ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — As Orange County students returned to class Monday, parents said they expected every school to have a resource officer, but Channel 9 can't get a clear answer from the Orange County Sheriff's Office as to whether each campus was covered.
The Sheriff's Office wouldn't give Channel 9 a yes or no answer as to whether there would be a deputy in each Orange County school for the entire day.
Hours after students returned to class, the Sheriff's Office said there was a resource officer at each school, but it wouldn't say if the deputies were dedicated to one school or how long they spent at each school.
"As of this morning, there's an SRO at every school in Orange County," Orange County Capt. Carlos Torres said.
Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs sent a letter to Sheriff Jerry Demings on Friday, saying in part, "I have just learned that you are not able to staff every school in unincorporated Orange County with a dedicated deputy during school hours."
"The sheriff utilized existing manpower that he had within various units, and he temporarily transferred that manpower to the SRO unit," Torres said. "That way those deputies would be assigned to the SRO unit on a daily basis."
The Sheriff's Office said it will need to add 75 deputies to its SRO program, which will cost $13 million.
Torres said it could take several months to hire and train the deputies.
Jacobs provided Channel 9 with a statement Monday, saying in part, "If Sheriff Demings has found a way to place a full-time deputy in every school in unincorporated Orange County, I am relieved."
Cox Media Group
