Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s race: Meet the candidates

CORRECTION: Bradley Moss has no previous drug convictions.

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - Six candidates are running for Calcasieu Parish sheriff in the Oct. 14 election: Dustan Abshire, Les Blanchard, Elizabeth Gray Carrier, Stitch Guillory, Bradley Moss and Mike Reid.

7News reached out to all six of the candidates for an on-camera interview, and all except Gray-Carrier accepted. In addition, we sent each of them the same set of questions. Below you’ll find their written responses.

Early voting for the gubernatorial primary election begins Sept. 30. For more election coverage, CLICK HERE.

Why are you running for sheriff of Calcasieu Parish?

ABSHIRE: I started my career in law enforcement at 18 years old and I am ready to go home to serve the community. When I left the Sheriff office the thought never left me. Now with Sheriff Mancuso retiring, it is time for the agency to take some long-needed steps. I have a different perspective than other candidates: I have prosecuted and defended real criminal cases. I believe the community needs someone with experience outside the walls of the Sheriff’s Office to help further develop relationships with the community and recruit deputies to the profession.

BLANCHARD: I have a genuine love for people, an insatiable desire to improve the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office in all aspects and I’m truly committed to public service. I’ve dedicated the last 30 years of my life to protecting and serving our community and I’m not done. Although I retired in July 2023, I’m ready to go back to work today!

GRAY-CARRIER: I knew there needed to be changes made in 2019, I am the first person to register to run against the Sheriff, everyone else said, that he was unbeatable. I am the best choice for Sheriff because, I owe no favors, not politically connected, definitely don’t have an Affluent family or friends. There’s nothing to stop me from making the changes need to be made, If you, give me a live uninterrupted 15 or 30 minute time spot, I’ll be glad to explain it to the parish.

GUILLORY: First and foremost, my love for our community and the safety of it drives me to run for sheriff. As the second in command of the department for twenty years I am the most qualified of all of the candidates. I have the experience to step into that seat Day One. There will be no need for any grace period or on-the-job training. I have proven I can do the job.

MOSS: The reason I am running for Sheriff, is to help the citizens and Calcasieu Parish by having officers respond to situations with compassion and kindness and by showing care about people by letting them go on victimless crimes. Crimes of no one being victimized. I know I can make a difference in Calcasieu Parish and that’s why I’m running because I am not looking at it from a police point I am looking at it from a citizen / defendants point of view , hey sheriff is a public servant / public official their job is public servants which helped the public and protect the public.

REID: Calcasieu Parish needs different leadership. Sheriff Tony Mancuso has done a fantastic job over the past 20 years, there is room for improvement at the Sheriffs Office. Calcasieu Parish Sheriffs Office needs new leadership that will improve the moral within the Sheriffs Office, improve the culture for the men and women who currently work at the Sheriffs Office and we will make that happen.

What qualifications do you have that make you fit for the position?

ABSHIRE: My qualifications begin with a 15-year career in law enforcement – in corrections, patrol, and investigations, specifically sex crimes and child abuse. During my 15 years in law enforcement, I received over 1,000 hours of training, with the vast majority in investigations of sex crimes, child abuse, and human trafficking.

I received my degree from McNeese in criminal justice prior to going to law school. I was admitted to the Louisiana Bar in 2015. I worked for the Calcasieu Parish District Attorney’s Office for three years prior to opening my own practice. During my time at the DA’s Office, I was a felony prosecutor handling hundreds of felony cases. I know what it takes to make sure a case has everything necessary to achieve a conviction.

Lastly, I have managed and operated my law practice. Since 2016, I have assisted over 1,000 clients with their legal needs.

I am prepared to equip the men and women at the Sheriff’s Office to reach their highest potential.

BLANCHARD: Leadership, Integrity and Humility - I am the most qualified candidate for the position of Sheriff. I have 30 years of real law enforcement experience from working in the trenches my whole career. I caution people not to confuse rank or authority with leadership. The majority of my career was spent leading violent crime and narcotic investigations and I’ve dealt with many forms of evil. Furthermore, having investigated some of the most heinous crimes imaginable, I’ve developed an immeasurable respect for the “quality” of life. Dealing with loss of life puts a different perspective on living… these work experiences coupled with being a father of four have mentally conditioned me to help our deputies improve their own quality of life. With this in focus, our public service will drastically improve. I am not only fit but eager to encourage our deputies to be their natural best. I am not all knowing but will do my very best to get answers and provide solutions to situations and incidents involving our parish.

GRAY-CARRIER: To be the first person to register to run against the Sheriff four yrs ago, show that I am strong and I have great leadership skills. I’ve worked over twenty years for the Sheriff’s Office, majority of that time I ran a shift,(shift supervisor basically runs the jail) whether it was my shift, or I was tasked to run it for three of my Supervisors. I handled the Sheriff’s Office as an Emergency Supervisor during Hurricane Rita, I AM A VERY STRONG AND FAIR WOMAN. I fight for the rights of others and I know the Sheriff should be debt free. I gave NO fund raisers, I excepted no money from anyone in the parish that wasn’t my family. I will make my youth and elderly division my largest. I will help the young ones coming into corrections with life skills. I will choose my Supervisor’s by knowledge not debts or friendships.

GUILLORY: I have been Sheriff Mancuso’s Chief Deputy his entire tenure as sheriff. Prior to that, I was Chief of Police of Westlake. As Chief Deputy you oversee the entire operation. The Sheriff’s Office has over 800 employees and a budget in excess of $100,000,000. It’s not just a law enforcement agency, it’s a business, a large one. I am a fiscal conservative and have proven to be a good steward of the taxpayer’s money. I have not only the law enforcement experience but also the business experience. On the law enforcement side, I have been a patrol officer, a detective, and a DARE instructor. I have been in the trenches and have never forgotten what it was like to be an officer in the field.

MOSS: In my opinion several things qualify me for Sheriff but the biggest one is my heart and my compassion to help others. I want to make niece and took a continuing it for private investigating and I also took a college home course for private investigating. That’s where I learned that police can’t do what they want to do I learned rights I learned public corruption rules regulations traits.

REID: I grew up in law enforcement from an early age. My father, Sheriff Henry A. “Ham” Reid was Sheriff of Calcasieu Parish for 39 years before his passing. I went to Barbe High School and graduated from Marine Military Academy in Harlingen, Texas. I attended McNeese State University majored in psychology before starting my law enforcement career in 1993 at the Lake Charles Police Department. I began on Patrol Division and was assigned as a Detective in Narcotics Division within 2 years. I was a SWAT team leader for 5 years. I was assigned to the FBI Gang / Narcotics Task Force for 5 years and the United States Marshalls Fugitive Task Force. I was nominated for Officer of the Year, received a FBI Certificate of Commendation for Operation Broken Bridge, awarded Professionalism Award by the Louisiana House of Representatives, awarded outstanding Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Case in the Western District of Louisiana. I was also assigned to the rescue efforts after 9-11 in New York, Hurricane Katrina and all major disasters in the Lake Charles area since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. I have over 1000 hours of Law Enforcement schools and certificates for drugs, gangs, SWAT Training, Interview and Interrogation, Leadership Training and many more. I am the current president of Cajun Navy Lake Charles since Hurricane Harvey in 2017. I have business experience over the past 10 years as owner of Safeguard Video and Investigations LLC. as a Private Investigator. I have learned over the past many years it takes a team to accomplish any mission and we have that team ready to make Calcasieu Parish the safest community along the gulf coast.

What (if any) changes do you think need to be made in the parish regarding Calcasieu law enforcement?

ABSHIRE: Think there needs to be a lot of change in the way we do business in Calcasieu Parish. All agencies in are shorthanded, so we need to work together to better utilize personnel to ensure community safety. We need to stop being reactive to issues in the community. We need to come together to work on being proactive in combating substance abuse.

BLANCHARD: Retention is key! The primary change to accomplish this is an overhaul in leadership. We have many great women and men who work for CPSO but we have plenty of room for improvement. When we begin to place merit as a priority for leadership positions versus the good ole boy system, we will improve morale. This will also create a safe work environment where employees don’t fear the consequences of offering opinions or suggestions. We will also improve our consistency in everything from discipline to promotions. We will improve the overall support of the deputies in all areas.

GRAY-CARRIER: I will give Annual pay raises, to my deputies. I think everyone should be treated fairly. I will stop the patrol deputies from profiling. From what is said, I will be spending a lot of time hiring deputies so we can do a job. I don’t have the privilege of knowing that type of information. It’s said, patrol is operating with about nine road deputies a shift. There’s not enough deputies to staff CSP. Again, that’s not information I’m privileged to.

GUILLORY: I think we do a really good job at law enforcement in Calcasieu Parish, better than most. We have some very solid municipal agencies and an excellent District Attorney’s Office. We are very unique here because we have strong relationships between all of our agencies. We are not territorial; we help each other and train together. Unfortunately, this is not the norm throughout the nation. I hear horror stories from other parts of the nation of agencies fighting with each other or wars with their DA’s office. We have not had infighting here since Sheriff Mancuso was elected and we never will if I am elected sheriff. So, I wouldn’t change anything but I would work hard to maintain and make those relationships even stronger. That’s the type of leader that I am, I bring people together.

MOSS: I would change the department with love caring is in compassion in everyday practice of my deputies if I was sure furthermore that would change the community. When a person might be facing a lot of time for a simple possession or something like that and he always says well you haven’t heard nobody we’re not going to arrest you that’s going to make a difference in the person’s life and it’s going to make a difference in the way they act. Under public safety the officer has that right. I don’t think officers should respond to any calls other than like extreme calls yes officers would have to respond with a certain level of force but on a general and no danger to no danger call I don’t see any need we’re not sure we need to respond with anything less than love and kindness the citizens deserve it and they don’t deserve anything less than carrying compassion officers I want at the end of the day the officers to come back and say hey we impacted so many lives today by helping them and swap stories like that. I’m only one person with the heart to stand up and try to make it change for Calcasieu Parish but I can’t do it alone I can’t force people to have love and compassion but I can make sure that I do my best to make sure my deputies implemented in their practice every single day. These other candidates will they officers to be better taken care of get more officers spend more money no property train officers let them know their position get them out helping people not making dozens of arrests for victimless crimes don’t be shipping people off to other prisons trying to make a dollar trying to override your constitutional rights that’s what’s going on. They went to digital mail so that they can scan everything that comes. That means legal meals court papers everything that’s not right.

REID: Calcasieu Parish Sheriffs Office needs more deputies on the streets of Calcasieu Parish. We have a team put together to recruit and train the current and future deputies of Calcasieu Parish to make Calcasieu Parish the safest community along the gulf coast. This will take time to recruit and train those deputies. Deputies salaries will be addressed and training will be improved with compensation for the Deputies. We will concentrate on major issues within the parish including drugs, child trafficking and mental health just to name a few.

What is the biggest problem (crime) Calcasieu Parish faces? And what would you do to help combat that problem?

ABSHIRE: The biggest problem we face is substance abuse. While the citizens and media concentrate on crimes against persons and violence, those issues are usually tied to drug abuse. The majority of crimes of violence against people are committed while under the influence of narcotics. I would work with our District Attorney and judges to evaluate what we are doing and bring in professionals to help move forward to being proactive when addressing these systemic issues.

BLANCHARD: Fentanyl poisoning and Human Trafficking - This will require a comprehensive approach with better training and more inclusion of all involved agencies facing immense challenges regarding these problems. The answer is to work together and strengthen our communication within and between these agencies. In order to provide solutions, we must have a better understanding of the problems… this requires increased involvement, better training and more listening. We will have a better concentration on all those involved in facilitating both of these areas.

GRAY-CARRIER: Again, that is not information that I have, therefore, I can’t give you a honest answer. Once elected, I’ve be glad to inform you of my plans.

GUILLORY: Fentanyl is the biggest problem in our parish. I have a comprehensive plan to address fentanyl and stop it from killing our citizens, especially our youth. We will relentlessly go after those who choose to deal this poison that is killing our young people. If you are a fentanyl dealer, you might want to pack up now, I’m coming for you.

MOSS: I mainly think that the biggest problem starts within how we address poems to law enforcement because how law enforcement response to a person in need is critical to its relationship with the community law enforcement is not properly trained in the fact that they are not anything without the community and that the community is where they will live where they will be hated or befriended it’s about what they bring to the table every day they should break a passion and caring because these are families every single person would deal with has families.

REID: We have asked the question to the deputies, the community and citizens, what is the major problem in Calcasieu Parish? The answer is the same, drugs. We will continue the war on drugs and make it known Calcasieu Parish is not the place to deal drugs or even use illegal narcotics. We will work with the District Attorneys Office and the Calcasieu Parish Judges to prosecute and convict those who decide to bring drugs in Calcasieu Parish. The war on drugs will take education of deputies and other Law Enforcement agencies within Calcasieu Parish along with the citizens of Calcasieu Parish. We have a plan to make Calcasieu Parish free of all drugs.

How do you plan to build a relationship with the community as Sheriff?

ABSHIRE: All deputies will be encouraged to join and be active in community organizations. All those ranked captain and above will be required to be part of organizations. I want the men and women of the department to be directly involved in the community so we can direct lines of communications.

Also, I will form a Citizens Advisory Committee. I want the people of our community to know they have a voice in their Sheriff’s Office.

BLANCHARD: We will work diligently to regain the public’s trust. By encouraging our deputies to be their natural best, improving their quality of life and confidently supporting them, they will provide a much better public service. We will also conduct as assessment to better balance our personnel, scheduling and overall consistency. With this, we will not only increase our visibility but improve the amount of time we are able to spend with our citizens requesting our assistance. The foundation of leadership is building relationships and we will strive to improve our relationships throughout the entire parish.

GRAY-CARRIER: I plan to have a Committee to meet with me quarterly to discuss problems and solutions. I will give different fun events over the parish. I am going to focus on children and that will control some of the problems.

GUILLORY: You will not find a law enforcement agency with a higher level of public trust than CPSO. We cherish that trust and will constantly enhance the many programs we currently have and develop more programs to keep our community safe. Most importantly we will keep a victim-first mentality and treat our community with the respect and dignity they deserve. For the last 20 years we’ve had programs such as Jr. Deputies, hunter safety education, boater safety, women’s self-defense classes, bingos for the elderly, and DARE, to name a few. When churches in our nation were attacked and people were killed, we developed a church security program and taught it to every church, free of charge if they requested the training. When mass shootings happened in other parts of the nation, we developed a civilian response to active shooter program to prepare our citizens. We have taught over 100 of these over the last 10 years. When it appeared young people throughout the nation were losing confidence in police, we developed our Reality Check Program. It teaches, not only life skills, but how to handle interactions with law enforcement. Public trust is a key to a successful law enforcement agency and we will not only maintain what we have but we will build it even stronger.

MOSS: I would rebuild the relationship between the community and the police department the sheriff’s department I would allow the community to be part of their department I would allow there correspondence I would maintain correspondence with the community and the police I would have programs that help people to help people get things off of their records that help the community we would have interaction through functions and correspondence I would try to have a system where if people didn’t have a way to come correspond we could pick them up and bring them to the department to meet with them about there because they are Calcasieu Parish they are what the sheriff should come to work to honor protect befriend everyday. When the sheriff department starts showing the citizens that they love and they care about them and if they’re here to help the citizens and return will show the same but not only that when you have a loving environment all the way around it makes for a good community.

REID: We will start with educating the communities within Calcasieu Parish through neighborhood watch meetings on a monthly basis and improve the Junior Deputy Program within the schools of Calcasieu Parish. We believe in educating the community in Law Enforcement is a vital part of creating the safest community. We will have an “open door” policy which deputies are easily accessible to the public including myself to solve any issues within Calcasieu Parish. We will have a Pastors on Patrol division to include all Churchs, of any religion, within Calcasieu Parish with community involvement.

If elected, what would your first year as Sheriff look like?

ABSHIRE: Rapidly, we will have new programs in place to address substance abuse, a restricted pay scale, and the Parish Prison fully open and operating. The agency will be operated more efficiently, with staffing issues reduced, deputies leaving the department reduced, and community trust regained.

BLANCHARD: Amazing but busy! I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to become your next Sheriff of Calcasieu. It’s not only a privilege but an absolute honor for the possibility to be your next top law enforcement leader!

GRAY-CARRIER: Hiring Deputies.

GUILLORY: I feel like we are a very efficient law enforcement agency and do things right. Fundamentally we are headed in the right direction and I plan on staying the course with what we have built. However, I have some fresh ideas that I plan on implementing. In my first year you will see some structural changes that I feel will make us more efficient and even better. Success of any organization starts with leadership. Assembling the absolute best leadership team will be the main focus of my first year. The Sheriff’s Office is filled with some amazing talent. I will tap into talent and create an unmatched leadership team.

MOSS: My first year if I was elected Sheriff I would do my best I can’t tell you what it would look like but I would do my best to make sure that the deputies were properly trained to do their position in Calcasieu Parish.

REID: During the first year as Calcasieu Parish Sheriff we will add more deputies on the streets of Calcasieu Parish to include Patrol Division, Detective Division, Marine Division, Livestock Patrol and School Resource Officers. This will take time to place current Deputies in the right positions and hire qualified Deputies and retain them for a safer community. We are committed to working with other Law Enforcement Agencies within Calcasieu Parish through education. Calcasieu Parish will see a change in leadership within the first year of my term. The Deputies and Residents will be pleased with the qualified personnel and respected personnel in Calcasieu Parish Sheriffs Office in the first year of my term.

Copyright 2023 KPLC. All rights reserved.