Bossier Sheriff Julian Whittington

Sheriff Julian Whittington makes a difference in Bossier Parish

Periodically, 318 Forum’s Tony Taglavore takes a local person to lunch — someone who is well-known, successful, and/or influential — and asks, “What’s Your Story?”

How much did she hate her spouse?

“We got information through a confidential informant that this lady wanted to hire a hit man.”

Yikes. “We got the husband in on it early, to tell him what was going on, and ask if he would he be willing to fake his own death.”

Oh, would he. “He wanted her to get in as much trouble as he could get her in, so he was more than glad to help us.”

But how would the husband “die”? “We took a ladder out there, put some ketchup all over him, and put a brick out there like he had fallen off the ladder and hit his head. She got back home, and there he was. She thought he was dead. He was not dead. We charged her.”

Sixty-six-year-old Julian Whittington, in his 14th year as Bossier Parish sheriff, has seen a great deal in his 37 years with the department. He told me that story — and his story — during lunch at a place Julian chose: Salt Grass Steakhouse. He had the country-fried steak with “a little” white gravy, mashed potatoes and sweet tea with lemon. I enjoyed the Hill Country salad with grilled chicken and water with lemon.

“I love being the sheriff. I tell people all the time the best job in America is being an American sheriff, but the best job in the world is the Louisiana sheriff. ... The Louisiana sheriff has more opportunities to make a difference in their parish than any one individual.

... You can do so much good if you’re serious about it.”

Julian has been serious about law enforcement since 1981 when he became a reservist for the Bossier City Police Department. That’s while he was also earning an associate’s degree in criminal justice from Bossier Parish Community College, following a brief stint at Louisiana Tech, where he studied business.

“After a year, the dean and the counselor came to me and said, ‘Mr. Whittington, you might have a brighter future in something else besides business.”

Ouch. But Julian agreed. His heart wasn’t in it.

However, his heart was in helping people, as he discovered while serving as a reservist.

“When nobody else has been able to solve their problem — the school, the counselor, the pastor — when it all hits bottom, when nothing else has worked and nobody has been able to help them, they call us. ... Being able to help people who a lot of times are at the end of the road and desperate, some of them just need some advice. I thought that was a great feeling. You can’t always solve their problems.

Most of the time, you just listen to them. That goes a long way. It just kind of hit the spot.”

Born in Shreveport, Julian was raised and has spent most of his life in Benton.

“I was from Benton before it was cool to be from Benton. We were way up the road there, stuck between Bossier City and Plain Dealing.”

In those days, there wasn’t much for a teenager — even one with a driver’s license — to do. There wasn’t much traffic, either.

“It probably wasn’t the smartest thing, but we would see how far we could go with our lights off at night before we met another car. You could go all the way up Airline Drive. My friend’s girlfriend lived off Linton Road. There weren’t any cars for 15-20 minutes at a time.”

One of two children born to a schoolteacher mother and a banker and farmer father, Julian graduated from Plain Dealing Academy — and not fast enough.

“I hated school. I hated every minute of school. I could be doing something on the farm or hunting or fishing. I was so glad when I got out. I promised to never bother them again.”

Julian’s father, Don, also dabbled in politics as a city councilman and police juror. When Julian was in his mid-teens, Don decided to do more than dabble in politics.

He ran for sheriff. “I helped put up signs. My brother and I were the sign guys. ... That (campaign) consumed our family.”

In a race with several candidates, Don made the runoff but lost the election.

“It was not pleasant around (the house) for a while. I remember that very vividly. It was an emotional blow. You lost the money you invested in it. Obviously, there’s pride and all the things that go into putting it on the line like that for a position. But I think it did prepare me in ways I didn’t realize at the time.

Thirty-five years later, when Julian won his first sheriff’s race, Don was by Julian’s side, beaming with pride.

“I’ll be honest with you. On my inauguration day, and while giving my remarks, all I really remember (Julian’s voice begins to crack) was him being there and how proud he was.”

Before dying at age 83, Don also saw his son reelected. But before Julian ran for the first time, he thought back to the pain his father had endured and the lesson he had learned.

“Knowing it’s possible (to win) if you prepare yourself and are determined, but it’s not automatic. There is a downside. There is a big risk to it, to you and your family.

Now serving his fourth term, the father of two and grandfather of five has turned risk into reward. In 2023, Julian won the election with 87 percent of the vote (he had hoped for 90%) – a strong vote of confidence in him and his department.

But I found it wasn’t easy getting the tall, slender, balding sheriff to talk about himself.

“What you see is what you get. I won’t write a novel on something I can write you in one sentence. I’m kind of to the point. I pride myself on my listening ability. ... A lot of times, just listening (to employees), I can’t solve a problem. I can’t fix it. But I can listen to you. I’ve found that to be my biggest asset.”

However, it wasn’t hard getting Julian to talk about those who work under his leadership.

“I tell my guys and gals all the time that when dealing with the public, a lot of times we’re dealing with people on the worst day of their lives. A wreck. A homicide. A rape. Even having their home burglarized. Probably one of the worst things to ever happen to them. Have a little compassion. How would you like to be treated if that were your sister, your mother or your house? Put yourself in somebody’s shoes a little bit.”

Hoping to get away before the sheriff ran a background check on me, I asked my final question. What lessons has he learned in life that might be helpful to someone?

“Treat people like you like to be treated, as long as you can. Show a little respect.”

And know that if you try to hire someone to kill your spouse in Bossier Parish, you likely won’t get away with it.