Group of Longboat PD officers sworn in with Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office

As part of a new cross-deputization agreement, Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt Hoffman came to Longboat Key to swear in a group of officers from the Longboat Key Police Department. 

Eight officers of the Longboat Key Police Department’s recent marine patrol unit expansion took the county’s oath to enforce Florida law across jurisdictional boundaries on the water. 

Interim Chief of Police Frank Rubino said the process is a long-standing practice with both counties.

When Hoffman took over as the Sarasota County Sheriff, he noted one of his priorities was to build partnerships with local municipal police departments. 

“His priority was to form strong partnerships among all law enforcement agencies in Sarasota County so they’re all working together to make the area safer,” Rubino said.

The Longboat Key Police Department enhanced its marine patrol methodology from having one full-time marine patrol officer in 2023 to now having multiple officers trained to patrol or respond to emergencies regularly.

“We expanded our unit so we have marine officers on every shift,” Rubino said.

Because of this increased manpower on the water, Hoffman arranged to have the marine patrol officers cross-deputized to respond to incidents on the water without the hassle of jurisdictional boundaries. 

Without the cross-deputization, Rubino said Longboat Key marine patrol officers would have to call for a county deputy to respond to an incident. 

“Longboat Key has a specified area. If it was a rescue, it wouldn’t matter. But if it was a crime to happen out there, we would have to signal for Sarasota County Sheriff’s officers to come out,” Rubino said.

The officers sworn in under Sarasota County can respond to incidents across Longboat Key's boundary and assist the county's sheriff's office with calls when necessary.

Officers on the water or on land are permitted to cross jurisdictional boundaries when in active pursuit of a suspect, but this agreement expands those permissions to enforcement on the water when not in pursuit. 

“It helps when they’re on the water for all the agencies to work together,” Rubino said. 

Manatee County has also utilized a similar practice with Longboat Key, typically for a detective and marine patrol officer, according to Rubino.