VIDALIA, La. – To hear George Sewell tell it, there is almost nothing he wouldn’t change about the Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office if he is elected sheriff.

His first priorities would include reducing the size of the department and buying more technology – and another drug dog – to catch drug dealers. &uot;Drugs are biggest issue people are telling me about,&uot;&160;he said. &uot;They’re all over this parish.&uot;

Sewell, a parish constable with 31 years of law enforcement experience, is one of four men running for sheriff.

The others are Randy Maxwell, who has been the parish’s sheriff for eight years; Tony Braley, a reserve officer in Concordia Parish for many years; and the Rev. Justin Conner.

Upon winning the election, Sewell said he would cut down on the number of workers in the Sheriff’s Office.

&uot;But I&160;would still have enough to keep the people of the parish safe,&uot;&160;he said, adding that he would make sure rural areas are patrolled more often.

Next, Sewell said he would tackle the parish’s drug problem by going after the area’s biggest drug dealers and purchasing the latest in drug-fighting technology, though he would not go into specifics.

He would buy another dog to find drugs and working with law enforcement agencies from Florida to Texas to find out who the biggest suspected drug dealers are.

Citizens are also concerned about prisoners who escape from work crews, Sewell said. State prisoners housed in Concordia Parish escaped from work crews in June and late September. To help fix the problem, Sewell said he would limit the size of work crews.

Sewell pledged to install video cameras on the dashes of deputies’ cars to &uot;protect not only the deputies, but the people they arrest.&uot; Also, he said he would send an officer to the FBI Academy to learn the latest forensic techniques.

He hopes revenue from the parish’s hydroelectric plant and money saved from streamlining the department would help pay for such things as drug-fighting technology and cameras in deputies’ cars.

Sewell said he believes that his law enforcement experience would be his best strength as sheriff.

He has served three years as Concordia Parish constable and 10 years with the Ferriday Police Department. He also worked 18 years for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ enforcement division.