When we Interviewed Jason Ard, the first thing that became clear is that he does not separate his title from his home life. To him, they are one and the same. Livingston Parish is not just where he serves, it is where his story began and continues to unfold.
Ard was born and raised in Livingston Parish. He graduated from Walker High, played ball, met his wife here, raised his children here, and now gets to watch his grandson grow up in the same place. “This is home,” he told us simply, and it is a word he returned to often throughout our conversation.
He first joined the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office in 1993 as a prison guard at just 20 years old and never stopped saying yes to the next opportunity. Over the years, he moved through nearly every corner of the department, uniform patrol, investigations, SWAT command, training, and leadership, learning the job from the inside out. That path eventually led him to being elected Sheriff in 2011, a role he approaches with humility and deep loyalty to the parish that raised him.
But some of the most telling moments in our interview came when the conversation drifted away from titles altogether.
Behind the scenes, Ard is a cattleman. It is a part of his life he genuinely loves. The land, the work, the responsibility; it grounds him. In many ways, it mirrors how he approaches leadership: steady, hands-on, and deeply rooted. When he talks about Livingston Parish’s waterways, open land, and quiet moments, it is clear those spaces are where he recharges.
His calling to serve, he says, started early. His father used to joke that he reminded him of John Wayne; always drawn to law and order, always wanting things done the right way. Ard laughs about it now, but he admits it stuck. “It’s in my blood,” he said.
Some of his most meaningful memories are not tied to awards or milestones, but to moments of shared hardship. The 2016 flood stands out; the devastation, the rescues, deputies working while their own homes were underwater. “That was Livingston Parish at its best,” he told us. Neighbors helping neighbors. Law enforcement and citizens moving forward together.
Looking ahead, Ard describes Livingston Parish’s future as “promising.” Growth is coming, and his mission remains simple: protect home, reduce crime, and serve the people who trust him to do both.
Before we wrapped up, he left us with this reminder: the Sheriff’s Office is here to serve, but connection goes both ways. Talk to your deputies. Reach out when you need help. Because to Jason Ard, protecting Livingston Parish is not a job; it is personal.
