NATCHEZ &045;&045; New Adams County Sheriff Ronny Brown got an early start to his first day.

Brown, whose term began at midnight Monday, began swearing in the on-duty deputies at that early hour.

The process of swearing in and talking face-to-face was a priority of Brown’s and continued throughout the day, he said

&uot;I wanted to talk to everyone one-on-one to tell them we are going to work together, be a family and be fair,&uot; Brown said.

In addition to talking with each deputy, Brown met with the Board of Supervisors, officers from the Natchez Police Department and citizens who came in from the street to greet him, he said.

Brown also appeared in county court at 8 a.m. and spoke at the board of supervisors meeting at 9 a.m.

The remainder of his day was consumed with office tasks including changing the locks on his office door and making his co-workers feel at home with their new boss.

&uot;Everybody’s smiling,&uot; he said. &uot;We are going a piece at a time and making sure everyone is in place.&uot;

Brown, who previously served as the associate director of the Mississippi Department of Corrections with probations, said his goals include being a new leader for the sheriff’s department.

&uot;I want to improve on the cooperation with other law enforcement organizations like the Police Department and state narcotics,&uot; Brown said.

Currently the sheriff’s department is about 10 employees smaller that it was last year, but Brown said this is not a major concern.

&uot;We are trying to get the best qualified people working here,&uot; he said. &uot;We’ll wait a few weeks and see how the budget is, then take care of that.&uot;

Brown did not hire back some department employees after beating former Sheriff Tommy Ferrell in the November election.

Brown said the department still has the security of the county covered with the officers on duty.

Several other new faces also filled the department Monday, including Chief Deputy Charlie Sims who Brown hired when he became sheriff.

&uot;We are going forward,&uot; Brown said. &uot;It’s been a long day, but we are going to take it a day at a time and do what we’ve got to do.&uot;