VERO BEACH — During a Sept. 5 press conference, Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers detailed arrests connected to thefts from county buildings, which evolved into further discussions of his budget.
Items stolen included an iPhone 16e, food, currency, a $22,258 rent assistance check, and unauthorized purchases made on a county credit card.
Those arrested were Jeremy Nathan Palmer and Leonard Miguel Thompson. Palmer, a member of the county cleanup crew, has a prior record, Flowers said.
“He’s a nine-time convicted felon,” Flowers said. “He was on active felony probation when this happened.”
Palmer faces multiple fraud counts, drug possession, lewd and lascivious exhibition in the presence of a correctional employee, and other charges. His probation was revoked following his arrest, and he was additionally charged with violation of probation and second-degree petit theft.
Thompson entered the building through an unlocked door, Flowers said, after unusual motion-sensor activity tipped off investigators. He was arrested on a burglary charge. Thompson also has a prior record and is a 10-time convicted felon, Flowers said.
After outlining the cases, Flowers shifted to the sheriff’s office budget, which he has pressed county leaders to increase. He has requested a 19% hike, citing low deputy pay, but the county has proposed a 6% increase.
“As of late, they seem to forget how important law enforcement is,” Flowers said. “Here’s two great examples in the last month of where thefts are occurring in their building and they’re not willing to fund us.”
He added: “I’m in a fight to ensure we have the resources we need to protect the county and to do the things that are necessary to make this a great place to live, work and play.”
Indian River County Commission Vice Chair Deryl Loar responded that the commission fully supports law enforcement.
“In fact you have three county commissioners that were prior first responders. So the narrative that we don’t care about first responders is completely false,” Loar said.
Loar emphasized the sheriff’s budget is not being cut, but the full increase Flowers requested is not being granted.
“The county has currently suggested an increase of nearly $7 million to his budget,” Loar said. “I think sometimes the narrative being painted is we’re trying to reduce his budget. That is not the case whatsoever. His initial budget was $14.9 million in addition and then later that was reduced to $12.5 million. The county still is firm at the $7 million mark.”
Loar said commissioners must balance spending carefully.
“The Sheriff is well over 55% of all of those dollars,” he said. “To be realistic, you have to understand the county budget from about 30,000 feet. We have a finite amount of dollars coming in and obviously we fund our constitutional officers. Our responsibility is to provide the dollars within reason upon request from those constitutionals. Having said that, how the constitutionals spend his or her dollars is solely their responsibility.”