Joseph Barile, the Chief Deputy at the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, has resigned according to an agency release on Thursday. Barile’s resignation was accepted effective Thursday, September 10.
“Please accept this as my resignation from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office,” Barile said in a letter hand-delivered to Flagler Sheriff Rick Staly. “I do not make this decision lightly, but I am ready to start a new chapter in my life. I am thankful for the opportunities I have been given while working at the FCSO and honored to have served my community since January 2007.
According to the FCSO, Barile began his career with the agency on January 31, 2007. He served in a variety of specialized areas during his 19-year stint, including Community Policing, Homeland Security, Investigative Services, and the Special Investigations Unit.
“We respect Joe’s decision to resign from the agency and move his life in a new direction,” Staly said in a prepared statement. “We wish Joe the best in his future endeavors.”
In the wake of Barile’s departure, Sheriff Staly will be leaving the chief deputy position vacant. The responsibilities of this role will be shared among division chiefs, the FCSO Chief of Staff, and the sheriff himself. The FCSO’s statement says this was previously how these tasks were divided up.
FCSO Staffing Faces Budgetary Pressure
No reason was given for Barile’s resignation beyond his own words. The FCSO’s statement did, however, make specific mention of what they called ‘difficult’ budget negotiations with the Flagler County Commission and Palm Coast City Council.
Sheriff Staly received approval for his requested three new deputy positions from the County Commission. His greater hangup has been in Palm Coast, where the City Council approves the FCSO’s contracted services instead of operating a city police department. The City Council is leaning toward likely funding two of Staly’s nine requested new deputies.
The budgetary difficulties have largely been a result of Amendment 3, a ballot measure in November which would drastically reduce the amount of residential property tax revenue collected by local governments. Though public safety is intended to be a top fiscal priority, both Flagler County and Palm Coast are skeptical of large spending commitments before they know the amendment’s fate.
