With a new sheriff coming to New Orleans, what will change in crime fighting? Unless you end up going to jail, the changes may not be immediately apparent.
Sheriff-elect Susan Hutson campaigned on a criminal justice reform platform, but it won't directly lead to fewer carjackings or armed robberies.
"No, that's not their responsibility," said UNO political science professor Ed Chervenak. "Their responsibility is to maintain the jail and control the prison population."
Hutson's campaign focused on making a safer jail, where inmates cannot attack each other, or harm themselves.
"The sheriff and the district attorney are major components of the criminal justice system," Chervenak told WWL's Tommy Tucker, but Chervenak says the sheriff's responsibility is primarily what goes on after a suspect is caught: "For the sheriff it's about running the jail and trying to manage the jail."
