JENNINGS, La. (KLFY) — The U.S. Department of Justice has closed a nearly ten-year investigation into illegal arrests conducted by the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office. This comes after EPSO entered into a memorandum of agreement in 2018 that required the office to address and change policies, policing and implement significant reform.

This process took six years and five compliance assessments to achieve, but Evangeline Parish Sheriff Charles Guillory said the EPSO has met the requirements.

In June 2015, the Department of Justice opened an investigation into improper practices known as investigative holds conducted by EPSO. The complaint alleged there were people who were detained without being given a reason why there were detained, in violation of Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Guillory said it took his office six years to implement reforms that improved policing which complied with the Fourth Amendment by the Department of Justice.

“Someone had filed an official complaint of Fourth Amendment violations and went to Department of Justice,” Guillory said. “At that time, it trickled down to the police department and the sheriff’s office.”

“We were thrust into trying to make it right and we did,” he said.

Guuillory said his command staff and deputies worked diligently to help EPSO met the 150 subtanital compliance requirements, and that he will make sure the new procedures remain in place.

“It’s going to continue, just because I have a green light and an award letter that we’re off of our agreement with the Department of Justice,” he said. “That doesn’t mean that things are going to stop.”

Latest news