Morgan City police chief announces retirement

James F. Blair, who brought stability to the Morgan City Police Department in seven years as chief, announced Tuesday that he will retire at the end of May.

“We have a duty to each other …,” Blair told the City Council at Tuesday’s meeting. “We should have a dedication to each other.”

As he finished his remarks, the audience and members of the Police Department rose to give him a round of applause.

Blair had already served on the Morgan City Police Department for 30 years when he was appointed chief by then-Mayor Frank “Boo” Grizzaffi in April 2015.

Police Chief Travis Crouch, who had been appointed in 2013, died in January 2014. His successor, Michael Banks, retired in December 2014.

Blair said Tuesday that before he was appointed, Grizzaffi asked him for six years. Blair gave the city an extra year as chief.

“I think he is ready to lead our police force in a new direction,” Grizzaffi said in an April 2015 interview with the Review.

On Tuesday, Blair said he tried to be responsive to all segments of the community, regardless of who they were or where they live.

“It was never about me,” Blair said. “It was never about selfishness. It was about empathy and compassion for others.”

Blair and his wife, Heather, have three grown children. With pride, Blair said that two of them are in social work and a third is in the military.

One of Blair’s goals, he said, was to address disparity in police pay. And as he leaves, the City Council has moved in that direction.

Blair told the City Council last month that the starting pay in the department is $12.09 an hour, $4 less than the average for cities from Franklin to Houma.

The department has lost 40 employees over the last three years, a turnover rate Blair said isn’t sustainable.

The council approved a $1-an-hour raise for 22 entry-level employees and promised to look for more.

At a council Budget Committee meeting May 18, councilmen and Mayor Lee Dragna talked about ways to fund an across-the-board $4 raise for police and fire employees. Fire Chief Alvin Cockerham said his department is also losing employees because of the low pay here.