The following is a joint news release by the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office and DeRidder Police Department:
Three additional School Resource Officers (SROs) will soon be working in local schools — all part of a plan to help enhance school safety.
In August, a formal request was made by DeRidder Chief of Police Craig Richard, DeRidder Mayor Misty Clanton and Beauregard Parish Sheriff Mark Herford, asking the Beauregard Parish School Board for assistance in funding the hiring of three additional SROs.
The School Board made the funding commitment and granted the request.
“I do think we owe a special thanks to the School Board for working with us on this,” Herford said. “Without their assistance, we could not do this.”
Conversations on increasing the number of SROs began some time ago. However, local officials said the climate and current national trends further solidified the need.
“We want the safest school environment possible. Having these SROs and their adequate staffing is so important. These officers are our frontline defense,” Clanton said.
“With the current national trends, we are not seeing a decline in active shooters, we are seeing an increase,” Richard explained. “We cannot say that it’s never going to happen here. We have to be prepared and adding these SROs is going toward that goal for both agencies, the community and for the safety of everyone.”
Six Sheriff’s Deputies are SROs — Larry Bailey, East Beauregard; Brent Hudson, Merryville;Zachary Ellender, South Beauregard; Sgt. Oscar Lopez, South Beauregard; Emily Doucet, DeRidder; and Billy Stephens, Singer.
Lopez will fill the new SRO position in the department.
DeRidder Police Officers who are SROs include Cpl. Amanda Westmoreland, and new SROs Cpl.
Joshua Stanford and Patrolman Marlon Holmes.
Richard said having just two resource officers to cover six campuses in DeRidder has been challenging at times. The department relied on patrol for backup. Now, four will work in the city — the three city officers and one Sheriff’s Deputy.
Herford said some parish campuses present challenges due to their layout and size, like South Beauregard, and additional staffing is necessary to adequately meet needs.
“This was something that was very important to me from the minute that I became Sheriff in this parish. To me, the safety of not just our kids but the school staff and everyone involved in those schools, that’s foremost to us,” he said.
Following the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office and DeRidder Police Department worked to standardize their training. They already work cooperatively in their response. This past summer, they combined on training events and drills at schools. In September, both departments responded to threats at DeRidder High School, Merryville High School and DeRidder Junior High School that were later determined to be hoaxes.
“Those drills were a blessing to us because we didn’t know it was a hoax when it went down and the response could not have been better, I don’t think,” Herford said. “I think our response was as good as it was because of the drills that we had in the summer time.”
Being a School Resource Officer involves special training. A good SRO not only has a grasp of law enforcement training and techniques, the officer must also be able to communicate, educate and earn the respect of students and staff alike.
“We expect them to get very involved with the kids. We want the kids to understand that we are the good guys. We are there to help them and keep them safe,” Herford said.
Both departments continue to work on projects and initiatives collaboratively, with this as the latest example.
“Our department relationship is very strong and our communities will benefit from that — the city and the parish,” Richard said.