By Kimberly Vetter
The Advocate
EAST BATON ROUGE, La. — During his first three months in office, East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff Sid Gautreaux spent almost a million dollars on vehicles, the most expensive of which went to himself and his second in command.
Gautreaux, the former police chief of Baker, bought a $43,206 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe for himself and a $41,633 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe for Col. Ricky Adams, Sheriff’s Office records show.
The remaining money went to the purchase of 30 Ford Crown Victoria patrol units and 15 other vehicles that will be used for patrol, computer operations, civil processing, judicial services and prison duties, sheriff officials said in a Tuesday interview.
The sheriff bought his four-door black Tahoe equipped with a navigation system and other amenities because it’s what was immediately available on state contract at Gerry Lane Chevrolet, said sheriff’s spokeswoman Casey Rayborn Hicks.
Vehicles bought on state contract don’t have to go out for bid because the state has already gone through the bidding process, allowing purchases to be made more quickly, said Jim Fernandez, chief civil deputy.
The sheriff had to buy something quickly because there wasn’t a vehicle readily available to him when he took office on Dec. 5, Hicks said, adding that the purchase is “an appropriate accommodation.”
Then-Sheriff Elmer Litchfield, for instance, bought a new 2001 Buick Park Avenue for $31,807, a comparable price “given current inflation,” she said.
The Tahoe was “the vehicle the sheriff decided he wanted to provide as an executive car,” Adams said. Gautreaux wanted something he could haul things in and he wanted something UPGRADES that would be appropriate for dignitaries.
Other Louisiana sheriffs have made similar decisions.
Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand drives a new Chevrolet Suburban, said spokesman Col. John Fortunato.
Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edwards’ vehicle is a 2006 version of Normand’s sport utility vehicle, spokeswoman Blair Foster said.
And, Livingston Parish Sheriff Willie Graves has a GMC Yukon, said spokesman Perry Rushing.
“The sheriff and the colonel use the cars for basically anything a deputy or detective in our division would use a vehicle for,” Hicks said. “They are out on a variety of calls. As the heads of our 800-plus agency, they are often needed on scene.”
The purchasing of vehicles isn’t going to stop any time soon either, sheriff’s officials said. When Gautreaux took office after defeating Greg Phares, the fleet’s condition was deplorable, the officials said.
Gautreaux said it is imperative that he provides deputies with adequate equipment and transportation to ensure they can serve the community to the best of their ability.
“Myself and my team are working diligently to bring this department to present-day law enforcement standards,” he said.
Nearly half of the units making up the fleet had more than 75,000 miles on their odometers, officials said, but the engine use on those cars is comparable to a vehicle that has been driven 125,000 miles.
“Wear and tear on law enforcement vehicles is very different from a civilian’s,” Hicks said. “These vehicles are the deputies’ offices.”
While responding to a call recently, a deputy lost one of his patrol car’s wheels, Adams said. It just slid off.
“This is too common of an occurrence,” he said. “We lost an hour and a half of that deputy’s time.”
The primary reason why the fleet is in such bad shape is that the previous administration neglected to spend an appropriate amount of money on new vehicles in 2005, 2006 and 2007, sheriff’s officials said.
In 2005 and 2007, the Sheriff’s Office spent more than $850,000 on vehicle purchases, documents say. In 2006, the office spent $76,521 on such purchases.
These amounts are lower than the $1.5 million to $2.5 million the Sheriff’s Office spent annually on vehicle purchases from 1998 through 2004, the documents say.
Retired Maj. M.C. Fourrier used to head the Sheriff’s Office fleet and is working with Gautreaux on a temporary basis to help analyze some of the agency’s needs.
Law enforcement agencies should replace about a third of their fleets annually, Fourrier said. And, patrol units should not be driven much beyond 75,000 miles.
To get the office’s fleet back on track, Gautreaux and his administration are looking at various options, including leasing rather than buying and alternative purchasing methods, officials said.
“You don’t want these ups and downs,” Fourrier said. “We want to set up a system that will work itself.”
Establishing that system might take three to five years, he said.
Copyright 2008 The Advocate