Webster Parish Sheriff Jason Parker has dedicated the past six-plus years to creating one of the best law enforcement agencies in the state, and he’s done it by building relationships that extend far beyond the borders of his parish.
“Cooperation between agencies, and building community relationships, are some of the best tools to help keep our citizens safe, whether it’s in Webster Parish or our neighbors across the state,” Parker said.
One area of multi-agency efforts is the Webster Sheriff’s Office participation in the Louisiana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force which targets sexual predators.
“State Attorney General Liz Murrill announced the results of one task force operation that resulted in 67 arrests, and we were proud to be a part of that,” Parker said.
Parker said the Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office commitment to the task force goes far beyond just an agreement on paper.
“Our children are our most precious resource for the future, not only for our parish but for this country. We have assigned a full-time deputy to this task force who will be working to prevent predators from targeting our children.”
A pair of Webster Parish deputies are also building on the Office’s state-wide reputation for excellence.
“We have two POST-certified training officers who travel across the state conducting sessions where they are actually training the people who will be conducting critical training for other officers,” he said. “There are only a handful of officers who are qualified to conduct this type of training, and Webster Parish has two of them.”
Parker said he is proud to know that men wearing the uniform and badges of Webster Parish are instructing officers in law enforcement agencies at all levels.
A pair of projects that will have an impact for many years are moving toward completion, and Parker said both are beneficial to law enforcement beyond the parish lines.
“Our new women’s prison should be ready for operation this year (2026),” he said. “The framework is pretty much complete, the cell pods have been delivered and it’s going to remove female prisoners from the fourth floor of our courthouse. That is something we’ve wanted for a long time.”
Parker said the prison, located on the grounds of the old parish penal farm, will be operated by the Webster Parish Police Jury, but he has set aside funds to assist with construction.
“We’re not involved in the construction or the operation, but we did agree to provide $2.4 million in funding to assist the police jury,” he said.
Once completed, the 66-bed facility will help house female inmates not only from Webster, but from several other parishes in the northwest Louisiana area.
“A lot of other Sheriff’s Offices depend on us to house their females,” Parker said. “On average, Webster Parish has around 14 to 15 pre-trial females. The rest are from Claiborne, Bienville, Red River, Union and other parishes.”
Also on the grounds of the old penal farm and near the new women’s prison is another project Parker said will serve local and area law enforcement agencies.
“Our training center and firing range is really taking shape. We’ve poured concrete walkways and we have a classroom building where we will hold training sessions for our office and any other agencies,” he said.
Two Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office certified instructors will be available for both firearm training and classroom instruction, Parker said.
“This is a project that will benefit us and many other agencies. Now, we can stay at home to get the training we once had to travel to receive,” he said. “Our facility may not be as big as some others, but it’s more than adequate. We’ve already had agencies use the facility, and we hope more will utilize it.”
Parker said the training center will not only benefit law enforcement, it will be a useful tool in connecting with the public.
“Part of our plans for the training center is to use it as an instructional tool for the public,” he said. “We hope to have classroom instruction in things like firearm safety and legal issues that affect the average person. We also hope to offer the opportunity to instruct young people in the proper use of a weapon by allowing them to use, under our supervision, the firing range.”
Parker said his office continues to upgrade its technology and training for all deputies.
“We’re continuing to set the bar very high for our deputies, in their training opportunities and in their opportunity to interact with the people we serve,” he said. “We want to do everything we can to make them better deputies and representatives of the people we are sworn to serve.”
Parker also is looking to what could be a future opportunity to expand the influence of Webster Parish across the state. At the recent annual meeting of the Louisiana Sheriff’s Association, he was elected Sergeant-At-Arms. That could mean a Webster Parish Sheriff, for the first time ever, will serve as President of the Association in 2029.
“It’s an honor to serve the Association on an elected level because it puts Webster Parish in a position to help in state-wide policy decisions,” he said. “If we are fortunate to serve as president, it would do more than just give Webster Parish recognition and influence. It would be beneficial to all of north Louisiana.”
Through active participation in community events, school and civic organizations, the Webster Parish Sheriff’s Office seeks to continue strengthening its ties and commitments to the people of the parish.
“Our goal is to serve and protect, to the best of our ability, the people who put their trust in us,” Parker said. “We want the best trained, best equipped and most dedicated group of law enforcement personnel to represent the people of Webster Parish.”