Five people - four men and a woman - have submitted applications to be Lafayette Police Chief, and despite what's been described as a "national search," all of them are from Louisiana.
Charles DeLaughter is a retired FBI Agent, having worked for the agency for 20 years. While there he worked cases in domestic terrorism, public corruption and homicide, as well as cold cases, drug and gang investigations and violence on Indian reservations. Prior to that he was a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's deputy for 19 years. While there, he worked in narcotics, juvenile, patrol and public relations. He has a degree in criminal justice from Loyola, and is a graduate of the FBI Training Academy and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Training Academy.
Judith Estorge is a precinct commander who has worked for the Lafayette Police Department for 28 years. She has a degree in criminal justice from the University of Arkansas. As commander she's responsible for monitoring crime statistics and devising and implementing plans to curtail crime. She oversees the precinct budget, and makes contacts with community members, business owners and crime victims.
Michael S. Jones is a Sergeant with the Shreveport Police Department where he currently works domestic violence cases. During his 20 years with the SPD he also has worked in the homicide, sex crimes and field training divisions. He attended LSU at Shreveport and the Bossier City Community College, but his application does not indicate he completed a degree. One of the requirements to be Lafayette Police Chief is to have a college degree.
Erick Knezek is co-Founder & Managing Partner for Oceanetics, a Department of Defense Contracting company specializing in ocean engineering, fabrication, and marine installation solutions. He has degrees in Ocean Engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy, Texas A&M University and in Systems Engineering from UL, where he graduated most recently with a Ph.D. in 2020. He also is a graduate of the Louisiana POST Academy, and for the past four years he also has served in a part-time capacity with the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office with the SWAT unit and as commander of the dive team.
Dorian Ray Rabham is a Sergeant with the Lafayette Police Department. He has a degree in criminal justice from Columbia Southern University and is a graduate of the Louisiana POST academy. He has worked for the LPD for 20 years, working on major investigations, assigning cases and assisting with unsolved cases.
Earlier this month, the Lafayette Fire and Police Civil Service Board extended the application period for another 30 days at the request of the Guillory administration so that a search firm can be hired.
The Lafayette Police Department has had five chiefs of police since January 2020.
When Josh Guillory took office, he requested that Chief Toby Aguillard resign, reportedly because of a poor relationship with Sheriff Mark Garber. Lt. Scott Morgan was appointed interim chief.
The Guillory administration then hired Chief Thomas Glover from the Dallas Police Department, and fired him 10 months later. Sgt. Wayne Griffin was appointed interim chief, but two weeks later was placed on administrative leave pending a sexual harassment investigation. He was later fired.
The current interim chief, Major Monte Potier, was appointed in October 2021.
