The Broward Sheriff’s Office contract with Deerfield Beach officially expired this week, with no end in sight to the feud that has crippled the relationship between the city and the law enforcement agency.
The Sheriff’s Office has provided law enforcement services to Deerfield for more than three decades, but over the last few months, the sheriff’s budget demands have city officials questioning whether they might be better off with an independent police force.
When the contract expired Sept. 30, the city entered a 24-month “transition period” that will require payments to the Sheriff’s Office on a monthly basis, said Mayor Todd Drosky. “He will bill us for cost, and he will have to justify the cost.”
The budget passed by the Deerfield Beach City Commission at its most recent meeting in September anticipates a “worst-case scenario” that matches the 10% funding increase Sheriff Gregory Tony originally requested. But the city won’t have to pay that amount unless the Sheriff’s Office can show it was incurred.
“There’s going to be some intense bookkeeping,” Drosky said.
With the contract entering its termination phase, the city will have two years to explore the financial implications and decide whether to stick with the Sheriff’s Office, team up with another city or re-establish an independent police force for the first time since 1990.
Broward Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright said late Thursday that Drosky’s description of the situation was consistent with the terms of the contract.
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457.
Originally Published: