On Friday, the Lawrence County Humane Society swore in the new humane officer for the county.

Taking the position will be Bill Murphy, best known to the community as the current chief of police in Proctorville.

He will be taking over in the part-time job from Randy Thompson, who stepped down from the position in December, citing health reasons.

As Thompson pointed out in his time on the job, the role of the humane officer is not solely to issue citations to animal owners, but to educate the public.

This can be in situations like instructing them in proper care or helping them to get the right food and diet for an animal.

The officer works with those visited to try to improve things for both the animals and those who keep them. This will lead to better treatment of animals, who will get the right diet and other conditions, rather than just seeing tickets issued.

Murphy, who will respond to calls that can range from dogs and cats, to livestock, said he hopes to continue these education efforts.

We congratulate Murphy in landing this position and, based on his record, believe he will be a good asset for the county.