analysis talk shows, and live news cove ...

's '' Forensic Files'' among others. One of Le Noir's most famous cases was that of serial killer Jack Reeves, which has been featured in eight different documentary programs including

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

's ''

America Undercover ''America Undercover'' is a series of documentaries that aired on the cable television network HBO from 1983 through 2006. Within the series are several sub-series, such as ''Autopsy'', ''Real Sex'', and ''Taxicab Confessions''. History The seri ...

Autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...

'' series and the subject of the book ''Mail Order Murder'' by true crime author Patricia Springer. Presently, Le Noir continues to investigate homicides in the Cold Case Homicide Unit. He is often called on to teach homicide investigation at the regional police academy, and lecture at universities while pursuing a second career in the entertainment venue. He has served in a consulting capacity on such shows as ''

Rescue 911 ''Rescue 911'' is an American informational docudrama television series that premiered on CBS on April 18, 1989, and ended on August 27, 1996. The series was hosted by William Shatner and featured reenactments (and occasionally real footage) of e ...

'', and as the host for ''

Murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

'', a Bunim-Murray Production that premiered on

Spike TV Paramount Network is an American basic cable television channel owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Media Networks. The network's headquarters are located at the Paramount Pictures studio lot in Los Angeles. The channel was o ...

in 2007.

Family life

Le Noir resides in

Burleson, Texas Burleson ( ) is a city in Johnson and Tarrant counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is a suburb of Fort Worth. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 36,690, and in 2019 it had an estimated population of 48,225. History The Missouri– ...

with his wife and three daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Le Noir, Tommy American municipal police officers University of Texas at Arlington alumni Living people People from Burleson, Texas People from Bryan, Texas People from Belle Chasse, Louisiana Year of birth missing (living people)