Barely in office, interim sheriff hits streets politicking

The past 28 years, Mark Hebert has kept a careful watch on the streets of St. Mary Parish. Two weeks into his interim sheriff gig, he’s back on the streets, pitching himself to voters.

The former chief deputy sheriff succeeds longtime sheriff David Naquin, who retired last week. Hebert will fulfill the remainder of Naquin’s term, which expires at the end of the year. And he’s looking to get elected officially to the sheriff post come fall.

Registration for the Oct. 22 election opens Sept. 6. Two formidable challengers have already expressed an interest in the office: Patterson Police Chief Patrick LaSalle and former state representative Jack Smith.

LaSalle, a five-term police chief, has more than 37 years in law enforcement. Smith served in the state House for nearly two decades. In addition to having served as an officer with the Patterson Police and a sheriff’s deputy in St. Mary, Smith is a former St. Mary coroner.

But until election season kicks into high gear, Hebert said he aims to continue improving the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office and introducing more programs to better meet the public’s needs.

“I have a great passion for service and what we do,” Hebert said. “So do my fellow officers and the other employees of this office.

“Taking care of this parish is what we do,” he added. “We work as a group, a loyal group, a professional group.”

Hebert has worked his way up the rank-and-file in St. Mary, having served under three sheriffs: Naquin and former sheriffs Huey Bourgeois and Chester Baudoin. He joined the department as a patrol officer, moved to detective and warden of the jail before being appointed chief deputy. Hebert’s also had leadership roles with the agency’s SWAT tactical and negotiations unit, criminal investigations division and the multi-jurisdictional drug task force.

In the coming months, Hebert said he intends to seek grant funds to cover program expenses. Such monies helped bolster the department’s criminal patrol division and allowing the agency to beef up street patrols. Similarly, grants helped enhance the worthless checks unit within the warrant division.

“Our collections have grown to where we’re beating Iberia Parish, which is much bigger than St. Mary,” Hebert said. “And we’re not getting as many warrants handed down to us (by the courts). Folks are paying.”

Law enforcement education and training are cornerstones to maintaining a qualified workforce, the interim sheriff said. Pursuing continuing education dollars is among his short-term goals.

“If we are not being proactive in the community from criminals’ points of view and if we don’t see problems as they start to evolve, eventually we will end up playing a nuisance game of catch-up, which won’t be good for anyone,” he explained. “We’ve got to always make our best attempt to get it right the first time.”

To better serve the ever-changing ethnicity of St. Mary Parish, Hebert also looks to add more Spanish-speaking officers to the force.

“Twenty-eight years ago, when I started out in patrol, [becoming interim sheriff] wasn’t even a dream,” Hebert said of his current role. “I had the opportunity to work real hard, persevere and move up in every criminal division in the sheriff’s office. Now, here I am, at the top.”