[StBernard] Race for St. Bernard Sheriff turns ugly among two candidates

[Westley Annis]

Race for St. Bernard Sheriff turns ugly among two candidates

Reported by: Sabrina Wilson, Reporter Email: swilson at fox8tv.net
			
Print Story Published: 9/23 5:48 pm Share Updated: 9/23 9:27 pm 
Chalmette -- In St. Bernard Parish, there is no mistaking the season.

Campaign signs are everywhere and one of the races getting a lot of
attention is the one for sheriff.  Sheriff Jack Stephens' era is coming to
an end.

Four men are seeking the office, and two of them are employed by the current
sheriff.  Each of the candidates believes he has the best plan for the
Sheriff's Office.

Candidate Jimmy Pohlmann, who is chief deputy of the sheriff's department,
touts his 28 years of experience with the S.O.  "[I] have been in that
position for four years now.  So basically they've had a 'test drive' with
Jimmy Pohlmann," said the candidate.

Chad Clark is on leave from his post as commander of the S.O.'s special
investigations division.  "I'm the only candidate that has the most
experience especially when it comes to running undercover investigations,
wire tap investigations," Clark stated.

Barry Bernadas worked for the FBI for more than two decades.  During his
time there, he focused on public corruption cases.  "I want to take and
create the largest neighborhood watch groups possible and incorporate the
neighborhood watch groups into an intelligence base," Bernadas said.

The fourth candidate is Wayne Landry, who is currently on the parish
council.  He said courses he took in college help qualify him to be a crime
fighter.

"The sheriff's job is not a policeman's job.  It's an administrative job to
handle a $25 million dollar budget.  The sheriff is responsible to collect
all the taxes in the parish," Landry said.

While murders are rare here in St. Bernard Parish, the candidates have
strategies for tackling the drug problem.

"It's a problem and we have a plan in place to combat that issue when I
become sheriff," Clark said.

"It's not just illegal drugs," stated Bernadas, "legal prescription drugs
are a huge problem here in St. Bernard Parish." 

A campaign ad Landry is running against Pohlmann, involving the late Arlene
Meraux and her multi-million dollar foundation dedicated to improve the
parish, is stirring things up between Pohlmann and Landry.  The ad accuses
Pohlmann of taking Meraux from Chicago against her will. 

People identified as Meraux's family members are heard and seen in the ad.
"Jimmy Pohlmann came to Chicago and took my grandmother against her will.
Their motivation was to steal the Meraux fortune," one family member states
in the campaign spot.

"It's an outright lie," Pohlmann told FOX 8 News on Friday.  "Wayne Landry
knows it, Cheryl Canella knows that.  When I went to Chicago in 2002, I was
assigned to do so by the sheriff.  The Canellas, along with Ms. Meraux, all
met us at the airport.  We boarded the jet and came back home. I was there
to provide security to make sure there was no incident."

Landry is not backing down when it comes to the claims in his ad.  "The
sheriff of St. Bernard Parish, or any parish, does not have the authority to
send Mr. Pohlmann anywhere in this country to get somebody against their
will," Landry said.

The election is October 22.