Layout

The Sheriff’s Station is located at the west end of Lejeune Circle, Lakewood’s town center. It is a one story building, with a surprisingly warm interior, thanks to an extensive renovation project greenlit by Quinn Maddox shortly after he was elected mayor in 2012.

Immediately inside the front doors are metal detectors, where visitors are screened. Past this point is a rotunda, dominated by a glass cupola that lets in natural light. The floor here is a grand mosaic depicting Wren Lake prior to the arrival of European settlers. A simpler version of this design appears on the department’s official crest. The walls are done in warm wood paneling.¹

History

Clark Hudson was elected to the office of sheriff on November 2, 2004,² nearly five years after relocating to Lakewood from Atlanta and three years after joining the force as a deputy. Clark enjoyed broad popularity and his tenure coincided with a record low crime rate as the community continued to heal following the trauma of the 1994 Brandon James killings.

The Lakewood Slashings

The department’s good fortunes took a turn a decade into Clark’s tenure, with the onset of the murder spree the press dubbed the Lakewood Slashings in October 2015. The killings, primarily concentrated on students at George Washington High School invoked the local memory of the Brandon James murders, more so when it surfaced that the killer was wearing a Brandon James mask.

Following the murders of GW High freshmen Stacy Winters and Brock Carmichael on October 18th, deputies were stationed around the school.³ The decision irked Principal Teague, who summoned Clark to his office to grill him about his intentions. Clark admitted he was looking to procure a warrant to search all the lockers. Teague put his foot down, saying he was welcome to search specific lockers, once he had a person of interest, but he was prepared to fight if Clark sought to invade the privacy of all his charges.⁴

Clark had to give the unwelcome news to a furious Mayor Maddox, who stormed into the sheriff’s station (only slightly impeded by the sprightly Deputy Dwayne Farrison at the security checkpoint) that afternoon, demanding to know what progress had been made so far, so he had something to report at the evening’s press conference.⁵

Notable Personnel

Gallery

1. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 23 ↩︎
2. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 8 ↩︎
3. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 13 ↩︎
4. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 19 ↩︎
5. The Story so Far, Vol. I: Chapter 1, Scene 23 ↩︎