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Elmer B. Litchfield (January 29, 1927 – August 2, 2008) 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 Gautreaux Sheriff )〕 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.〔http://www.2theadvocate.com/; http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcpr&rqsdta=11170717〕 In the primary, Phares had led Gautreaux, 46-37 percent, but the combined overall Democratic vote was then 51 percent.〔(Louisiana Secretary of State-Parish Elections Inquiry )〕 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'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, 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. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Elmer Litchfield」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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