Prince Edward County Sheriff L.A. “Tony” Epps Announces Bid for Re-Election

PRINCE EDWARD – Epps was elected Sheriff in November of 2019, winning against two-term incumbent Sheriff Wesley W. Reed. 

Epps stated he has been approached by members of both the Democratic and Republican parties asking if he would consider accepting their nominations. After running and winning as an independent candidate in 2019, he has decided to run again as an independent. He also stated that he must serve all citizens, regardless of their political affiliation. 

Epps joined the Prince Edward Sheriff’s Office in 1987 under Sheriff Gene A. Southall. In 1989, he received his law enforcement training through the Central Virginia Criminal Justice Academy in Lynchburg, Va. He worked full time as a deputy, investigator, and then Sergeant until 2005, working for Sheriffs Southall and Harris. During his time as an investigator, Epps received Death Investigation training from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He also had numerous other Law Enforcement Certifications and training during this time. Tony remained a sworn deputy sheriff until 2012. 

In 2018, Epps was approached by numerous citizens and members of law enforcement asking if he would consider running for Sheriff. After careful consideration, Epps decided to run and on November 5, 2019, Epps was elected Sheriff. He took office on January 1, 2020 as Sheriff. In 2021, Sheriff Epps received the Law Enforcement Executive Certification through the Department of Criminal Justice Services. Each year as Sheriff, he has attended the Virginia Sheriff’s Association Conference and training to keep up to date on new laws and topics relating to the Sheriff’s responsibilities such as lawful employment. Sheriff Epps has 28 years of experience as a sworn Law Enforcement officer in Prince Edward County.

Promises Made, Promises Kept

Since taking office, the department has seen positive changes. In 2019, Epps promised to make our schools safer and more secure. The “School Safe” program was put in place immediately after taking office. This program puts Patrol Deputies on the school grounds daily to assist resource officers while keeping the school’s students and staff safe.

An additional promise that was made and kept shortly after taking office was implementing the K-9 program. The department has one K-9 unit currently in service. A narcotic detecting German Shepherd “Sig” and his handler Deputy Josh Newcomb are trained and on the job! The tracking K-9 “Buford,” a bloodhound, was retired when his handler had to undergo knee surgery. There are plans to replace him soon.

Epps promised to implement stiffer drug enforcement. By implementing a narcotic K-9-unit, K-9 handler, and a highly trained and motivated narcotics agent, now a member of the DEA Task Force, he has kept this promise! In 2022 alone, the department seized over $95,000 worth of illegal narcotics in Prince Edward County. This is a very serious problem, and Epps will continue to fight this war together with all of our neighboring departments and jurisdictions.

Another promise Epps made was to keep the county clean. The department has been busy keeping this promise by issuing summonses and warnings for illegal dumping and littering. The department is working with Piedmont Regional Jail’s Superintendent Townsend and staff weekly, using inmates to pick up roadside litter. 

The promise was made to attend and interact at community programs to increase citizen/deputy relationships and trust. The department is doing just that, supporting many different organizations and participating in community events regularly. Not only do we have a good relationship within our community, but also with our neighboring law enforcement agencies and Fire/Rescue organizations. The Sheriff’s Office also participates in National Night Out as well as the DEA drug take back program to safely dispose of unused prescription drugs. 

Since Taking Office

Since taking office, the department has been working very hard to advance our agency forward in the right direction. The accreditation files needed a lot of work when Epps took office, so Epps decided not to ask to be re-accredited. Once we have the program where we need it to be, we will once again ask to be accredited. Epps has no doubt that this will happen very soon. 

We now have Mobile Data Terminals (in car computers) in all of our patrol cars. The computers allow officers to enter and search information while handling calls. Also, deputies are able to type reports in their car, which saves them a trip back to the office and allows them to remain out in the county available to respond to calls. 

Body cameras are now worn by all field deputies. The body-worn cameras allow for transparency and accountability while handling calls for service. 

We have enrolled numerous deputies in Crisis Intervention Training courses. This training helps deputies prepare to handle calls involving subjects that may be experiencing a mental health crisis. We also have numerous deputies certified to teach C.I.T. courses. 

We now have a mobile crime scene van! This low mileage van was donated to the Sheriff’s Office by the Prince Edward Volunteer Rescue Squad. The van is fully equipped with everything that may be needed by investigators handling crime scenes. 

Since taking Office in 2020, Epps has worked hard to get deputies and dispatchers raises and bonuses. Epps has worked with the county Board of Supervisors and County Administrator, Doug Stanley, to lower the cost of healthcare plans. When Epps took office, a family healthcare plan was nearly $1250.00 per month, per employee. This plan now costs $650.00 which is almost half-price! We were also able to raise starting salaries for deputies and dispatchers in order to be more competitive. All of these productive changes have been implemented while staying well within our annual budget. 

Finally, Epps feels our department’s overall moral has been raised. Our staff works and gets along well with one another. We now have more trained and certified officers applying to come to work with us. We have a GREAT group of well trained, dedicated, and hard-working employees. 

Epps is asking for your vote to: 

Continue our Emphasis on Children and School Safety  

Continue the Fight against Illegal Drugs  

Continue to Enforce Laws Fairly for “All Citizens” 

Continue Our Excellent Advanced Training for all Deputies and Staff to help them better serve our community including Crisis Intervention Training 

Continue our support of Neighborhood Watch 

Continue supporting DARE

Continue Project Lifesaver 

Continue Senior Patrol and TRIAD

Continue the Fight Against Litter 

Continue an Open Door Policy for all Citizens and Employees

Continue to Build Community Relationships 

Continue to work together with all Local, State, and Federal Agencies to share resources in order to keep our Citizens as safe as possible 

Getting to know your Sheriff

L.A. “Tony” Epps was born in Farmville to Buck and Jean Epps who were sharecroppers in the Rice community. His first job, at the age of six, was driving a tractor with a buggy on the tobacco farm. He drove the tractor while others pulled tobacco leaves and placed them on the buggy to be taken to a barn and hung to dry. It wasn’t long before Tony was pulling tobacco leaves himself. He has fond memories of this hard laborious work. 

Tony married Paige Southall in 1990. Together they had three sons. Paige unexpectedly passed away in 2013, leaving Tony to raise the three boys, Jacob, Josh, and Jack. 

Jacob, his oldest son, graduated from Fuqua School in 2013; he is now employed in Longwood University’s Information Technology Department. His middle son, Josh, is a 2023 graduate of Prince Edward County High School and plans to attend Southside Virginia Community College.  Tony’s youngest son, Jack, is a rising senior at Prince Edward County High School. After graduation, Jack plans to further his education, studying Information Technology. 

Tony now resides in Rice, Virginia. He is engaged to Alisa Banton, also of Rice. 

“It was a great honor to be elected by the citizens of Prince Edward County to be their Sheriff,” says Epps. “It was an efficient first term, even dealing with Covid-19, we managed to move forward and get the job done.”

Sheriff Epps would sincerely appreciate your vote on November the 7, 2023 to re-elect him Sheriff of Prince Edward County.