My Law Enforcement Career
Ezell Brown, Sheriff of Newton County & President of the Georgia Sheriffs' Association
Sheriff Ezell Brown, a native of Blakely, Georgia, was elected the first African American Sheriff of Newton County, Georgia, on Nov. 4, 2008. He worked in law enforcement in Newton County for more than 35 years before being elected as the Sheriff. Currently, he has more than 45 years of law enforcement experience and oversees a full-service department of approximately 315 employees and more than 500 inmates.
Sheriff Brown began his career in law enforcement in 1973 as a patrolman with the Covington Police Department. In 1977, he joined the Newton County Sheriff’s Office where he was operative in every capacity of law enforcement; he demonstrated leadership through progressive supervisory experience.
He previously served on the board of the Georgia Probation Subcommittee for the Council of Criminal Justice Reform. Additionally, he is on the Board of Directors for the Newton County Salvation Army, serves as an Executive Board Member for Georgia Piedmont Technical College, and serves as the Treasurer of the Georgia Military College Georgia Public Safety Leadership Institute (GPSLI) Advisory Council. In 2019, Gov. Brian Kemp appointed Sheriff Brown to serve on the Sexual Offender Risk Review Board.
Throughout his tenure in law enforcement, Sheriff Brown has received countless achievement awards, accolades, and distinctions in recognition of his service and community involvement. He is currently the President of the Georgia Sheriffs' Association, representing all sheriffs in the State of Georgia.
Over the past 12 years, Sheriff Brown has produced substantial benchmarks for the Newton County Sheriff’s Office including: creation of an Office of Professional Standards (OPS) and Internal Affairs (IA) Division; achievement of state and national accreditation from National Commission of Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) and American Correctional Association (ACA) for the Newton County Detention Center; and receiving accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). The agency has been reaccredited.
Under the leadership of Sheriff Brown, the Newton County Sheriff’s Office obtained the elite status of becoming a Triple Crown Agency. There are 159 sheriff’s offices in the state of Georgia and more than 3,000 in the United States. It is noteworthy that Newton County Sheriff’s Office was one of the first four in the state of Georgia and 44 in the United States to acquire this esteemed level of certification.
Sheriff Brown is married to Janice Brown, and they are proud parents of five children and grandparents of seven.
We believe in creating a safer community for everyone. By re-electing Ezell Brown as Sheriff of Newton County in 2024, we can achieve this goal together. Together, we can build a brighter future for our families and our community.