Sheriff Hall is set to swear in Ruby Joyner Friday morning.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – Nashville’s first Black woman chief of corrections is set to be sworn in on Friday, according to Sheriff Daron Hall.

Sheriff Hall is set to swear in Ruby Joyner Friday morning.

Joyner, a 24-year DCSO veteran, will be taking over the largest division of the 1,000-employee agency. She’ll replace Tony Wilkes, who is set to retire after 36 years of service.

“Ruby’s stellar resume made her an easy choice to lead our corrections division,” Hall said. “Most importantly, for years, she has focused her professional efforts on compassion for the inmate population and their families, been a leader, by example, to our employees, and worked tirelessly to ensure the facilities under her responsibility have operated safely.”

Joyner has previous experience working for the Public Defender of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County as well as the Mental Health Cooperative.

“I am honored Sheriff Hall has placed his confidence in me to move our agency forward in a progressive and responsible manner,” Joyner said. “I’m ready to represent men, women, persons of color, and persons of diverse backgrounds. Previous DCSO leaders have challenged me and expected I would do well, but my parents are responsible for getting me off to the best start. They didn’t use words like we have in our mission statement: accountability, diversity, integrity, and professionalism; however, today, I know those are the words they wanted to characterize who I would become.”