- $739,000 in federal grants for the Leon County Sheriff's Office was approved by the Leon County Board of County Commissioners Tuesday.
- One focus is de-escalation training — this comes after an internal report found 56 cases of force used by LCSO deputies in more than 100,000 interactions from July 2023 to June 2024.
- Watch now to hear from one community group member who explains why there's still more than should be done to keep law enforcement accountable.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A new round of funding for the Leon County Sheriff's Office was approved Tuesday.
It's meant to tackle de-escalation training and officer-neighbor interactions.
I'm Alberto Camargo in the downtown Tallahassee neighborhood.
Working to understand where that money is coming from — and why one community group says money is not the answer.
The total amount going to the Leon County Sheriff's Office — $739,000.
About $350,000 of that is coming from the U.S Department of Justice.
It's meant to enhance de-escalation techniques deputies use in their interactions with neighbors.
I reached out to the sheriff's office to understand what that means exactly, but no one was available Tuesday.
Instead, I read through this LCSO de-escalation report.
It says LCSO officers had more than 100,000 interactions with neighbors between July 2023 and June 2024.
The report says 97% of them were "calm or cooperative".
Two percent were with neighbors labeled "agitated or uncooperative".
It says 56 total interactions resulted in a deputy using force — that's .05%.
One community group that says that's still too many is the Tallahassee Community Action Committee.
You may remember them being vocal about the disbanding of the Tallahassee Citizens Police Review Board.
TCAC member Aedan Bennett says this new funding for LCSO is not enough — citizen oversight is needed.
"If there was greater oversight of police in Tallahassee and Leon County, I think we would see significant material changes in the way that operations are handled. That is the only thing that would give me confidence in the short term from the Leon County Sheriff's Office."
A statement from Sheriff Walter McNeil in the de-escalation report says, "we are actively diving even deeper, identifying specific factors that contribute to successful de-escalation, improving how these techniques can be effectively trained."
Another $350,000 in federal grants is set to expand the Body-Worn Camera program to all personnel at the Leon County jail with regular inmate interaction.
LCSO says this will improve officer safety, enhance transparency, and increase accountability in law enforcement practices.
Also included in those federal grants: $30,000 for LSCO to beef up its equipment for online sting operations.
In downtown Tallahassee, Alberto Camargo, ABC27.
