Elmer Litchfield
Encyclopedia
Elmer B. Litchfield was a long-serving sheriff
of populous East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
, known for his modernization of law-enforcement procedures.
A Republican
in an historically, but decreasingly Democratic
state, Litchfield was first elected as sheriff of East Baton Rouge
in 1983 and won large majorities in his five subsequent reelections. He retired because of health problems, effective December 1, 2006, with more than a year remaining in his sixth term.
Litchfield was a native of Meridian, Mississippi
, the seat of Lauderdale County
. He graduated from the University of Mississippi
at Oxford
in 1950. He served nearly two years in the United States Marine Corps
.
Litchfield launched his career in law enforcement with the Federal Bureau of Investigation
in 1951. He worked as a special agent in Boston and Chicago
, and eventually in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. He retired from the FBI in 1979 and then served with the Louisiana State Commission on Law Enforcement until he was elected sheriff.
Colonel Greg Donald Phares (born 1956), the chief criminal deputy, succeeded Litchfield as acting sheriff. Phares, a Republican was defeated in the November 17, 2007, general election by the Democrat, Sid J. Gautreaux, III, the veteran police chief in Baker
. Gautreaux polled 40,624 (52 percent) to Phares' 38,224 (48 percent) in an election with a 31 percent turnout. In the primary, Phares had led Gautreaux, 46-37 percent, but the combined overall Democratic vote was then 51 percent. Gautreaux became sheriff immediately because the election was a combination general election and a special election for the months left in Litchfield's term.
Phares declared Litchfield "one of the finest law enforcement officers I’ve ever worked for." Litchfield announced in 2004 that he would not run again and that he strongly supported Phares as his successor. Litchfield and Phares met in 1973, when Phares was serving as a city police detective, and Litchfield was an FBI agent. They worked together on a bank robbery
case.
Litchfield was not the first Republican to run for sheriff in East Baton Rouge Parish. In 1975, the then Republican mayor of Zachary, Louisiana
, Jack Louis Breaux, Sr.
(1926–1980), ran for sheriff and nearly won a runoff slot against the Democratic incumbent J. Al Amiss, who served from 1972 until his death in office early in 1983.
Where Breaux fell short, Litchfield made winning the office of sheriff seem easy. Litchfield's reelection margins ranged from 82 percent in 1987 to 85 percent in 1991, 68 percent in 1995, 83 percent in 1999, and 78 percent in 2003. Such totals indicate that he obtained large majorities except from those who either objected to his tenure as sheriff or who vote straight Democratic tickets.
Republican sheriffs are rare in Louisiana: in many of the sixty-four parishes, no serious Republican candidate has ever fared strongly in a sheriff's election. In a few parishes, no Republican has run for sheriff in modern times. The sheriff collects property taxes and enforces the law in parts of counties outside corporation limits. Many Louisiana voters consider the sheriff one of the most important public officials.
Former State Representative Donald Ray Kennard
of Baton Rouge told Litchfield: "We love you and will miss you. We are proud of you for the contributions you have made to the country, the state, and the parish." Kennard presented Litchfield with a plaque from the Louisiana House of Representatives
.
Baton Rouge Police Chief Jeffery Earl "Jeff" LeDuff said that he began his law enforcement career in 1983, when Litchfield won his first of six terms as sheriff. "I’ve always found the sheriff to be a great law enforcement mind", LeDuff told the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate.
Before his sheriff's tenure, Litchfield was the executive director of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice.
Mike Barnett, a retired colonel from the Sheriff’s Office with thirty-seven years of service, said that he met Litchfield while working with the FBI as a bank robbery investigator. “Litchfield is a kind, good man and is the best of bosses,” said Barnett, who was Litchfield’s assistant and chief criminal deputy. “He gave you a job and let you do it, and he wouldn’t ask you to do anything he wouldn’t do himself."
Barnett also said Litchfield was more of a law enforcement man than a politician. Litchfield said on several occasions that if you "do the right thing, the politics will take care of the rest", Barnett said.
Silas M. Geralds, who retired from the Sheriff’s Office in 2004 after thirty-seven years of service, said that Litchfield treated everyone equally and with respect. “He demands respect and he gives respect,” said Geralds, who retired as a lieutenant colonel. “If it wasn’t for the sheriff, we (the office) wouldn’t be as forward and advanced as we are today."
In retirement, Litchfield planned to spend half his time in Baton Rouge, where his son Gary Stephen Litchfield (born 1958) resides, and the other half in Memphis, Tennessee
, the home of his daughter, Marla L. Steepleton (born 1964). Litchfield had several health problems, including heart bypass surgery
, prostate cancer
, and most recently surgery to repair a hernia
.
Church, with the Reverend Martin W. Corie officiating. Arrangements were under direction of Rabenhorst Funeral Home East. He was interred beside his wife in Greenoaks Memorial Park.
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
of populous East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, known for his modernization of law-enforcement procedures.
A Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
in an historically, but decreasingly Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
state, Litchfield was first elected as sheriff of East Baton Rouge
East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office
The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency of East Baton Rouge Parish, and has jurisdiction anywhere in the parish. It falls under the authority of the Sheriff, who is the chief law enforcement officer of the parish...
in 1983 and won large majorities in his five subsequent reelections. He retired because of health problems, effective December 1, 2006, with more than a year remaining in his sixth term.
Litchfield was a native of Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Mississippi. It is the sixth largest city in the state and the principal city of the Meridian, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area...
, the seat of Lauderdale County
Lauderdale County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 78,161 people, 29,990 households, and 20,573 families residing in the county. The population density was 111 people per square mile . There were 33,418 housing units at an average density of 48 per square mile...
. He graduated from the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
at Oxford
Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford is a city in, and the county seat of, Lafayette County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1835, it was named after the British university city of Oxford in hopes of having the state university located there, which it did successfully attract....
in 1950. He served nearly two years in the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
.
Litchfield launched his career in law enforcement with the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
in 1951. He worked as a special agent in Boston and Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, and eventually in New Orleans and Baton Rouge. He retired from the FBI in 1979 and then served with the Louisiana State Commission on Law Enforcement until he was elected sheriff.
Colonel Greg Donald Phares (born 1956), the chief criminal deputy, succeeded Litchfield as acting sheriff. Phares, a Republican was defeated in the November 17, 2007, general election by the Democrat, Sid J. Gautreaux, III, the veteran police chief in Baker
Baker, Louisiana
Baker is a city in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States, and a part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,793 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Baker is located at...
. Gautreaux polled 40,624 (52 percent) to Phares' 38,224 (48 percent) in an election with a 31 percent turnout. In the primary, Phares had led Gautreaux, 46-37 percent, but the combined overall Democratic vote was then 51 percent. Gautreaux became sheriff immediately because the election was a combination general election and a special election for the months left in Litchfield's term.
Phares declared Litchfield "one of the finest law enforcement officers I’ve ever worked for." Litchfield announced in 2004 that he would not run again and that he strongly supported Phares as his successor. Litchfield and Phares met in 1973, when Phares was serving as a city police detective, and Litchfield was an FBI agent. They worked together on a bank robbery
Bank robbery
Bank robbery is the crime of stealing from a bank during opening hours. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, robbery is "the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of...
case.
Litchfield's accomplishments
During his almost six terms in office, Litchfield required all deputies to reside in East Baton Rouge Parish and canceled all special deputy commissions. He improved the parish jail system to the point that it was called one of the “most constitutionally operated system in the state", according to the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate.Litchfield was not the first Republican to run for sheriff in East Baton Rouge Parish. In 1975, the then Republican mayor of Zachary, Louisiana
Zachary, Louisiana
Zachary is a city in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States, in the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 11,275 at the 2000 census.-History:...
, Jack Louis Breaux, Sr.
Jack Breaux
Jack Louis Breaux, Sr. was the Republican mayor of Zachary, Louisiana, in East Baton Rouge Parish for nearly fourteen years — from his first election in 1966 until his death of a brain tumor. He was also the first member of his party since Reconstruction to head the municipal government of a...
(1926–1980), ran for sheriff and nearly won a runoff slot against the Democratic incumbent J. Al Amiss, who served from 1972 until his death in office early in 1983.
Where Breaux fell short, Litchfield made winning the office of sheriff seem easy. Litchfield's reelection margins ranged from 82 percent in 1987 to 85 percent in 1991, 68 percent in 1995, 83 percent in 1999, and 78 percent in 2003. Such totals indicate that he obtained large majorities except from those who either objected to his tenure as sheriff or who vote straight Democratic tickets.
Republican sheriffs are rare in Louisiana: in many of the sixty-four parishes, no serious Republican candidate has ever fared strongly in a sheriff's election. In a few parishes, no Republican has run for sheriff in modern times. The sheriff collects property taxes and enforces the law in parts of counties outside corporation limits. Many Louisiana voters consider the sheriff one of the most important public officials.
Litchfield honored
At his retirement reception, Litchfield said that he would particularly miss his employees and the public "very much. People have been very kind."Former State Representative Donald Ray Kennard
Donald Ray Kennard
Donald Ray Kennard was an educator, athletic director, and politician who represented part of East Baton Rouge Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1976 to 2008...
of Baton Rouge told Litchfield: "We love you and will miss you. We are proud of you for the contributions you have made to the country, the state, and the parish." Kennard presented Litchfield with a plaque from the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
.
Baton Rouge Police Chief Jeffery Earl "Jeff" LeDuff said that he began his law enforcement career in 1983, when Litchfield won his first of six terms as sheriff. "I’ve always found the sheriff to be a great law enforcement mind", LeDuff told the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate.
Before his sheriff's tenure, Litchfield was the executive director of the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice.
Mike Barnett, a retired colonel from the Sheriff’s Office with thirty-seven years of service, said that he met Litchfield while working with the FBI as a bank robbery investigator. “Litchfield is a kind, good man and is the best of bosses,” said Barnett, who was Litchfield’s assistant and chief criminal deputy. “He gave you a job and let you do it, and he wouldn’t ask you to do anything he wouldn’t do himself."
Barnett also said Litchfield was more of a law enforcement man than a politician. Litchfield said on several occasions that if you "do the right thing, the politics will take care of the rest", Barnett said.
Silas M. Geralds, who retired from the Sheriff’s Office in 2004 after thirty-seven years of service, said that Litchfield treated everyone equally and with respect. “He demands respect and he gives respect,” said Geralds, who retired as a lieutenant colonel. “If it wasn’t for the sheriff, we (the office) wouldn’t be as forward and advanced as we are today."
Litchfield's family
Litchfield was married to the former Mississippian Margery Ann Evans (June 6, 1931 - April 19, 2005). The EBR sheriff's department honored the memory of Mrs. Litchfield by naming its new nautical Special Weapons And Tactics team the "Miss Margery".In retirement, Litchfield planned to spend half his time in Baton Rouge, where his son Gary Stephen Litchfield (born 1958) resides, and the other half in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, the home of his daughter, Marla L. Steepleton (born 1964). Litchfield had several health problems, including heart bypass surgery
Coronary artery bypass surgery
Coronary artery bypass surgery, also coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and colloquially heart bypass or bypass surgery is a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease...
, prostate cancer
Prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...
, and most recently surgery to repair a hernia
Hernia
A hernia is the protrusion of an organ or the fascia of an organ through the wall of the cavity that normally contains it. A hiatal hernia occurs when the stomach protrudes into the mediastinum through the esophageal opening in the diaphragm....
.
Death
Litchfield died in Baton Rouge at the age of eighty-one. His funeral was held on August 7, 2008, at Florida Boulevard BaptistBaptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Church, with the Reverend Martin W. Corie officiating. Arrangements were under direction of Rabenhorst Funeral Home East. He was interred beside his wife in Greenoaks Memorial Park.
See also
- East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's OfficeEast Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's OfficeThe East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency of East Baton Rouge Parish, and has jurisdiction anywhere in the parish. It falls under the authority of the Sheriff, who is the chief law enforcement officer of the parish...