Sarasota County Sheriff's Office

Sarasota County Sheriff's Office
Common name Sarasota Sheriff's Office
Abbreviation SSO

Logo and badge of the Sarasota Sheriff's Office.
Agency overview
Formed 1921
Legal personality Governmental: Government agency
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction* County of Sarasota in the state of Florida, US
Map of Sarasota County Sheriff's Office's jurisdiction.
Population 379,448
General nature
Operational structure
Headquarters Sarasota, Florida
Agency executive Tom Knight, Sheriff
Website
Sarasota County Sheriff's Office
Footnotes
* Divisional agency: Division of the country, over which the agency has usual operational jurisdiction.

Sarasota County Sheriff's Office (SSO) is the primary law enforcement agency for Sarasota County, Florida. The agency is responsible for law enforcement services in unincorporated areas of Sarasota County (home to over 60 percent of the county's residents[1]), jail facilities and courthouse security for Florida's 12th Judicial Circuit. SSO also operates Public Safety Communications (PSC), the county's primary 911 center.

The current Sheriff is Tom Knight, a former Florida Highway Patrol trooper.[2]

History

The sheriff's office was established in 1921 upon the creation of Sarasota County from the southern portion of Manatee County.[3] Florida Governor Cary A. Hardee appointed Burna Dale "Heinie" Levi as the first Sheriff of Sarasota County that year.[3] On August 22, 1921, Sarasota city marshal L.D. Hodges became the agency's first deputy.[4]

Divisions

Law enforcement

Patrol bureau

Deputies in the patrol bureau provide round-the-clock patrol services and answers calls for service in unincorporated Sarasota County.[5]

Special Operations bureau

The Special Operations division assists the patrol bureau in providing specialized law enforcement services to the county. Divisions within this bureau include:[6]

Investigative bureau

The Investigate Bureau employs detectives along with civilian crime analysts. Divisions within the bureau include:[7]

Specialized units

Deputies may also be assigned to specialized units in addition to their regular duties. These units include:[8]

Corrections

The agency is responsible for staffing and maintaining the Sarasota County Jail.

911 Center

The sheriff's office operates Public Safety Communications (PSC), the county's primary 911 center. In addition to dispatching for the sheriff's office, it provides law enforcement dispatch to the Sarasota and Venice police departments and fire/medical dispatch for the Sarasota County Fire Department, Nokomis Fire Department, Venice Fire Department, North Port Fire Department, and Englewood Fire Department.[9]

Ranks

Title Insignia
Sheriff
Colonel
Major
Captain
Lieutenant
Sergeant
Deputy

Vehicle fleet

The agency currently uses police vehicles manufactured by General Motors' Chevrolet brand. The department's patrol fleet primarily consists of the Chevrolet Impala, Chevrolet Caprice PPV and Chevrolet Tahoe.

Lawsuits

The sheriff's office has been the subject of numerous lawsuits from both civilians and employees.[10] A civil rights lawsuit by the family of Rodney Mitchell, a man shot by SSO deputies, alleges that Sheriff Knight's law enforcement policies are unconstitutional.[11]

Employee retaliation suits

Sergeant Chris Iorio sued the sheriff's office in 2013, claiming that Sheriff Knight retaliated against him for reporting Captain Ron Locke to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement after hearing reports that Locke may have molested an underage girl during the mid-1990s.[12] No charges were filed against Locke.[13]

Captain Richard Mottola, who supervised Iorio, filed a lawsuit in 2014 alleging that Sheriff Knight retaliated against Mottola for failing to punish Iorio.[14]

References

  1. ↑ 2013 county population figures from State & County QuickFacts: Sarasota County, Florida minus the population of incorporated municipalities.
  2. ↑ "Sheriff Knight". Sarasotasheriff.org. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  3. 1 2 Snell, Robert M. (1999). From Shield to Star. Sarasota, Florida: Coastal Printing. p. 3. Check date values in: |access-date= (help);
  4. ↑ Snell, Robert M. (1999). From Shield to Star. Sarasota, Florida: Coastal Printing. p. 4. Check date values in: |access-date= (help);
  5. ↑ "Law Enforcement". Sarasotasheriff.org. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  6. ↑ "Special Operations". Sarasotasheriff.org. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Investigative Bureau". Sarasotasheriff.org. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Specialized Units". Sarasotasheriff.org. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  9. ↑ "911 Call Center". Sarasotasheriff.org. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  10. ↑ "60 lawsuits pending against Sarasota County". HeraldTribune.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Sarasota Sheriff's Office faces lawsuit over Rodney Mitchell shooting". Sarasota News – Mysuncoast.com and ABC 7. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Sarasota Sheriff's Sgt. Chris Iorio files civil rights lawsuit against Sheriff Tom Knight". HeraldTribune.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  13. ↑ "FDLE: No charges will be filed against Sarasota County Sheriff's Capt. Ron Locke". HeraldTribune.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Captain files civil suit against Sheriff Knight". HeraldTribune.com. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
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