BROUSSARD, La. — Seven men have applied for the interim police chief position at the Broussard Police Department.
The position will only be temporary, as the chief spot is an elected office. Earlier this month, Broussard Police Chief Branon Decou sent a retirement letter to state officials after an announcement about an investigation into sexual harassment allegations of a former employee. His retirement takes effect June 1.
Since Decou's resignation is happening within 18 months of what would have been the election for the next term, Olivier will serve the remainder of the term.
KATC Investigates obtained the resumes of the seven men who have applied for the post. All of the men have extensive experience in law enforcement, and several have worked or are working for the Broussard Police Department.
They are, in alphabetical order:
- Jason Haines, currently a sergeant patrol officer in the Broussard Police Department
- Jacques Leblanc, currently a corporal/K-9 officer in the Broussard Police Department
- Marc LeBlanc, currently a lieutenant patrol officer in the New Iberia Police Department
- Todd Mouton, currently the owner of a private security firm
- Vance Olivier, currently a lieutenant in the criminal division of the Lafayette Police Department
- James Rogers, currently a Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office investigator for the District Attorney
- Gregory Theriot, currently a criminal investigator for the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office
Here are some more details from their resumes:
Haines has been in law enforcement since 2002. He's a graduate of Northwestern State University. He began his career in 2002 at the New Iberia Police Department, then moved to the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office in 2004, and to the Broussard Police Department in 2006, where he has been working ever since.
Leblanc has been a K-9 officer for much of his law enforcement career. From 1997 to 2003 he was a member of the U.S. Army National Guard. From 1999 to 2004 he worked at the Youngsville Police Department. He moved to the Broussard Police Department from 2004 to 2006, then on to the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office from 2006 to 2013. In 2013, he moved to the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office, where he worked until 2017, when he returned to Broussard Police.
LeBlanc has been in law enforcement since 1994. He attended UL but left to pursue a dream to play pro football. He began working at the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office in 1994 and was there until 1999. He worked at the New Iberia Police Department from 2000 until 2005, and at the Broussard Police Department from 2005 until 2011. He worked at the Youngsville Police Department from 2011 to 2018, and then went to the New Iberia Police Department in 2020.
Mouton is a longtime Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office deputy who ran against Decou in a contentious race in 2014. He currently owns a private security firm, American Integrated Contractors, which he founded in 2009. He worked as an investigator for attorney Glen Armentor's firm from 2007 to 2014, after his retirement from the LPSO.
Olivier has been a Lafayette Police Officer since 1995. He has worked in patrol, as a K-9 officer, a field training officer, a detective, a watch commander and currently oversees detective squads as a lieutenant in the Criminal Investigation Division. Prior to that, he worked for the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office from 1990 until 1995 as a patrol officer and member of the Metro Narcotics squad.
Rogers began his law enforcement career in 1993 with the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office. He worked for the LPSO for three different periods: from 1993 until 1997, again from 1998 until 2007, and again since 2016. While a deputy, he worked in corrections, UMC and Tyler Mental Health security, patrol and juvenile investigation. He currently works for the LPSO as an investigator for the District Attorney's Office. He also worked for a year as a Scott Police Officer in 1998, and was a Criminal Investigator with the Broussard Police Department from 2007 until 2016.
Theriot is a retired Master Trooper, having served with Louisiana State Police from 1986 until 2011. While a trooper he worked in the Investigation and Gaming divisions. After that he worked at Loftin Security from 2011 until 2014, then started at the St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office in 2014. While with the sheriff's office he has worked as the evidence manager and in the Criminal Investigation Division.
