Terron Hayes sworn in as 19th Dougherty Co. Sheriff

ALBANY, Ga. – It’s a new era in Dougherty County law enforcement. As here at the courthouse, the county swore in their new sheriff Friday morning.

In front of a packed courtroom, Terron Hayes took the sheriff’s oath, officially becoming the 19th sheriff in the history of Dougherty county.

We got a chance to speak with him about what this day means to him as someone whose spent decades in law enforcement.

“I’m thankful and grateful. And, we’re ready to get to work, ready to protect the citizens of Albany, and Dougherty county, and we’re ready to implement some measures that’s going to be great for our community,” said Sheriff Terron Hayes, Dougherty Co. Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Hayes is succeeding long-time Dougherty County Sheriff, Kevin Sproul who is retiring after serving as sheriff since 2008.

And… the newly sworn-in sheriff is looking to focus on quite a few things as he now leads the agency.

“We have a strong criminal element here with our with our gangs and with our guns. And, you know, I think it’s, we need to help out our brother law enforcement agencies, sister law enforcement agencies with attacking this. This very, very harmful criminal element in our community,” said Sheriff Hayes.

In addition to a focus on guns and gangs, Sheriff Hayes spoke about building up those who’ve been incarcerated…

Something he calls a hand-up, not a handout.

“We’re talking about our Jail to Jobs Program. We want to be able to offer our men and women that have made some bad decisions, an opportunity, an education, an opportunity to trade so that they can feel better about themselves, so that they won’t continue to go out and steal, break into things…” said Sheriff Hayes.

And… Sheriff Hayes had this to say to those who were not in the courtroom for the swearing-in.

“The sheriff’s office is the office of the people, and we’re here to help and protect and make sure that our citizens in our community are safe and that people are happy and that it’s livable. And, we’re here to serve and do whatever we need to do,” said Sheriff Hayes.

While Sheriff Sproul leaves behind big shoes to fill, Hayes is looking forward to carving his own legacy as the new sheriff.

Hayes is also the first black sheriff in Dougherty county.

Brian Roche reporting.

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