Historical day as officers sworn in

Published 6:00 am Wednesday, June 20, 2018

From left, Capt. Corey Porter, Capt. John Babin and Officer Walter Thibodeaux relax after the ceremony. 

Fourteen years after the New Iberia Police Department was dissolved, and eight months after the passage of a half-cent sales tax for funding, the NIPD is staffed fully and sworn in to patrol the streets of New Iberia. 

More than 100 people attended the swearing in ceremony Tuesday of more than 60 officers for the NIPD, a historic occasion for New Iberia, said the Rev. Zack Mitchell. 

“The day will come that we look back on this moment and see that history has set in stone, in this place, that New Iberia turned around and made the mark of being one of the greatest cities in the southern United States, simply because of its people,” Mitchell said at the event Tuesday. 

The event took place on the steps of New Iberia City Hall, in front of a fountain that local volunteers turned blue last week just for the occasion. Blue ribbons were hanging all along the civic center. 

Police departments from other areas of Acadiana joined local residents and the police officers’ families in front of City Hall.

The short ceremony included a brief speech from New Iberia Mayor Freddie DeCourt, who introduced the police  department and cited the event as one of the first steps for a more prosperous New Iberia.

“Today we take the next step in our journey to rebound,” DeCourt said. “We’re the second-biggest city in Acadiana and it’s time we start acting like it.”

“Your New Iberia City Police Department is a large part of that success,” DeCourt said. “You make a safe community, you fix your reputation, you begin to attract businesses and then you begin to grow. That’s what this is about. These men and women are the catalyst to make that happen.” 

Third Circuit Court of Appeal Judge John Conery swore in NIPD Chief Todd D’Albor after remarking that he “knew Todd before he was born.” City Judge Trey Haik swore in the rest of the department as they all raised their right hands and recited the oath of office. 

“I’ll tell you that the staff we put together has worked extremely hard to make sure we covered all our basis,” D’Albor said. “Will there be bumps on the road? I’m sure there will be, but we will work with our community to make sure we get past it.

“One thing we’re going to commit to is to build your trust every day,” he said. “Once we build that trust and it’s no longer us versus them, that’s where we all succeed.”

The department is scheduled to begin patrolling the city on July 1, the day when the city’s contract with the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office for law enforcement expires.