First Black Sheriff Appointed In Dallas County and Lupe Valdez running for Governor

The Dallas Post Tribune congratulates Marian Brown on being appointed interim sheriff of Dallas County. Also, we applaud Lupe Valdez for running for the Governor’s office, 2018.

Dallas County commissioners Tuesday appointed Marian Brown to be interim sheriff of Dallas County. Brown will be sworn in on Jan. 1, 2018, and will serve in the absence of Sheriff Lupe Valdez, who resigned to run for the governor’s mansion. Brown is the first black sheriff in Dallas county.

Dallas Morning News reports Brown, 52, was Valdez’s third-in-command. Valdez recommended Brown to be her successor.

Brown joined the sheriff’s department three years ago, following 26 years of service with the Duncanville Police Department where she rose through the ranks from a patrol officer to an assistant chief, The News reported.

“I am thankful for the opportunity just to play a small role in making Dallas County Sheriff’s Department indeed the premier law enforcement agency of Dallas county,” Brown told reporters in a conference Tuesday.

The city’s police department is lead by Chief U. Renee Hall, the first African American female police chief in the city’s history. Dallas is also home to District Attorney Faith Johnson, the first African American female DA of the County.

Interim Sheriff Brown was preceded by Valdez, the first female Hispanic sheriff in the United States and only one of four female sheriffs in Texas. Valdez is also the first openly gay sheriff in Texas.