By Police1 Staff
LAFAYETTE, La. — Clay Higgins, who achieved viral fame after starring in a series of videos as the spokesperson for the St. Landry Parish Crime Stoppers, was sworn in as a reserve deputy for the Lafayette city marshal Wednesday.
Higgins, who previously served as a captain for the St. Landry Sheriff’s Office, left the agency last month after a video he produced stirred controversy, the Advocate reported.
In the controversial video, Higgins told members of a notorious street gang, “You will be hunted. You will be trapped. And if you raise your weapon to a man like me, we’ll return with superior fire.”
The video caught the attention of the American Civil Liberties Union, who criticized Higgins for the use of language such as “animals” and “heathens” while addressing the gang in the video.
The sheriff’s office later criticized the captain’s “unprofessional comments.”
In a statement following his decision to leave the agency, Higgins stated he “would die rather than sacrifice my principles. I would leave my wife without a husband, my children without a daddy, rather than kneel to the very forces of evil that I have so long stood against.”
In his new role at the Marshal’s Office, Higgins will assist in the office’s daily duties and participate in all training exercises, according to the report.