The Merrillville Police Department has added a national network personality charged with “fostering a deeper connection with the community” to its ranks.
The town swore in Lawrence B. Jones, a co-host for “Fox & Friends,” as its first auxiliary officer during its February 25 meeting. As an auxiliary officer, Jones will accompany Merrillville officers on ride-alongs to “help share what Merrillville officers experience and what the department is
able to accomplish with limited funding,” Police Chief Kosta Nuses said in a release.
“Lawrence will be working closely with us to amplify our story, ensuring that the public understands who we are, what we stand for and how we serve our community,” Nuses said. “In addition, his experience in K-9 training will also help enhance our force as we continue to grow and evolve.”
Nuses and Jones met through Baden K-9, the dog training company in Ontario, Canada responsible for training all of Merrillville’s K-9s, Nuses said at the swearing-in. Jones, along with Baden, were instrumental in getting Merrillville K-9 officer Yaga into the fold; in all, Jones and Baden have been instrumental in procuring about $25,000 worth of dogs and services for Merrillville, he said.
“The one constant (in police work) is how police officers are viewed by the public, so we want to strengthen the bridge,” Nuses said. “(Jones and I) share a deep passion for policing and canines, and he will be working closely with us to promote what we stand for and help enhance our force.”
Jones, who studied political science and criminal justice at the University of North Texas, said at his swearing-in that he’s wanted to be a cop ever since he was a little boy.
“My job here is not to do anything different than your cops have already been doing on the street, but to help bring our communities together,” Jones said in the release. “I have a passion for the K-9 program. I know the work and the healing that they can bring to communities, not just from a law enforcement standpoint, but for the kids to have heroes, people to look up to like they already do today.”
Council President Rick Bella, D-5, said Tuesday that Jones, who lives in New York City, is donating his services to the town. Jones is also slated to attend “a prebasic law enforcement training course that will grant him limited police powers that aren’t available to civilians,” according to the release.
“It’s wonderful to see how so many organizations have come together to make this important venture happen,” Bella said.
Indiana Director of Homeland Security and former District 1 U.S. Representative Republican candidate Jennifer-Ruth Green brought Jones greetings from Governor Mike Braun and awarded him a congratulatory letter from her department.
Jones, who did not respond to emails requesting comment, was named cohost of Fox & Friends in 2023 after hosting Fox News Tonight when former Fox Host Tucker Carlson’s was canceled. Previously in his career, Jones went undercover in 2016 for Project Veritas — an organization known for producing and publishing deceptively edited videos — attempting to expose allegations of fraud among Affordable Care Act providers, according to the Dallas Observer.
Also that year, Jones hosted a fundraiser for Memories Pizza, a restaurant in Indiana that closed from the fallout of declaring it wouldn’t cater the wedding of LGBTQ people if asked, the New York Daily News wrote. He raised $844,000, which was donated in part to the owner’s church.
More recently, Jones in 2019 incorrectly identified former President Barack Obama’s administration for a lenient 2008 plea deal given to Jeffrey Epstein, Vox reported; and Thursday, President Donald Trump was caught on a hot mic asking Jones to say Trump’s first cabinet meeting was “unbelievable” and that he did “a great job,” according to The Daily Beast.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
