Category: Pine Bluff Commercial News
Woods named Jefferson County officer of the year by AG
Over 600 law enforcement officers gathered at Camp Robinson in Little Rock for the 2017 Law Enforcement Summit on Tuesday. As a part of the event, one officer from each county in the state was honored by Attorney General Rutledge as Law Enforcement Office of the Year, with Major Lafayette Woods, Jr. selected for Jefferson County.
“It is my honor to recognize many of our brave members of law enforcement today and thank them for their sacrifice,” Rutledge said.
Jefferson County Sheriff Gerald Robinson nominated Woods for the award. Robinson described Woods, who is running for sheriff in 2018 when Robinson retires, as a “talented, hard-working and knowledgeable law enforcement professional respected by both his peers and community.”
“I nominated Major Woods for the 2017 Jefferson County Officer of the Year Award because Major Woods has a rare blend of community involvement and technical proficiency that is evident by his outstanding law enforcement career,” Robinson said. “He has proven himself to be extremely responsible, trustworthy, and dedicated to the law enforcement profession and the Jefferson County community.”
Woods said that he was “humbled, thankful and more than anything, grateful to have been honorably mentioned with the rest of my fellow law enforcement professionals across the State of Arkansas. However, what I am most proud of is having the ability to do a job that I know and love. Jefferson County is my home and I absolutely love the people I serve.”
The other Regional Officers of the Year included central region’s Sergeant Ronald Davidson of the Benton Police Department for his work to confront a masked gunman at a local bank; northeast region’s Sharp County Sheriff Mark Counts for his efforts to take down a meth lab; southeast region’s Trooper Christopher Aaron of the Arkansas State Police who helped save the life of an accidental shooting victim in Almyra; and southwest region’s Garland County Undersheriff Jason Lawrence who helped save a civilian contractor from exposure to carbon monoxide.
During the summit, Rutledge presented VALOR tributes to those who lost their lives while in the line of duty this past year. Tributes were presented to the families of Drew County Sheriff’s Deputy Timothy Braden, Yell County Sheriff’s Lieutenant Kevin Mainhart, Miller County Sheriff’s Detention Deputy Lisa Mauldin and Newport Police Lieutenant Patrick Weatherford. She also gave special recognition to Izard County Sheriff Tate Lawrence, who died in April.
Read More...Posted on 10 Oct 2017, 16:20 - Category: Pine Bluff Commercial News
Officials come together to teach kids about police interaction
By Shakari Briggs/SPECIAL TO THE COMMERCIAL
Posted Sep 15, 2017 at 9:23 PMUpdated Sep 16, 2017 at 9:34 PM
“We needed to be here,” said Pine Bluff Police Department Deputy Chief Ricky Whitmore of the department’s involvement in the session. “Dealing with kids today, they need to understand what we’re doing and they need to understand what rights they have. But, they need to understand where police are coming from.”
Don’t flee.
Don’t fight.
Don’t be flippant.
Those were just some of the tips given to students Friday during the Jefferson County “Rap Session” at Dollarway High School.
“The purpose of the event was to bridge the gap between juvenile and law enforcement,” said Gould Police Department Chief Efrem Elliot. “A lot of times, kids get things misconstrued on what their rights are, what they can do and what they can’t do, and this was an attempt to bring those two sides together to educate our youth...”
According to Elliot, for the past nine years the “Rap Session” has been hosted at area high schools in an effort to not only inform, but also teach students about law enforcement. However, this is the first year the event was sponsored by Jefferson County Judge Henry “Hank” Wilkins IV.
“Our county judge is very pro-active when it comes to our youth, and he really wants to make sure the youth have the best and they are educated on all levels,” Elliot said. “So, he tries to reach them on every level we possibly can. So, what we want to do is educate them and let them know what their rights are and how to interact with law enforcement so that they will be more educated if anything happens.”
The session brought together nearly 300 students and representatives from law enforcement agencies for an informal discussion on issues facing teens as well as how to handle situations involving police officers. Participants for the panel included Arkansas State Police Lt. Randall Diaz, Juvenile Justice Center Judge Ernest Brown, Pine Bluff City Attorney’s Office Maurice Taggert, Gould Police Department Chief Efrem Elliot, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Major Lafayette Woods Jr., Pine Bluff Police Department Deputy Chief Ricky Whitmore and Jefferson County Prevention Coalition Director Hank Wilkins V.
“We needed to be here,” said Pine Bluff Police Department Deputy Chief Ricky Whitmore of the department’s involvement in the session. “Dealing with kids today, they need to understand what we’re doing and they need to understand what rights they have. But, they need to understand where police are coming from.”
Major Lafayette Woods Jr. of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office provided students with a demonstration of how to react when pulled over by an officer of the law. He used four volunteers from the audience to re-enact a simulated traffic stop. The students in the vehicle responded to the officer as they would in a real-life situation, with the driver jokingly jogging away after being asked to step out of the vehicle.
Of course, that was the first mistake Woods pointed out that people make.
“It was very important for me to illustrate the proper way for students to respond when stopped by a member of law enforcement,” Woods said. “This is especially true as we look across our country. Community members have been distressed by images of law enforcement officers using deadly force in questionable circumstances.”
Seventeen-year-old Austin McAfee, who was the driver in the vehicle during the demonstration, took away more than just some pointers on how to handle himself during a routine traffic stop.
“Doing the right thing is doing the right thing, because when you get in trouble ain’t no getting out of trouble,” McAfee said. “People can’t save you, people can’t do stuff for you. Always think ahead and always think of the consequences before you do something.”
Dollarway High School principal Yolanda Prim said the “Rap Session” is just one of many events the schools plans to host in conjunction with law enforcement agencies in the future. She hopes the partnership will allow students to get better familiar with officers in the community who can help them with issues they may face in school or out of school.
“I think it’s very important for our students to know especially at this level because you have such a wide variety of age groups at the high school,” Prim said of students knowing officers are here to serve and protect them. “I think this was very informative for not only the students, but for the staff as well.”
Read More...Posted on 15 Sep 2017, 11:59 - Category: Pine Bluff Commercial News
Sheriff's office major to address Ivy Center
Ivy Center for Education Inc. students will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12, at Faith Presbyterian Church, 913 University Drive. The guest speaker will be Major Lafayette Woods Jr. from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Woods will discuss “Choices, Character, Consequences and Commitment.”
“Transitioning from grade school to high school and college will be smooth if students understand the importance of the four C’s,” Woods said in a press release.
Woods began working at the sheriff’s office in 2004 as a patrol deputy. He has worked in nearly every division of the office, including the Tri-County Drug Task Force. Woods is also a certified law enforcement training instructor. He is a graduate of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc.
In 2010, Woods was promoted to major and assigned as the operations commander responsible for overseeing the sheriff’s office operations, public relations, support services, courthouse security, and administrative personnel.
Interested students 7–12th graders are encouraged to attend the program. The Ivy Center is a college readiness program that prepares students for a successful future.
Details: Mattie Collins, kencol1@msn.com, or Patricia Berry, koolaidpat1@aol.com
Read More...Posted on 08 Sep 2017, 13:46 - Category: Pine Bluff Commercial News
Rising Stars in Our Community - Major Lafayette Woods, Jr. Sheriff
Major Lafayette Woods, Jr. Sheriff was profiled in the Pine Bluff Commercial's Special Section, Rising Stars in Our Community.
Download Rising Stars in Our Community
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Posted on 29 Aug 2017, 15:23 - Category: Pine Bluff Commercial News
Woods Announces Run for Jefferson County Sheriff
As time nears for the next election, more and more potential candidates are preparing to make their stances on why they should be elected to serve their community known. And one candidate urges that it’s the right time, he’s the right choice and all for the right reason as his motivation for running for sheriff of Jefferson County.
“As some of you may have heard, Sheriff Gerald Robinson will not be seeking re-election but opting to retire after an illustrious, successful and effective career in public service,” said Major Lafayette Woods, Jr., who announced Friday he is running for Robinson’s position.
“Sheriff Robinson has been a strong leader in law enforcement who established high levels of trust and integrity within the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.”
According to Woods, Robinson’s footprint on the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and Jefferson County as a whole will be everlasting. Now, he’s hoping to make a mark in Jefferson County with the help of its residents.
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Posted on 27 Aug 2017, 24:24 - Category: Pine Bluff Commercial News
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