There's a New Sheriff in Town

The no-nonsense chief law enforcement officer of New Orleans, a Black woman, is making history and addressing the root causes of incarceration in the city

- Janna A. Zinzi

On a sunny Sunday during the Carnival season, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson is riding along the Krewe of Nefertiti parade route, shaking hands and giving mini sheriff badges to the children who run up to her. Community members offer warm hugs and proudly pose for photos with Hutson. Her bright smile, joyful demeanor and very presence challenge the idea of how someone in her position looks and acts.

The word “sheriff” can conjure images of a gunslinging cartoon character—or the oppressive law enforcement officer who was the subject of a classic Bob Marley song. Yet the sheriff of New Orleans is a 5' 4" Black woman who wears locs, holds a law degree and has a deep love for Star Wars movies. Sheriff Hutson is the first woman sheriff in the city—and the first and only Black female of the 64 sheriffs in the state of Louisiana. Being the “first” is not something she takes lightly; but she’s focused on her mission of reunifying Black families and stopping the generational cycles of incarceration that plague communities in NOLA.

Contrary to popular belief, the sheriff's domain is not the streets; it’s typically the jail in Louisiana. Hutson’s job is to ensure the safety of the residents of the city’s lockup, Orleans Justice Center (OJC), where people charged with a crime are held before trial. In New Orleans, the jail assists in maintaining inmates’ mental health. Families cycle through—uncles and nephews, fathers and sons, mothers and daughters—as residents talk about the unhealed trauma of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, which separated families and communities. In a tough election, Sheriff Hutson ran on a vision of transformative justice that resonated with voters, in a place where Black folks are detained at five times the rate of Whites. She wants to make sure that once people leave the OJC, they don’t come back.