Jackie Knight woke Monday morning without needing to go to work for the first time in his life.
While he had officially given up his position as sheriff of Newton County the day before, the gravity of the decision began to sink in on Monday.
“It’s kind of bittersweet for me,” Knight said. “I really enjoyed working for the county as sheriff, but it was also time to move on. It’s the first time I haven’t had to be anywhere in 24 years. I don’t know if I’m going to like this.”
Knight was elected sheriff in 1995 and served in that role from when he took office until November 30, when his retirement took effect. He decided to go ahead and retire a month early so he can enjoy the holiday season.
“I love Christmas,” Knight said. “That’s the reason why I resigned a month early so I could really spend time with my family and enjoy Christmas. Usually, I don’t put my Christmas tree up until maybe two to three days before Christmas, but this year, I put it up yesterday and I’m going to enjoy celebrating Christmas all the way up until I take it down on December 26.
“Usually, I’m worrying about our residents and keeping their houses from getting broken into during the holiday season. I don’t usually get a chance to enjoy Christmas except for the last few days before Christmas. This year, I’m taking it all in.”
After serving as sheriff for 24 years, Knight knows what the key is to being successful, and that is having good deputies.
“You can be the best sheriff in the world, but if you don’t have good deputies, you’re not going to be successful,” Knight said. “Or you can be a bad sheriff, like me, and have really good deputies. They are the ones who made the sheriff’s department successful over the years. I’ve never had a bad deputy while I’ve been here. I’d like to thank them for their service over the years.”
Knight said law enforcement has changed a lot over the years. Some of the changes, however, have not been for the better.
“One of the things that I’ve noticed is that it seems like things have swung in favor of criminals more than the victims,” Knight said. “Unless it’s a felony, we pretty much can’t hold anybody anymore. It’s difficult for law enforcement to do their job and keep the public safe.”
One of the biggest adjustments for Knight in retirement will be not getting the chance to interact with the public.
“I don’t know if I’m going to like sitting around doing nothing all day long,” Knight said. “I don’t know what’s next for me, but I think I’m going to have to do something in retirement. Who knows? I might enjoy doing nothing, but I have a feeling that I’ll be doing something else because I love being out in the public. I love the people of Newton County. That’s been one of the best parts of my job has been getting out and meeting the public. That’s probably the thing I’m going to miss the most, and that’s why I think I’m going to have to do something else. But for right now, I’m going to enjoy Christmas. After that, we’ll see what the future holds.”
