Sheriff opts for less formal duds

Logan County deputies to wear oxford top, jeans or khakis

The Logan County sheriff's office is ditching its uniforms.

Instead, most of the time, deputies will be wearing dark jeans or khaki pants with a white shirt during the day or a black shirt at night.

Sheriff Boyd Hicks said he's making the change primarily to save money, but other benefits are that his officers will look "less militant" and be less visible at night.

The old, light tan uniforms made officers an easier target at night, Hicks said.

"If somebody on a traffic stop did start shooting at you, you can't hide," the sheriff said. "You can't get away."

Robert Reames, who has been a part-time deputy in Logan County for nine years, agreed.

"They're too light colored for night work," he said of the old uniforms. "You can be seen too easy after dark."

Hicks posted a message June 6 on the sheriff's office Facebook page so the public would be aware of the change, which will take place over the next month or so.

Located in western Arkansas, Logan County hugs the south side of the Arkansas River and includes Mount Magazine State Park. The county seat is Paris.

Newton County Sheriff Keith Slape said he understands the argument for dark uniforms at night, but he was almost hit by a vehicle while working an accident one night wearing all black.

"There's areas you want to be seen, and there's areas you don't want to be seen, too," Slape said.

Hicks said the old uniforms cost $150. The new ones will cost less than $60. They will include dark Levis or Wrangler bluejeans and a button-front oxford-cloth shirt.

Badges will be displayed on the shirts, and the officers will still carry guns.

Hicks said the sheriff's office had been paying about $1,000 for uniforms for each officer -- five uniforms for daily use plus a battle-dress uniform for tactical response. Each officer will still have a battle-dress uniform for occasional use, Hicks said.

The daily-use uniforms have to be replaced about every other year, he said. The department has 12 certified officers, including the sheriff.

Hicks said he's trying to save money so the county can build a new 100-bed jail, which could cost $12 million.

Hicks is a former police chief for the city of Magazine. He took office as sheriff on Jan. 1.

"I've noticed over the last 23 years I've been doing this, sometimes the way you dress has an effect on your attitude," Hicks said Friday. "I want my deputies to have the attitude that we're public servants but still have the equipment and means to do our job and take care of business if we have to."

Hicks said his officers will be wearing khakis and a tie for court appearances. The sheriff didn't have strict rules about the ties, however.

"I just told them I didn't want polka dots or Tabasco sauce ties -- something conservative," Hicks said.

Hicks said the new uniforms will be similar to those worn by the Texas Rangers Division.

Reames said the new uniforms will be more comfortable and not as hot as the old polyester uniforms.

Reames believes that the public will be as respectful of the new uniforms as they were of the old ones.

"I think the badge gives you more respect than what you wear behind it," he said.

Hicks said the new uniforms are basically what most sheriffs in Arkansas wear anyway, but now their deputies can dress the same way.

Slape, who is second vice president of the Arkansas Sheriffs Association, said he allows officers to wear khakis and embroidered black polo shirts, but not jeans. Slape said he doesn't know of another Arkansas sheriff -- other than Hicks -- who is allowing his officers to wear jeans on duty.

Police uniforms have been a topic of public discourse since the St. Louis County Police Department was criticized for wearing battle-dress uniforms on routine patrol after the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., on Aug. 9.

"The nation is starting to look at police as being too militarized," Slape said. "I know it makes it easier for someone to come up and talk to you if you're not standing there in raid gear."

According to The Atlantic's CityLab magazine, "What we now think of as the 'standard' American police uniform is itself an artifact of war -- the Civil War. In many departments, including the Los Angeles Police Department, early law-enforcement duds were actually surplus uniforms from the Union Army."

Throughout the early 20th century, police uniforms looked a lot like military uniforms, according to the article. That began to change in the 1960s, as different cities experimented with more casual uniforms.

In 1969, the Menlo Park, Calif., Police Department swapped its traditional paramilitary uniforms for forest green blazers with black pants, white dress shirts and ties. After eight years, the department switched back to the traditional uniforms, saying the blazers didn't command enough respect and assaults on police officers had increased.

The New York City Police Department experimented with more casual uniforms in the 1980s, including baseball caps. But it went back to traditional uniforms in the 1990s after deciding the caps added "an unprofessional air to policing," according to a 1994 New York Times article.

After the terrorism attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, there was a large-scale militarization of American police forces. But there's a concern that battle uniforms are too often put to use.

Hicks believes his officers will be more approachable in jeans and oxford shirts.

"It is a less militant look, and I believe I prefer a less militant look," he said. "We're here to serve the public. We're here to help the public."

Metro on 06/22/2015

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