Couvillon wins as sheriff in Vermilion Parish

Vermilion Parish has elected Mike Couvillon as sheriff for the fourth straight term.
Couvillon won easily over Toby Walker, a former Abbeville policeman.
Couvillon had 11,748 votes (79 percent), while Walker had 3,146 votes (21 percent).
Sheriff Couvillon was happy with the victory.
“On behalf of my family and I, all of the deputies and their families, and our friends, we would like to thank the voters for their overwhelming support to keep professional law enforcement in Vermilion Parish.”
Couvillon has 34 years of law enforcement experience with the Sheriff’s Office. Before becoming the Sheriff, he has worked 15 1/2 years undercover in narcotics throughout the state and worked on the Federal Drug Task Force.
Couvillon has worked under two previous sheriff’s from Vermilion Parish - Ray LeMaire and Euda Delcambre.
In other parish races, the voters passed Proposition 1 by a vote of 6,915 yes votes (53 percent) to 6,152 no votes (47 percent).
It is a rededication of $1.3 million in property taxes that has been collected for public health and animal control.
Because the rededication passed, construction of a new meeting facility will be able to happen behind the old LSU Ag Center Building in Abbeville.
The Parish Extension Service which would benefit the 4-H Youth Development Program, Agriculture and Nutrition education efforts and other public educational programming needs.