After 24 years in office, Sheriff Jackie Knight didn’t seek re-election. He says it was one of the hardest decisions he ever made, but says he can rest easy knowing the county is in good hands.
Newton County Sheriff Jody Pennington was sworn in early last Monday. He says his goals are to clean the streets of drug dealers, develop a special response team for school shootings and to make sure all patrol cars are marked so law enforcement can be visible to the community.
“If you get rid of the drug dealers, you get rid of 85% of the crime that comes along with it. I’ve been in this for 20 years. I’ve gone into houses where I see kids that should not be living in that condition. During the campaign, I told the people of Newton County what I was going to do for them, and I am going to do every single thing I told them I was going to do,” says Pennington.