Louisiana Voice

Rather than try to tell you about my most recent book, Louisiana’s Rogue Sheriffs: A Culture of Corruption, I thought I’d let those who have read it and reviewed it on the Amazon website do so for me. Six out of the seven reviewers gave it five out of five stars and the seventh gave it four. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t pretty proud of those endorsements.

I’m also very proud of this book. Drawn from court records, news accounts and interviews, it shows how truly powerful the office of sheriff is—not only in Louisiana, but throughout the U.S.—and how that power is often abused by the one elected official in America who answers to no one. Sheriffs do not answer to the president, congress, the governor, or the legislature. That kind of unchecked autonomy invites not only mismanagement and malfeasance, but outright corruption, physical abuse, and even violations of criminal law up to and including homicide.

The book is not meant as a blanket condemnation of law enforcement. In fact, it’s dedicated to those officers who did not earn a mention in the book.

You can purchase your copy for $30 by clicking on the yellow oval DONATE button in the column to the right of this post and pay by card. It looks like this: .

If you prefer, you may send a check for $30 to:

Tom Aswell

P.O. Box 922

Denham Springs, Louisiana 70727

Following are the seven reviews:

Bunny

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good book!

Reviewed on October 19, 2019

Since I live in Louisiana I found this book to be very true and factual. Enjoyed reading.

Stephen R. Winham

4.0 out of 5 stars A Definitive Work on the Power of Sheriffs

Reviewed on July 20, 2019

This has already become Tom Aswell’s most noted book to date. Those familiar with Aswell’s work will know he is meticulous in his research – For proof, pick up a copy of his earlier book, Louisiana Rocks. In Louisiana’s Rogue Sheriffs Aswell continues the diligence of his encyclopedic volume on rock music history and in his seminal book about our immediate past governor – Bobby Jindal: His Destiny and Obsession, coupling it with the courageous journalism reflected in his LouisianaVoice blog. Despite the serious nature of this book, he manages to work in a little humor and ends with humorous anecdotes from his personal experiences – as you may know, he was once a stand-up comedian.

An honest evaluation of the power used and abused in our justice system requires courage – and focusing on sheriffs is particularly courageous. The late Harry Lee—elected seven times as sheriff of Jefferson Parish once said, “Why would I want to be governor when I can be king?” [Wikipedia]

Aswell notes that sheriffs are uniquely powerful and have been so for centuries. In the United States they are essentially bound only by the state and U. S. constitutions and accountable only to the electorate of their jurisdictions. Sheriffs are not term-limited and generally spend many years in office. Look at your own parish sheriff and his predecessors and you will see there is very little turnover. And while state law provides minimum qualifications for deputy sheriffs, it does not do the same for the “high sheriffs”, so lack of law enforcement experience is not an impediment to election.

Those of us who grew up in Louisiana know that local governments are run by the “courthouse gang” of local elected officials and state politicians still believe they need their support to win elections. Without question, the most powerful and independent member of that group is the sheriff, who is also a member of the most powerful political lobbying group in the state, the Louisiana Sheriffs Association. Not only do sheriffs hold considerable sway with lawmakers, but governors are known to take their recommendations for certain appointments, including the heads of state police and the corrections system. Our current governor comes from a family of sheriffs.

Nineteenth century politician Lord Acton is best known for his statement, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Aswell sets out to see how true that statement is among Louisiana’s sheriffs. Louisiana has 64 criminal sheriffs, one in each parish (county). Aswell does not paint all our sheriffs with a broad brush, but he details things ranging from ignorance of the law through negligence and theft all the way to the worst brutality imaginable among 34 sheriffs’ offices and a handful of non-sheriff law enforcement agencies in our state. As he notes, the office of sheriff has existed as a powerful entity for many centuries here and abroad.

Beginning with the Kefauver Crime Commission in 1951, Aswell traces actions by some sheriffs across our state that would, in the absence of the right connections, net most of us time in a parish jail or a state or federal prison. He details human rights violations, nepotism, favoritism, discrimination, racism, sexism, organized crime connections, ignorance (for a price) of gambling and prostitution, theft of public property and other actions anybody should clearly see as wrong – things that, as Lord Acton’s statement implies, indicate that as power grows, moral senses tend to diminish.

I recommend this book to anybody seeking insight into our justice system, particularly the law enforcement side and specifically sheriffs. It represents years of work and documentation of facts and experts’ opinions. It is exhaustive and hard to absorb in one or two sittings. I recommend you read 3 – 5 chapters at a time to get the full effect.
It is sometimes hard to figure why people continue to re-elect some of the more corrupt of our sheriffs, but not hard to see how open opposition is limited by the power vested in the office.

I have always said the best approach to our system of justice

Bob M

5.0 out of 5 stars Eye Opening – Fascinating – Factual – Funny

Reviewed on August 20, 2019

I loved the book and it is worth the investment. First there are many parishes that do things honorably, correctly and focus on helping citizens. Louisiana has 64 parishes and almost 50% are comprised of bad-guys. Count the parishes in the book for the true data. I was born in New Iberia and lived there until age 19. It is hard to believe that the peculiarity of sheriffs’ department corruption, viciousness, dishonesty, and ignorance of the law, remains the same. Often things are much worse than the shenanigans of the 1950s. One sheriff has racked up almost $8 million in payments for settlements and associated legal fees. Currently this department has five open lawsuits. Some deputies take pride in killing friendly family dogs. One case was settled for $70,000.

This should be required reading for attorneys in the state. Bottom line; the book would be extremely helpful to individuals and companies considering relocation to Louisiana.

McCoy

5.0 out of 5 stars Get it. Read it. SHARE it.

Reviewed on September 11, 2019

Once again, Tom Aswell demonstrates how meticulous research combined with fine writing can produce a book that’s almost impossible to put down.  I say “almost” because one has to get in a few hours of sleep to be functional.  Readers don’t need to be from Louisiana or even care much about shady dealings in law enforcement to find Rogue Sheriffs a compelling read.  The sheer hubris of some of these men who were given too much power (they still are) boggles the mind.  Most of the “bent coppers” the author describes in such minute detail were more contemptible than the worst criminals and should have spent most of their adult lives behind bars getting a daily taste of prison justice.  

To be clear, I’m not implying that the subjects of this revealing book typify Louisiana law enforcement officials because that is certainly not the case.  However…a relatively few bad apples tend to spoil the whole barrel, at least in the public’s opinion, so I believe Mr. Aswell’s book should be required reading for concerned citizens, all law enforcement trainees and rookies, as well as criminology and law school classes not only throughout Louisiana, but across the country.  Rogue Sheriffs illustrates in jaw-dropping detail just how dangerous too much power in the hands of the wrong people can be.  I hope it is widely-read, shared and recommended and that it will motivate voters to make informed decisions when they use their own power at election time.

Cajun Joe

5.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing story

Reviewed on August 20, 2019

As disturbing as it is to learn of the level of corruption and lawlessness of Louisiana Sheriffs, it can’t and shouldn’t be dismissed or denied. Tom has third-party documented his findings so completely that no one can dispute what he has reported that has been done by the Sheriffs as a group. They operate like a gangland crime family with impunity. It appears doubtful that as a group the Louisiana Sheriffs will become respectable due to the general populace turning a blind eye to and a permissive acceptance of their behavior.

Sher68

5.0 out of 5 stars Louisiana Sheriffs Need Term Limits

Reviewed on August 20, 2019

I recommend this book to anybody seeking insight into our justice system, particularly the law enforcement side and specifically sheriffs. Mr. Aswell meticulously researched his topic. Sadly, there is little oversight in Louisiana over sheriffs, other than the ballot box. Once in office, it is difficult to find someone to run against an incumbent Louisiana sheriff. Term limits are needed on such powerful offices.

Johnny Armstrong

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant!

Reviewed on August 23, 2019

It takes a crack shot investigative journalist like Tom Aswell to put together such an enlightening and fascinating work of Louisiana history as is Louisiana’s Rogue Sheriffs: A Culture of Corruption. Eye opening, sadly humorous and highly informative in its hard lessons from our colorful but sometimes ugly past, this book is a must-read for all Louisianans.