SHERIDAN — The biggest thing with law enforcement, Jason Teague said, is dealing with the people of the department, but also the community.
“You hear people talk about community policing, but it is just building relationships,” Teague said. “That’s what I see, developed and grown between me and the department, but also the department and the community.”
Teague was recently named the new police chief for the Sheridan Police Department. His first official day is Monday.
“If we can accomplish that, everything else will be fine,” Teague said. “We will grow and be better because of it. The safety of the community will be better, and everything will be better off because of those relationships being better.”
Teague replaces former Police Chief Bob Adams, who retired from the position July 21.
“Bob was a great man and a man of integrity, and he has served his community well over the years,” Teague said. “I appreciate his years of service to Grant County and the city of Sheridan.”
Sheridan Mayor Joe C. Wise Jr. said the city had 14 applicants for the chief position, and they were narrowed down to four. Wise said Teague’s experience and his good relationships with other law enforcement agencies were some of the factors that stood out.
“He just met the criteria that we were looking for,” Wise said.
Not only will Teague oversee the Police Department but also the city’s jail. Wise said that with the Sheridan Detention Center, the city is one of only two municipalities in Arkansas that own and operate approved detention centers.
“Having that 309 [work-release] program saves us a lot of money,” Wise said, “and it provides a lot of services for our residents that we might not otherwise be able to do.”
The Police Department employs 13 full-time officers, and the jail has about 14 full-time employees.
“The challenge will be coming in as a new chief and winning over the trust and the respect of those that I will be entrusted to supervise,” Teague said. “Anytime there is a change, there is apprehension, there is nervousness, so that will be the challenge — to earn the respect of those that I will be working with.”
Teague is originally from Denham Springs, Louisiana. He graduated from high school in 1991 and attended Louisiana State University, studying chemical engineering. He moved to Arkansas in 1995.
He began his law enforcement career in 2005 after being hired by the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.
“I had a good friend (Chris Bunch) who worked for Grant County, and I rode with him a few times,” said Teague, who was working for the Texas prison system at the time. “Riding with my friend as a deputy, I saw the opportunity to help people and to be a help to the community as well.
“That was my introduction to law enforcement. That’s how I ended up in Grant County.”
Teague worked for the Grant County Sheriff’s Office for more than 11 years before transferring to serve as a criminal investigator for the Arkansas Insurance Department Criminal Investigation Division for the past year and a half.
“In law enforcement, you always have goals and a vision of having the opportunity to make a difference,” Teague said. “You always have a goal — that one day I would like to mold and shape a department in a certain way.
“When this position came open, I saw it as an opportunity. This may be a chance to make a difference, and it led me to this.”
Teague said the opportunity to make a difference in the community of Sheridan was one he could not pass up.
“I am familiar with almost all of the officers there as well, and I just thought it would be an opportunity for my career but also make a difference in the community,” he said.
Teague said he considers Sheridan home, and for the past year and a half, it hasn’t felt like home, with him driving back and forth to Little Rock every day.
“I look forward to being back home and around the people that I have worked around and known,” Teague said. “Aside from that, I look forward to the challenges ahead, whatever may arise.
“I look forward to what we can accomplish as a team together in this department.”
Bunch now serves as a school resource officer for the Paragould School District. Bunch has known Teague since they were kids, first meeting at church. Bunch even introduced Teague to his wife.
“Anything Jason has ever done, from the time he was a young person, he is just the type of person you can trust,” Bunch said. “He is going to be responsible; you never question it.
“His duty means everything to him. He is an honorable man who is always willing to do his duty.”
Lt. Robbie Bird, one of the people who hired Teague at Grant County, said Teague’s professionalism and curiosity to learn, especially about investigation, stood out to him.
“He is a voice of reason in a lot of situations,” Bird said. “He was pretty deliberate on analysis of cases and his actions. I never had to worry about him jumping the gun.”
Bird said that after working together so closely for so long, it would be impossible to narrow it down to one moment or case. The two have worked every type of case, from property crimes to homicide.
“I didn’t have to worry about him bringing his best game, regardless of the level of crime it was,” Bird said. “I think he will do great [as chief]. The city of Sheridan is lucky to be getting him.”
Teague, 44, lives just south of Sheridan with his wife, Crystal. The two have been married for almost 19 years and have six children together: Sarah, 17, Jesse, 15, Ana, 10, Asa, 8, Josiah, 7, and Silas, 5.
Teague said he never expected to have so many children, but it is a blessing and is always exciting, and he wouldn’t change anything. Crystal home-schools all six children.
“Like with anything, there are always challenges, but she enjoys it,” Teague said. “It is a blessing to us because it allows us to spend more time — her especially — with the kids.”
Teague and his family have been members of Gospel Light Baptist Church in Malvern for 12 years. Sarah plays volleyball for the church, and Jesse plays basketball.
“Everyone has their talents and abilities, and it is about finding the right fit and what you are best at and best suited for,” Teague said. “For me, I was more suited for investigations. Some people are better utilized for patrol.
“Part of my job, even now, is finding where people are best talented and best suited. Every job is vitally important, and finding where people can be used the best is an important job as an administrator.”
Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.