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September 24, 2009

Longtime HCSO deputy earns promotion

By Art Lawler Staff Writer

Gwen Miller, a 26-year employee with the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office, has been promoted to Sergeant over the Civil Division.

In that capacity, she will continue to serve civil papers while supervising the courthouse staff.

However, you may not want to see her coming up your driveway. She’s responsible for carrying out court orders to vacate homes, repossess cars and sometimes children. She also delivers divorce decrees.

It’s a position that brings her in touch with much that is depressing, but she’s built a strong sense of humor to keep her sanity as she goes about her duties. She has a big heart to empathize with those she must confront.

In other words, she’s nice about it.

“You try to leave people with as much dignity as you can,” she said. “I try to be (nice). I talk a lot of trash, but I do care about people. Bad things do happen to good people.”

Henderson County Sheriff Ray Nutt commends Miller’s law enforcement abilities.

“Sgt. Miller is an expert in civil processing and a very important employee,” Nutt said.

He put her in a supervisory capacity when he took office on Jan. 1.

“About three or four weeks ago, he put some stripes on me,” Miller said. “I’m proud to serve wherever Sheriff Nutt requires my service.”

She had been well-trained for her duties, having earned a an advanced peace officer license.

“I’m specially trained to be a civil deputy,” Miller explained. “I enforce all court documents. It’s hard to explain, but what I do is very serious. Civil and mental health officials also work in her office on the second floor of the courthouse.

“We are the ones you live with when you first get sued, or you are served with divorce papers,” she said.

She has been the wife of Deputy Richard Miller for 27 years. The couple has raised a 23-year-old daughter, Tarah, and a son, Jeremy, 17, who is a senior at Brownsboro High School.

Part of her duties are dealing with mobile homes. If an owner doesn’t pay for the home, Miller will evict that person.

“I will get a writ to put you out, but it bothers me to drive up, and see children’s toys in the yards, knowing this is going to affect them greatly, through no fault of their own.”

The worst memory of her 26-year career matches that of many of her fellow officers. The memory is of losing fellow deputy Tony Ogburn, killed along with Paul Halbert, in a tragic shootout near Payne Springs in February of 2007 during a domestic call.

“I was training him to do my job that day,” she said. “We were working on a mobile home seizure. He wanted to go to the memorial on the square. I couldn’t, so we split up. He went to that, and then went out on the call.

“The rest is miserable history,” she said.

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