Alex Miller came home to take care of his sick mother after living in Kansas City, Mo., and was hired as a corrections officer at the Pike County Jail in 2015.
Miller, a 2004 North Pike High School graduate, worked his way up to being a detective for the Pike County Sheriff’s Office in 2020 and was rewarded for his efforts by being named the McComb Exchange Club Deputy of the Year at the Golden Corral Thursday.
Miller’s family, including his fiancée Ryshana, was on hand for him to receive the award, but he was single when he first went to work for the Sheriff’s Office.
“I appreciate the team that we have and what they’ve done for me,” Miller said. “They’ve brought me up for the past years.”
Sheriff James Brumfield said Miller was named Deputy of the Year because of his work in the community, the caseload he takes on and his dedication.
“He’s always on the ground running,” Brumfield said.
Lindsey Arnold, McComb Exchange Club President, expressed her gratitude toward Miller.
“Mr. Alex Miller, we appreciate all you do,” Arnold said. “Thank you for being part of this community and thank you for everything you bring to it.”
Brumfield said Miller’s potential was evident shortly after his hiring as a corrections officer.
“There, they recognized him as a good candidate on the law enforcement side to come out on patrol,” Brumfield said.
Working for then-Sheriff Kenny Cotton, Miller graduated in 2016 from the Mississippi Law Enforcement Training Academy in Pearl.
“Alex excelled in the uniform division and became a respected law enforcement officer in the community,” Brumfield said.
Shortly after Brumfield took office in 2020, Miller was promoted to sergeant and then to the detective division shortly after. Miller is also a member of the Sheriff’s Office SWAT team.
Brumfield talked about how Miller takes time to develop relationships with the youth.
Miller elaborated, saying a lot of children he works with lack a male voice in their house.
“At one point when I was on patrol, I reached out to North Pike, more athletes at first,” he said. “Then a lot of parents came in. Single parents came in with their kids, troubled youth in school. We tried to do some reports, do some follow ups and go to the house and talk to the kids.”
Brumfield said Miller is involved in solving a little bit of everything — burglaries, thefts, armed robberies and murders.
“It’s not like they could be assigned to one thing and specialize in that,” Brumfield said. “I wish we could.”
Miller was a shooting guard for the Southwest Mississippi Community College basketball team in 2004-05 and then continued his career at North Central Missouri College, where he earned a degree in business communications in 2009. He was a claim analyst in the railroad business in Kansas City before coming home to take care of his mother, Carrie.
Miller’s mother died in 2019, but he still carries everything she taught him.
“Alex’s mother instilled in him God’s word,” Brumfield said.
Brumfield said Miller’s mother instilled in him the scripture Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” and told him he would protect a family one day the same way he protected her.
Miller expressed appreciation for the community’s support.
“We bust our butts to fight crime,” he said. “We appreciate all the support that you all have for us. Thank you all for this award. We’ll continue to crack down and get things going for Pike County.”
