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NATCHEZ — Former Natchez Police detective Curtis Ray Davis has qualified to run in the Adams County Sheriff’s race against Travis Patten.

Davis, who is running as an Independent candidate, required 50 signatures certified by the Adams County Circuit Clerk’s Office to qualify and he obtained 54, Circuit Clerk Eva Givens confirmed Monday evening. Qualifying ends Feb. 1.

The primary is Aug. 8 and the general election is Nov. 7.

“I believe in purpose, direction and motivation, which according to military standards are the three pillars of leadership,” Davis said. “So I am prepared to lead the way in providing the most efficient and effective public safety service to the citizens of Adams County.”

Davis is the son of Gloria Davis and James Young, Jimmi and Phil Vasser and the younger brother of Jackson Police Chief James Davis.  Through a previous marriage, he has one daughter, Ava Davis, and a son, Caleb Latham.

His motivation to run began when he was asked, he said.

Friends of Davis’s saw an interview he did regarding a shooting captured by Project NOLA cameras outside Holiday Apartments, which aired Jan. 10 in a documentary called “Real Time Crime” on the Investigation Discovery channel.

Davis said as sheriff he would work to improve internal and external relationships the department has by implementing 21st-century technology and infrastructure.

“The crime reduction we saw from 2018 to 2019 had nothing to do with politicians,” Davis said. “It had to do with our installing cameras with gunshot detectors in high-crime areas, which ultimately led to a reduction in homicides and aggravated assaults.”

Education

Davis holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management with an emphasis on Organizational Structure and Leadership and has Level 3 Military Police Certification from the Military Police Regiment, Fort Knox, Kentucky; and Peace Officer Certification from the State of Mississippi Board on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Training, which he received after graduating from the Hattiesburg Police and Fire Training Academy, on April 27, 2007.

“I am currently a Safety Compliance Investigator with Jordan Carriers Inc., as we are regulated by The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, or FMCSA, which is the agency of the Department of Transportation (DOT) charged with regulating the motor carrier industry in the United States,” he said.

Experience

Davis said having experienced everything from being a beat officer to instructing other officers and serving in the military has prepared him to be a good sheriff.

“I am a native of Natchez with 24 years of experience in civilian and military law enforcement,” Davis said. “I have performed law enforcement duties and investigated criminal cases in Forrest County, Lamar County, and Adams County.”

He said his civilian law enforcement career began in Hattiesburg 17 years ago, where he worked for approximately 10 years before coming to Natchez Police Department.

He began as a patrol officer and gradually graduated to a special operations officer, Police Academy instructor and detective.

Before that, he gained experience from military service.

“I retired as a Senior Leader from the Mississippi Army National Guard’s 114th Military Police Company in Clinton,” he said. “I am a Combat Veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. I served my last tour of duty in Afghanistan with the 184th Expeditionary Sustainment Brigade, as we were assigned to the International Security Assistance Force, which was mandated by the United Nations to provide Logistical Support to US warfighters, the Afghan National Police and the Afghan National Army.”