Serving on a team that works together to achieve goals for the greater good has been one of Deputy Chief Darren Hall’s most passionate goals over his 29-year career in law enforcement.
Hall was appointed as Deputy Police Chief for the DeRidder Police Department in March of 2020. During his interview for consideration of the position, Hall said he answered honestly and from the heart when he was asked why he wanted the job.
“I told them, ‘I actually don’t know if I want this job, but I do know that I could help and that I would like to do that’. I really didn’t think I would get the position,” Hall stated.
As it turns out, the department very much wanted the help from a seasoned detective with years of patrol and supervisor experience under his belt.
Hall began his career in law enforcement in 1993 as a part-time corrections officer and dispatcher with the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office under Sheriff Bolivar Bishop. Within less than a year, Hall was promoted from part-time to full-time, and moved out of the jail and into the patrol division.
After four years of patrol work, he moved into the detective division. After another four years there, he moved back into the patrol division as a patrol supervisor.
In 2007, Hall moved to the DeRidder Police Department where he served as a patrol officer before being promoted to detective. During that time, he continued to help out wherever needed.
“I was also a D.A.R.E. officer during those years. If I wasn’t working on D.A.R.E. stuff I was helping out the detectives,” Hall stated.
Hall is known throughout the police department as a team player and one that is always willing to lend advice or a helping hand on a case. He attributes this to his mentality that “it takes all of us to make the ship sail.”
“Police work has been about helping to serve and protect since its inception. To be successful, a department needs the right equipment, and I think training is just as valuable as any piece of equipment. If I can help the newer officers learn the ropes, then they in turn are better able to help the community and that is what this job is all about,” he stated.
Now, as Deputy Police Chief, Hall’s job has become more focused on operations and office management, but he said his desire to help remains as strong as ever.
“It’s like being first mate on a ship. The chief makes the orders and my job is to see that they get followed through. I still don’t mind helping our detective division though. We often have brainstorming sessions where I try to offer some guidance when I think it’s worthwhile,” he said.
Ensuring that the community is served to the best of the department’s ability remains one of Hall’s top priorities. He said he hopes to preserve the close relationship between law enforcement and the community that he said makes DeRidder so unique.
“When we had officers from outside of our area assist us in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura, they told us that they had never experienced a support system like what we have here. They were amazed at how much the community embraces its law enforcement officers, and I am dedicated to seeing that continue,” Hall stated.
Hall recalled a moment on a Saturday morning while he and Chief Richard were at their offices working when a gentleman entered the police department with a message for them.
“All he wanted was to let us know that he and others were there for us; that we had their support. He just wanted us to know that. That’s what makes this community so incredible. Public trust is not built in a day, and we all know that. We work hard every day to preserve that trust.”