A Lawman’s Legacy: Northeast Mississippi Remembers Sheriff Buddy East

NORTH MISSISSIPPI, Miss. (WCBI)- A long-time sheriff in Lafayette county passed away this weekend leaving behind many loved ones.

Friend, iconic, compassionate all words used to describe the late Buddy East from the people who knew him well.

All of them agree that Sheriff East valued his community and wanted to make it the best. In the Lafayette County law enforcement community, spirits are hanging as low as the Flags at the Sheriff’s Department.

They’re flying at half-staff in memory of Sheriff Buddy East, who passed away this weekend.

“Buddy East was such a nice easy-going man he was always nice he was just as friendly with everybody. If you needed something in his County if you needed something picked up if you need some help you need and whatever you called Buddy and Buddy will be glad to do it for you,” said former Oktibbeha County Sheriff Dolph Bryan.

After serving 46 years in office Sheriff, East was well known within the community but his reach extended beyond the Lafayette County Line.

“Sheriff East was just an icon when it came to not only, but the highest-ranking serving official and the longest-serving sheriff in the state of Mississippi knew of him during my law-enforcement career but really became real close friends with him after I got elected,” said Lee County Sheriff Jim Johnson.

“Sheriff East is Lafayette County you know this man has been the sheriff since the early 70s. Lafayette County lost a piece of them this weekend, and our thoughts and prayers are with sheriff East family in the Lafayette County community,” said Corporal Brandon Lovelady.

It is hard for those who knew him to even think about a Sheriff’s department without Buddy.

“Buddy has certainly left an image that whoever gets to be sure it has got a lot to learn to live up to because he was such a good friend for everybody in the county people would tell Buddy things but they might not tell other people,” said Bryan.

“Sheriff East is just not anybody you can put up there too compared to somebody because they’re not going to meet that standard he was just he was one in 1 million,” said Sheriff Johnson.

His presence within the community will be missed by many.

“He was everybody’s buddy,” said Bryan.

East will be laid to rest this Friday. Waller Funeral Home in Oxford is handling the arrangements.