'Newspg3.indd' by The Newscaster Nature Coast News

Inglis PD ofﬁce during his ﬁrst tour of duty after being hired in 1999 from a ﬁeld of eight.

He beat out "native son" Mitch Billups in a somtimes emotional debate that went on for

weeks. In August 2008 Dixon returned to replace Chief Tim Bible and did not have the

full support of the commission. The late Commissioner Gary Mosher said,"once you send

someone (Dixon) away, it's not good business to hire them again." In the end Mosher voted

for the hiring of Dixon. In 2009 he is credited with starting the “shop with a cop” fundraiser

(similar to Citrus County's shop with a cop) to help underprivileged children in the Inglis

The commission met in special session Thursday (July 25, 2013) to accept a contract

with Levy County Sheriff Bobby McCallum. (read full document on thenewscaster.com)

Lt. Scott Finnan of the sheriff dept. will oversee the operation of the dept. with Lt. John

Dowd in charge of two other Inglis Police ofﬁcers, Brian Hilberer and Tim Rogers until

Sept. 30 when the sheriff dept. will take full control. Two reserve ofﬁcers will also be kept.

 

Inglis will turn over three patrol cars to the sheriff department and ofﬁce space will be pro-

vided by the Town of Inglis at no cost to the sheriff dept. Mayor Kirkland said, “The vote



Thursday night 3 to 2 sealed the fate of the Inglis Police Department. Commissioners Ely

and Merritt were the nay votes. Mayor Glenda Kirkland said, “The vote tonight (Thursday)



by Commissioners Morin, Price and White to turn law enforcement over from the Inglis      

Police Department to the Levy County Sheriff Ofﬁce is in direct support of the vote of the

     

majority of the Inglis voters in the March Inglis election. These three commissioners were Signing of the Interlocal Agreement for Law Enforcement Services between Levy County Sher-

elected in the same election that this issue was put before the voters.”   ff  • Inglis Thursdayeveningdone LCSO Bobby



i Office and the Town of  •   was  by  Sheriff •  McCallum

Inglis Signs Contract With Sheriff Dept.

andGlendaKirkland. thehistoricSheriff/Legal

 Inglis Mayor   Witnessing   move was LCSO Under

Adviser W.O. “Brett” Beauchamp III, Inglis Attorney Brad Bettin and Inglis Town Clerk Sally

Thursday evening (7-25-13) the Inglis Town Commission signed a contract with

the Levy Sheriff’s Dept. terminating the Inglis Police Department services and replacing it

Shell Super Stop

with the Levy County Sheriff Dept. Last March a majority of town voters voted to discon-

tinue the IPD services and contract with the LCSO. A court challenge to this amendment,

which won by over 60% of the electors, resulted in a Circuit Judge’s ruling that the wording

U.S. 19 at C.R. 40 • Inglis, Florida

was unconstitutional.

A motion to follow the majority of citizens desires to switch law enforcement

  

services was made by Inglis Commissioner Ann Morin and secondedlayCommissioner

Sally Price. A vote to sign the Interlocal Agreement for Law Enforcement Services with the

LCSO passed 3 to 2 with Commissioners Ann Morin, Sally Price arter Pagevoting

    

yes for the change and Commissioners Sherry Ely and Drinda Merritt voting no.

Discussion following the motion was fairly even withchanged for

the small audience split for

 

    

and against. The talk of not having 24/7 coverage was countered with the fact that IPD Chief



Steve Dixon has admitted in a previous meeting that Inglis has22-13 issue

5- never had 24/7 coverage



except recently when efforts to save IPD heated up. Not wanting to turn over three IPD cars



as part of the contract with LCSO was countered with the majority voters in March willing



    

to give all assets to the LCSO as part of the change. (This is where the judge ruled against

     

the wordage being unconstitutional because an entity can not make another entity accept

their assets.) Mayor Glenda Kirkland told The Newscaster, “The police powers Inglis has

                

under Federal & Florida Constitution give the Town the power to have & maintain a police

department or to enter into an inter-local agreement with the Sheriff’s Ofﬁce (among other

options), if that’s how the Town chooses to meet the Town’s law enforcement needs. A fu-

        

ture Commission would have the power & authority to go back to the Town maintaining a

       

police force in the future, if it thought that was the best way to meet the needs of the people.”

Discussion made reference to Crystal River and Inverness, towns that both gave up

     

local police departments to switch to Sheriff coverage resulting in savings of hundreds of

      

thousands of dollars. Commissioner Merritt said “DAB, our biggest tax payer, would fol-

low through with their threat of taking the business from Inglis if IPD was dissolved and had



already purchased a building in Crystal River.”

      

Sheriff Bobby McCallum wanted it made known that he never solicited the take over

by LCSO and was only responding to the request by the Inglis Commission. McCallum said

       

if the vote passed he would give his utmost best, but again he wanted it understood he did

       

not politic for this change. The sheriff dept. shall have sole discretion on hiring any former

Inglis Police personnel. The agreement is for four years. In the ﬁrst two years the rate is

$276 thousand, and 2015 thru 2016 the cost is $281,520, while 2016-2017 the cost will be

$287,150. Inglis will be allowed to keep its share of ﬁnes collected, however any property

seizures will go to the sheriff dept. Read full story in Wednesday’s Newscaster. (Listen to