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Not to be outdone by his canine partner – who was half of last year’s recognition for K-9 Team of the Year – Police Officer Corey Duplantis has earned some special recognition of his own as the Houma Police Department’s “Officer of the Year.”
Well, kind of.
The dog, Falco, was included in the praise Police Chief Dana Coleman heaped on Duplantis when he made the announcement last week.
“Officer Duplantis with K9 Falco managed to take multiple drug offenders off the streets in 2015 and seized well over $100,000 worth of illegal narcotics and $10,000 in U.S currency from illegal drug transactions in 2015,” Coleman said. “Officer Duplantis and Falco are to be commended for a job well done for leading the way for safer streets from drugs and offenders for the future of our children and our great parish.”
Now assigned with the Belgian Malinois – German shepherd mix to the Department’s Special Operations Division, Duplantis has found himself ever deeper in drug interdiction assignments, and says that despite the inherent challenges and danger he is pleased to be performing what he sees as a vital public service.
HPD has been the Terrebonne High School graduate’s first and only law enforcement job. Since then he has been amazed at what he has learned about what goes on in the city’s streets, criminal activity that he never noticed as a civilian.
“I was very naïve to what was going on, from looking at it as a civilian, some things I had maybe never heard of,” Duplantis said. “There was so much narcotics activity under-looked at at that time, that has really come to light. As Chief Coleman has said, the heroin problem is really out of control.”
Duplantis said he always knew that he wanted to be a police officer, but questioned whether it was financially feasible.
“I never thought it would be possible but I took the leap,” he said, explaining how another Houma officer, Sgt. Jeff Lirette, encouraged him to explore the possibilities while the two served in Charlie Company at the Louisiana National Guard. The two had long discussions about police work while stationed together in Baghdad. When he returned stateside, Duplantis took the plunge and has never regretted doing so. He still remembers the day, after months of training with more experienced partners in the field, that he took the keys to the patrol car for his first solo tour of duty.
“It was exciting but it was a nervous excitement,” Duplantis said. “You get to work super early and want to be out patrolling, you don’t want people to see you sitting in an office. From day one I was proactive.”
Chief Coleman, Duplantis said, was who shared with him one for the most important philosophies of successful policing.
“I was told by him, when he was a sergeant, that it is always about how you talk to people, and I carry that with me today,” Duplantis said. “I can go into the worst neighborhood in Houma or the best neighborhood in Houma, and I find that if I am respectful to people and they feel like I care, it matters.”
The 26-year-old officer, who is married with one child, said he is aware of the dangers inherent to his job.
“The first thing that always comes back is that I am a Christian and believe in God, which makes me confident, and feel that I am protected,” Duplantis said. “I always revert back to my training and the training is true, and I do my best to keep up with my training.”
Duplantis said he is encouraged by an increased effort by the community at large to aid police officers as they work their cases, particularly in light of recent spates of violence the city has experienced. The honor of being chosen by other officers for special recognition, he said, gives an extra injection of confidence.
“I think being voted among your peers is a bigger deal for me, it motivates me to do better and continue to do good,” he said. “I know I do good work but it is always good to hear that you are doing good work from other officers.”
And if there is a message that Duplantis wants to communicate to the public he protects, it is just that, that he is there for their protection.
“Especially working narcotics related cases people feel like we are picking on them,” he said. “But we are not. We are not out there to make people miserable. It all goes back to protecting and serving.”•
