Pompano Beach officials are hosting a town hall to get a pulse on what residents think city officials should do regarding having their own police department and giving the Broward Sheriff’s Office the boot.
Currently, the Pompano Beach community receives law enforcement services from the Broward Sheriff’s Office, but recently, officials have been exploring the possibility of having their own independent police force.
On Thursday, officials held the first of several town hall meetings geared at asking people who live in the community their thoughts on public safety.
In a news release before the meeting, officials wrote in part: “This is a major decision, and the City is committed to ensuring that residents play an active role in shaping the future of policing and safety in their neighborhoods.”
At these meetings, officials say the public will “Learn about how public safety services work today, understand the options the City is considering [and be able to] ask questions directly to public safety experts.”
This isn’t the first time a city in Broward has looked at possibly changing who handles public safety or ditching BSO altogether. In recent months, Deerfield Beach officials and BSO have clashed publicly over this very issue.
Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony appeared to place the blame on Deerfield Beach’s city manager, who is a retired BSO deputy, for the stalled negotiations.
“You tell me if I should go absolutely nuclear on this and destroy him, because I have the power of this office to do a lot of damage to individuals, but I have safeguard and protected my personal temperament,” said Tony in a video posted to social media.
Both sides have been at odds over pay raises for BSO deputies at Deerfield Beach. Tony wants BSO deputies at Deerfield Beach to get a pay raise, but city officials say his offer goes over their previously agreed-upon cap.
Earlier this month, Deerfield Beach officials announced they had entered a “transition period” for public safety services.
“This step ensures that the City will continue to receive law enforcement services from the Broward Sheriff’s Office for up to 24 months while City officials carefully review all options for both police and fire services moving forward,” Deerfield Beach officials said in a statement.
Other cities like Pembroke Park and Lauderhill have also cut ties with the Sheriff’s Office.
As for Pompano Beach, officials said they will host another in-person meeting on Oct. 11 and two virtual meetings on Oct. 13 and Oct. 15. For more information on these meetings, click here.
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