Tangipahoa Parish swears in new sheriff, its first in 20 years

HAMMOND – The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office will see a new sheriff sworn in for the first time in 20 years.

On Saturday morning, Sheriff-elect Gerald Sticker was sworn in ahead of his July 1 start date.

According to Sticker, he believes the change is vital for the parish.

“It is my responsibility as the leader of this organization to ensure that beginning July 1, my employees are well equipped, mentored and informed of the principles of their work,” Sticker said.

This includes establishing standards to ensure that law enforcement effectively handles victims' cases in both civil and criminal cases.

“Whether it’s the prosecutor, judges or law enforcement, we’re all here for the victims,” Sticker said. “We serve them and we need to make sure that when they are the victim of a crime or an incident of a community sensitive nature, that we do our best to resolve that issue with that citizen.”

Sticker says this includes following up with every victim and ensuring that every employee in the sheriff's office is doing their best.

Another area of ​​concern for the sheriff-elect is taxes and the department's budget, where he says they will make cuts.

“My team and I have been reviewing the budget over the last few months, looking at spending that is not necessarily bad, but is not mission-critical,” Sticker said. “We will proactively show the public what cuts we are making and how their money is being spent.”