Police Respond to Calls to Disband Force

Days after City Commissioner Shannon Snyder said , the  chief is speaking out.

Snyder brought forth the proposal at a Monday budget workshop saying that the department should stop hiring officers instead of laying people off, and he estimated it would save the city $7 million a year. The talks were general, nothing was formally proposed, but the idea is certainly bold as Snyder had hoped.

“I don't think we can afford to run our own police department anymore,” Snyder said. “I think that cost alone, we could probably contract and eliminate duplication of services at administration level. … I think that's a big, bold move. That's $7 million.” 

Police Chief Mikel Hollaway told WTSP that it doesn't make sense when the city opened in 2010 a new $42 million headquarters:

"The city needs to have this department. The citizens expect to have a good police department.  They're paying for it now and I think they want to keep it," he said.

Hollaway tells 10 News if the sheriff's office takes over, the public will be the real losers.

"Response times would suffer and we probably would see a less level of service," he said."

Sarasota Sheriff Tom Knight is keeping on middle ground, as other jurisdictions around the country have contracted sheriff's deputies to replace their officers.

Knight told WTSP that a merger isn't impossible but is challenging: 

"How an organization works, the leadership of the organization, how morale is.  There's a lot of things that can be adversely affected by consolidation.

Capt. Paul Sutton, the department's public information officer, told WWSB that the city ought to look somewhere else to save money:

"I'm all for saving money," Sutton said. "But compromising public safety is something that I don't think anyone is in favor of."

Sutton believes response times would be impaired if the Sheriff's Office takes over.  "Quicker response times is one of the things that improves safety in the city, and one of the things residents have enjoyed," Sutton said. 

The commission's next meeting is at 2:30 p.m. Monday at in the Commission Chambers.