Sheriff Jimmy Long

Sheriff Jimmy Long is the calm lawman who responds when young Mary Beth Pearson disappears from a rural community. A frightened crowd suspects a large drifter named Ezekiel after Percy produces hair ribbons from the man's pack. Sheriff Long warns everyone against assuming guilt, learns that the ribbons did not belong to Mary Beth, and brings Ezekiel in for questioning and protection rather than arrest. When rescuers find the girl on a dangerous ledge above an icy river, he helps coordinate the response. Mary Beth and young Bernard are eventually saved through Ezekiel's courage. Long later praises both rescuers as heroes, showing the same fairness after the crisis that he displayed when fear and suspicion first threatened an innocent stranger.