LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Miss. (Queen City Newsfeed) – Last Thursday, Queen City Newsfeed had the opportunity to do a ride along with the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department.
Reporter Cash Matlock spent the day riding with Deputy Hartley Cox.
Deputy Cox was hired in October 2023 and graduated from the Academy in March 2024.
Originally, Deputy Cox was a cattle farmer in Emelle Alabama— taking over his grandfather’s property in 2020 with his wife. The couple now has a 2-year-old son, Hartley Jr.
One day, Deputy Cox got a calling to be in law enforcement.
We spent most of the day conducting traffic stops along Zero Road and Fisher Road along with Deputy Zach Morgan who graduated from the academy alongside Cox.
“She got an over 20 in the county. She’s had two over 20s. No, I’m just saying I know for a fact she was getting after it, and was doing a very poor job of maintaining her lane,” said Cox.
After a little back and forth, Deputy Cox decided to let this driver off with a warning.
“She’s been involved in some things, so I just, I’m trying to make her day, or her year a little bit easier, because it could have been three tickets. It would have been careless driving, failure to maintain lane, and disregard for a traffic device,” said Cox. “You saw how fast I had to go to catch up to her after running the stop sign. Then the male in the passenger seat said ‘I told you,’ so that was admittance to them having a conversation about the stop sign.”
But some traffic stops aren’t so easy.
“Never seen somebody do something like that. Pull up… pull up,” said Cox. “I’m Deputy Cox with the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department. The reason I pulled you over is, you did not make a complete stop. We have two officers sitting up there, we’ve got a camera rolling, you did not make a complete stop, ok?”
DRIVER: “are you going to give me a ticket?”
DEPUTY COX: “Ma’am I never said anything about giving you a ticket.”
DRIVER: “I need to get out because you guys are getting on my nerves.”
DEPUTY COX: “I don’t want you to get out of the vehicle ma’am.”
DRIVER: “I have stuff in the truck to get!”
The Driver then told deputies that she knew District Attorney Kassie Coleman.
“If she wants to contact Kassie, she can. It’s got nothing to do with me,” said Cox.
REPORTER: “And who is Kassie again?”
DEPUTY COX: “She is the District Attorney. Who also happens to be, which it’s just irrelevant is the main thing. It’s irrelevant. I mean, if we’re dropping names, Kassie and my wife are good friends, but what does that have to do with running a stop sign?”
REPORTER: “So what will be happening? She’ll be getting a ticket?”
DEPUTY COX: “She will be getting a ticket for disregard of a traffic device, and she will have her day in court if she would like it. I’m not sure what’s going on with her. I try to talk nice, and I asked her if anything was bothering her that’s causing her to act that way towards us. She wouldn’t really tell me, and she said I needed to call people and find out who she is because she doesn’t need to be getting tickets.”
“I’ll advise her of all that. I’m not sure she’ll take it very well, but maybe don’t run a stop sign,” said Cox.
Our last stop of the day turned out to be more eventful.
“So the deputies are talking to a woman that was on the side of the road here in the county. Not sure what’s going on. She was nodding off a little bit. Could be heat exhaustion, could be drugs. They’re really just doing a welfare check. They’re just trying to see if she’s ok, because odds are, if she’s not ok then she’ll fall out or something and then they’ll have to turn around and come right back. So, they’re just making sure that everything is good with her,” said Queen City Newsfeed reporter Cash Matlock.
But after deputies noticed a gas mask with a bong attached to it near the woman, things quickly took a turn.
“This person has warrants, and they’ve got things in their bag they’re not supposed to have. So, she’s going down to county. I’m going to make sure I stick by with Morgan, make sure everything is done right. He’s fully capable, but this is interesting, though. When I pulled by her, she was slouched down in the ditch, that shows me, it could be use of something. Alright, you good in here? Alright,” said Cox.
As it turns out, the female had several ounces of marijuana, at least 2 Xanax bars, several bottles of unidentified pills, and a firearm in her bag.
“I asked her like three times, ‘do you need to be seeing somebody? Are you good?’
‘I just need water.’
So, I gave her water. Then we ran her, and she had a warrant… two warrants,” said Cox.
The female suspect was taken into police custody for her two warrants and the contents of her bag were entered into evidence.
This is where my ride along with Deputy Cox ended.
What started out as a slow morning quickly turned into a busy afternoon.
I’m thankful to the Lauderdale County Sheriff’s Department for allowing us this inside look into the daily lives of their deputies.
