Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office
| Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | OPSO |
| Agency overview | |
| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction* | State of Louisiana, United States |
 | |
| Map of Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office's jurisdiction. | |
| Size | 633 square miles (1,640 km2) |
| Population | 147, 250 |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | Monroe, Louisiana |
| Agency executive | Jay Russell, Sheriff |
| Website | |
| http://www.opso.net/ | |
| Footnotes | |
| * Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction. | |
The Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office (OPSO) is the primary law enforcement agency of Ouachita Parish. It falls under the authority of the Sheriff, who is the chief law enforcement officer of the parish.
The Sheriff
The sheriff of Ouachita Parish is Jay Russell. Sheriff Russell was sworn in as Sheriff of Ouachita Parish on July 1, 2012. He has had 28 years of law enforcement experience, beginning with the OPSO at the Ouachita Correctional Center under Sheriff Laymon Godwin. He then moved to the Patrol Division and was later promoted to corporal, becoming a Field Training Officer. Sheriff Russell has also served as a patrol officer for the West Monroe Police Department and the Farmerville Police Department.[1]
Facilities
The Sheriff's Office operates the following facilities:
- Headquarters - The headquarters building is located at 400 Saint John Street in Monroe.
- Ouachita Correctional Center - The Ouachita Correctional Center (OCC) is located at 4801 U.S. 165 in Monroe. Opened in 1963, the OCC presently houses a maximum of 1,062 offenders, and employs 124 full time deputies.[2]
Fallen officers
Since the formation of the Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office, five deputies and one Sheriff have been killed in the line of duty. The most common cause of line of duty deaths to date is gunfire.[3]
| Officer | Date of Death | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Deputy Sheriff James W. Wood | |
|
| Sheriff John H. Wisner | |
|
| Constable W. C. Fitzgerald | |
|
| Deputy Sheriff J. W. Edwards | |
|
| Deputy Sheriff S. Baxter Willis | |
|
| Corporal Clovis Wayne "J.R." Searcy, Jr. | |
|
See also
References
- ↑ "Administration Division". Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- ↑ "Ouachita Correctional Center". Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office. Retrieved 2012-10-06.
- ↑ Officer Down Memorial Page
External links
Coordinates: 32°29′53.85″N 92°6′53.87″W / 32.4982917°N 92.1149639°W