Employee Spotlight

Lionel C. Randall Jr.

Sergeant

Emory Police Department

Sergeant Lionel C. Randall Jr. has been within the Emory Police Department for 15 years, with the first two years at Emory Healthcare. In this position, he supervises and coordinates the work of police officers assigned to his shift. He also coordinates law enforcement activity with field supervisors and officers of local law enforcement agencies, fire departments, and emergency medical services. He is currently assigned as the department’s lead firearms instructor, quartermaster, and fleet coordinator.

Born and raised in New Orleans, Randall participated in his local sheriff’s department summer program that turned into seven years of employment. He went on to spend 18 years in law enforcement in New Orleans, before joining Emory Healthcare Public Safety department in 2006.

When asked what brought him to Atlanta, he admits it was a rough road as he and his family were displaced during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. They luckily had family in Atlanta who welcomed them and others displaced by the devastating hurricane with open arms. While he had weathered other hurricanes in his lifetime, Katrina was extremely difficult as he now had a family to protect and for which to provide. Thinking they would return soon after the hurricane, Randall, his parents, and his wife and children fled the destruction of New Orleans to his sister-in-law’s house in Atlanta in only one vehicle and with only three days of clothes. Unfortunately, they lost everything they owned in New Orleans, and there was no opportunity to return to the area.

"Everyone was affected in some capacity," he said, "it was a devastation that wasn’t over in months, or even years, and many are still dealing with the loss mentally."

When asked what kept him motivated during this time, and he said his children. "Seeing my children’s faces each day kept me motivated. They had needs that needed to be met—caring for them, food, and getting them enrolled into school. I learned to just take it one day at a time."

The advice he would give to someone who is struggling came out of that difficult experience. "It’s hard to give advice until you’re put in certain situations, but my general advice is to have a goal to focus your attention on. In our case, taking good care of our kids was our goal and kept us going and focused on solutions."

Currently, Sergeant Randall is in school to receive a BS in criminal justice with a concentration in homeland security and emergency management. When asked what motivated him to seek this degree, he said that the hurricane Katrina experience was life-changing and that seeing his kids grow and mature has motivated him to do something for himself after all the years of putting the family and work first. He graduates next summer.

Sergeant Randall's focus and tenacity are motivating, and Emory is appreciative for his presence in our community.