Sheriff's hiring of political supporters under fire
Sun Sentinel - Brittany Wallman
August 27, 2016
...A log of employees hired by the sheriff shows 10 workers were hired since 2013 into "outreach'' roles, their salaries totalling $634,479. The unit is embedded into a
$2.4 million community services division. When the budget year closes out in October, the outreach team expects to have made contact with 320,000 people, budget documents say.
The
outreach workers, who mainly attend community events, are in addition to political activists and others Israel hired into community affairs roles, writing and designing printed pieces about the agency, and sharing it on social media. The employee log shows six hired into community affairs roles, their salaries totaling $388,729.
Israel's opponents say he's built a publicly funded political machine, paying back supporters with jobs and using them to keep him in office. They say the money could be better spent, particularly after the sheriff complained about not having enough funding to secure the county courthouse, where a murder suspect recently escaped.
Israel said he built the outreach wing from nearly nothing, aiming to foster "a love affair with the community." He said it would engender trust with the community that was lacking under the tenure of predecessor Al Lamberti. He defending the tapping of people he knew, some from the campaign trail, into outreach and other roles.
"What have I done differently than Don Shula or Abraham Lincoln or Martin Luther King, Ghandi?" asked Israel. "Men and women who assume leadership roles surround themselves with people who are loyal, who they can depend on and who they appreciate their skill set."...
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/br...827-story.html
They're SWAT cadets!
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