As your Sheriff, the cornerstones of my administration will be accountability and community involvement.

Leading by example, I believe in hard work and accountability for every member of
the Sheriff’s Office, regardless of rank or position.  With the economic crisis facing Brevard County now and in the near future, our emphasis must be on fiscal responsi-
bility and doing more with less: providing more services to our community while reduc-
ing the current budget.  Also, I will increase our presence and visibility in the commu-
nity, building stronger ties between the citizens of Brevard County and its Sheriff’s Office. 

BUDGET

Everyone in our community is experiencing tough times in this economy. Government
is no exception.  Just like you, we in government must be fiscally responsible and work within our means.  We must seek every option to save your taxpayer dollars while at
the same time refusing to compromise our ability to protect and serve every citizen.  I
am confident we can do this, through creative and innovative leadership and old-fashioned hard work.

A few of the basic elements of my plans to achieve a more fiscal responsible Sheriff's Office are:

• Cut command staff and management positions
• Require management spending accountability
• Reallocate existing resources and manpower to meet needs
  without increasing budget

ACCOUNTABILITY

My plans for the Sheriff’s Office will encourage and empower each deputy. They will
know what is happening in their area and the community they patrol.  By creating a
culture of responsibility and internal support, we can guarantee that each member of
the agency has accountability. This knowledge and the relationships created will foster
a safer community and faster solutions to problems as they arise.  Each member of leadership needs to work together to support every deputy so that resources can be shared and solutions can be implemented quickly. When every deputy, sergeant, lieu-
tenant and commander are working together, regardless of precinct, to fix a problem, we will have an agency that can do great things.

CRIME

Violent crime, pill mills and illegal drugs are issues in our community that make lots of headlines.  The Sheriff’s Office has continually worked together with local municipal-
ities, as well as state and federal law enforcement to catch those responsible and
make Brevard a safer place to live.  FDLE and FBI crime reports have both shown a reduction in violent crimes over the past 4 years.  We must continue to build on this success, by sharing resources as budgets decrease and our population continues to increase.  Consistent response to all facets of the community is one of the greatest deterrents to crime. 

Illegal drugs are the starting point for much of the crime in Brevard County. Thefts, burglaries and robberies are often related to the sale of illegal drugs. As Sheriff, I
guarantee that illegal drug investigations and drug enforcement in our county will be
a priority of the Sheriff’s Office.

Our continued partnerships with the municipalities and using existing resources are
the cornerstones of my plan to make drug enforcement a priority.  We have numerous specialty units already which can be focused on specific issues like pill mills and drug enforcement without extra cost to taxpayer - they can do the job.  Investigative units
at the precinct level and these specialty units will work together to create a safer
Brevard.

JAIL

The Brevard County Jail is an important part of the Sheriff’s Office and a large part of its annual budget.  Sheriff Jack Parker’s leadership over the last 7 years has taken the jail from overcrowding to very functional jail with the addition of the tents and better organization. As your Sheriff, I intend to build on his success and also look for new ways to save the taxpayers' money. 

The jail’s current budget includes over $1 million in overtime.  My plan is to work with corrections officers to come up with the most cost effective shift schedule.  This sched-
ule would include a 12 hour shift that provides the schedule corrections officers desire while saving the taxpayers' money.

There are many areas to explore in order to reduce the cost of state inmates housed
at the jail.  Other counties are currently charging those inmates found guilty for cost of detention similar to the current charges for prosecution and court courts.  While these fees would not directly reduce cost per inmate, they could potentially reduce the over-
all cost of the jail to the taxpayers of Brevard County.