New Livingston sheriff promises to save money
DENHAM SPRINGS — Livingston Parish Sheriff-elect Jason Ard told a civic group Tuesday night he will try to save the parish money during his transition into office.
Ard said he won’t repaint patrol cars, which are recognizable to the public.
He said that would be an “unnecessary expense,” as would changing the uniforms of deputies.
“I like our uniforms,” and new ones would be expensive, Ard said.
Some things that have the name of Sheriff Willie Graves on them will have to be changed, he said, adding that he will use stickers in some cases to avoid extra expense.
Ard, who is chief deputy of the Sheriff’s Office, will take office at the end of June. He was elected last fall, after Graves decided to retire.
Ard said he is considering making changes in the pay scale and rank system to make it easier for deputies to obtain promotions without having to become detectives.
“I like my road patrol officers to stay there,” after the Sheriff’s Office has “invested time and money to train them.”
The Sheriff’s Office is confronted with retaining experienced deputies while Ascension and East Baton Rouge parishes have higher pay scales, Ard said.
Keeping top personnel is a challenge, he said.
“We need to provide them with enough benefits and salary to keep them here,” Ard said. “If I am going to pay to get them trained, then I want to keep them here.”
Doing that helps to keep the crime rate in the parish low, Ard said.
Putting more deputies on the road also helps with that, said Ard, who added that one of his challenges will be expanding the Sheriff’s Office to keep up with Livingston Parish’s rapid population growth.
Ard said he plans to improve software and make other changes that will allow him to put more personnel on road patrol rather than doing clerical work.
Maintaining a good jail is another factor in keeping crime down, he said. “You have to have a good detention center to keep the quality of life that we have in Livingston Parish.”
Ard said 5,768 people were booked into the parish’s jail in 2011 and that its population is constantly “rolling over.”
Dealing with traffic is also a challenge, he said.
A wreck on either Interstate 12 or U.S. 190 puts parish motorists “in a bind,” he said.
An accident on I-12 in Baton Rouge or Denham Springs can result in a traffic backup that stretches to Hammond, he said.