DYKES PROMISES TO MAKE LIFE TOUGH ON DRUG DEALERS

Either quit selling illegal drugs or move. That's Sheriff Larry Dykes'
message to anyone involved with illegal drugs in Jones County.

As he begins his second term as sheriff of Jones County, Dykes says his
department will continue its battle against illegal drugs. He talked about
his plans and department during a recent interview with the Leader-Call
editorial board.

Leader-Call: "As you enter your new term as sheriff, what are your goals
for the next four years?"

Dykes: "We talked about that the other day. I told my staff in the past
four years, we had a lot of bad things happen in Jones County. By the grace
of the good Lord and a lot of good help, we have no unsolved murders. We
also try to combat the dope problem here in the county.

"Our outlook and goal for the next four years is to try to upgrade the
department and to do everything we can to give the people better protection
and service. Like I said in the beginning, my goal is to give the people
back what they are paying in taxes."

Leader-Call: "Sheriff, please tell us about your department. How many
deputies do your have? How many auxiliary deputies are there? Do you have
enough manpower to get the job done?"

Dykes: "Right now, we have 10 rotating deputies. We have eight deputies
that working rotating 12 hour shifts, so that gives two people at all
times, especially at night, out answering calls.

With the auxiliary program, we have 15 or 16 auxiliary deputies who devote
their time to the county. Most of the time, they are not paid. They just
devote their time to the county because they want to help. The program is a
great help and a lot of the times we wouldn't be able to do the things we
do without them. An auxiliary officer has to be certified and goes to
school for about 280 hours of training before you can go out on the road to
serve the public.

"It's funny in a way, but we have more people working at the correctional
facilities (the jail) than you do out on the roads. We have eight to 10
deputies that work the county which consists of 702 square miles. And then
we have around 30-something correction officers working at the juvenile
detention center and the adult detention center. But that's what it takes."

Leader-Call: "What is the big thrust going to be this year? Drugs? You have
put a lot of effort into that over the last four years."

Dykes: "We will continue to battle the drug problem in Jones County. I know
we will never rid the county of the drug problem. No other county in the
state of Mississippi will be able to do that. But I want to make it so
tough on them here in Jones County that they will do one of two things:
They will either quit selling illegal narcotics or move."

Leader-Call: "Do you see any changes in the number of crimes like thefts
and burglaries we are having. Are they up or down, or about the same?"

Dykes: "You are going to have house burglaries and larcenies, but the laws
have changed. Effective July 1, 2003, to be charged with grand larceny, you
had to steal an item or items valued at more than $500. It had been $250.
Anything under $500 is petty larceny or petty theft.

"We try our best but we aren't going to solve all of the burglaries. You
get a call and the deputy responds to work the case. It's happened. Nobody
has seen anything. He gets a list of things, but in most cases, he's
starting from square one.

"For the past four years, if it hadn't been for the help that was given to
us through information from the general public, we wouldn't have been half
way close to being able to accomplish what we have accomplished. That's the
way it is with any crime. Somebody saw something, got a tag number, or
knows the person who did it. It all goes back to leg work and getting help
from the public calling.

"Another problem we are having is the theft of four-wheelers. In the past
two years, I believe we are below average on the number of burglaries."

Leader-Call: "Does the Crimestoppers program help?"

Dykes: "It's a very big help. It is a very vital tool. A lot of crimes and
drug arrests and other things not only in the county but the city of Laurel
and the other municipalities have been solved through tips to Crimestoppers."

Leader-Call: "How does your department work with the Southeast Mississippi
Drug Task Force?"

Dykes: "The drug task force consists of Jones, Covington, Smith and Jasper
counties. The sheriffs of each county are basically over the task force. It
gives you money to hire people to work in the task force that you wouldn't
normally have. It comes through grants. And it gives the counties involved
more manpower. Each person that works in the task force is a deputy in
every county. So if one county needs some help, everybody can go and give
assistance."

Leader-Call: "Any new plans for the upcoming four years?"

Dykes: "My goal for the next four years is to keep the department upgraded,
to keep everyone knowledgeable about what the laws are, and try to provide
the best equipment available for fighting crime. But it all goes back to
money and tax dollars. I would love to have more people on the road but it
goes back to money. We will try to utilize every person we have in the best
way we can."