Genesis Arias

Republicans have made crime in Scranton into an issue as they try to thwart Mayor Paige Cognetti’s bid for Congress. But the statistics don’t show an increase in serious crime during Cognetti’s tenure.

Luzerne County has a new sheriff, and she’s already made history. WVIA’s Sarah Hofius Hall stops by the podcast studio to explain how Genesis Arias became the first woman to hold the job in Luzerne County and the first hispanic woman to do so statewide.

Luzerne County’s new sheriff began her duties last week. She’s already made history as the first woman in the county to hold the position and the first hispanic woman to become sheriff statewide.

Genesis Arias had to charge her phone three times on Tuesday, her notifications full of calls and messages after Luzerne County announced her appointment as sheriff. But the first woman in the county to hold that position — and the first Hispanic woman to become a sheriff statewide — felt proudest when she got home.