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Bobby and Brandy Smith with their oldest of four grandchildren
Bobby and Brandy Smith with their oldest of four grandchildren -
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Major Bobby Smith is turning the page on a new chapter as he returns home to Southeast Texas after announcing his Aug. 31 retirement. Following a remarkable 20-year career with the Tex- as Rangers and a law enforcement career spanning 29 years, Smith is looking forward to the next season of life.
His career in law enforcement began in 1995 when 25-year-old Smith sat down with his life-long friend and mentor, former Jasper County Sheriff Billy Rowles, who pitched him a career with the Texas Highway Patrol.
“We’re all so proud of Bobby. He’s had a fantastic career and I’m just honored that he even mentioned that I made a difference in his life,” said Rowles. Rowles recalled Smith’s stellar high school football career that led him to receive a full-ride scholarship to McNeese State University.
“Being close to home was always important to me, and that’s how I ended up at McNeese,” said Smith.
Following college, Smith joined the Texas Highway Patrol, and became acquainted with the local Texas Rangers as he assisted with several high-profile investigations, including the 1998 dragging death of James Byrd Jr. in Jasper County, where he grew up.
In 2004, he began his career with the Texas Rangers in Del Rio, working the Texas/Mexico border, and was elated for the opportunity to return back home to work in Jefferson and Orange counties for several years.
“My brother Tommy Smith retired as a captain with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and I’ve worked closely with local agencies for many years,” said Smith. His local success led to his promotion to lieutenant and sent him to San Antonio as a supervisor in 2008. Smith became captain in 2018 and major the next year, leading border operations with Company D out of Weslaco and supervising rangers spanning 27 counties near the border.
As Smith climbed the ranks as a Ranger, he served as the supervisor responsible for numerous high-profile investigations including the tragic 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, which is ongoing, the Santa Fe High School shooting in 2018, the Twin Peaks biker shootout in 2015 in Waco, and many headline-making investigations throughout the state. Smith is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, as well as the Force Science Institute, specializing in several fields including use of force issues, in which he is considered an expert.
“Speaking for those who do not have a voice and bringing some semblance of closure to families has been the greatest gift of my career,” said Smith. “I never really needed thanks, ...just for the victims and their families to know that I had done everything I could possibly do.”
Keeping the citizens safe has not come without a cost, said Smith, recalling traveling the state with his two boys as they were growing up. Now grown with children of their own, Smith’s family, he said, has sacrificed enough; the father of four is looking forward to being present with his children, and grandchildren, and may even work on that list of honey-dos his wife of 10 years, Brandy, has been compiling.
“My wife and kids have been incredibly supportive the entire time, I’m ready to be back home with them in Southeast Texas,” said Smith.
Although retirement is bringing him home, the Orange County lawman says that he doesn’t necessarily plan to leave law enforcement altogether, but that God will have the ultimate say as to what his next steps entail. With nearly three decades of experience under his belt, Smith says he intends to run for Orange County sheriff.
“I’ve lived in Orange County for many years; my kids have gone to school here and my wife works at the high school. It was my pleasure to work alongside the Orange and Jefferson County sheriff’s departments for several years as a Ranger. This is home, and I’d like to serve the good folks of Orange County as their next Sheriff,” said Smith.
As a product of the FBI National Academy, Smith is endowed with training and specialized law enforcement skills and experience. The veteran law- man said he will rely on decades of leadership experience with the Texas Rangers and working high-stress highprofile investigations to serve the people of Orange County.
“I received quite a few calls, and the seed was planted for me to consider running for sheriff. With a lot of thought and prayer, I am ready to serve as the next sheriff of Orange County,” said Smith.
The first phase of the Orange County sheriff election will be decided in the March 2024 primary.