Jail Supervisor wins National Award

MARQUETTE — The American Jail Association recently named Sergeant James Herrington of the Marquette County Sheriff’s Office the National Correctional Supervisor of the Year.

Sergeant James Herrington has been with the Marquette County Sheriff’s Office since 2005. When Herrington found out he won the award, Harrington thought his co–workers were pulling a prank on him.

“You don’t go to work everyday looking to win an award. It’s very humbling,” said Herrington. “To win any type of an award is nice. To win it at a national level is a totally different level itself.”

For the last four years, Herrington has been a supervisor at the jail. His co–workers, the people he is in charge of, put him up for the award.

“When you think of a supervisor or boss, there’s usually some negative connotations attached to it,” said Herrington. “It’s nice to know that I’m doing a good job and they know that I’m there for them. It’s a team effort.”

“For his peers to recognize what an outstanding daily performer he is, you can’t ask for anything better than that,” said Marquette County Sheriff Mike Lovelace.

Lovelace added that being a jail supervisor is a tough, demanding job. Herrington is in charge of each and every inmate that’s inside the facility. From the time inmates get up until they go to sleep, Herrington and his staff make sure that the inmates are taken care of.

“It’s a whole ecosystem within itself inside a building,” added Lovelace. “You have to have awesome people skills.”

Herrington was raised in Marquette. He graduated from Northern Michigan University with a Criminal Justice degree. He said that winning this award wouldn’t change how he approaches his job each and every day.

“I show up everyday, I do my job to the best of my ability everyday and I expect the same from my team everyday,” he said. “We have a duty to protect and serve our community. We do that within walls rather than out in the community.”

“Jim is just amazing,” Lovelace said. “His co–workers knew it, I knew it, and know, the American Jail Association confirmed that.”