Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office
One of the major accomplishments of
Sheriff Morris' administration has been the creation of a Special Response Team
(SRT). The Special Response Team is an elite unit of 16 extraordinary deputies
who are available for immediate call-out 24 hours a day. Sheriff Morris insists
on highly trained and motivated deputies who must demonstrate their physical
fitness, agility, and endurance in a strenuous physical test to qualify
for the team. The SRT Unit is
under the direction of Commander Ted Cason and
team leaders Sgt. Mike Adair and
Dpty. Scott Spence. The team trains together as a unit and strives to provide Okaloosa County
citizens with the best protection available.
To prepare for any situation that may arise, SRT team members have trained with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Los Angeles Sheriff's Office Special Weapons Team, Florida SWAT Association, Heckler & Koch Training, Glock Training, Florida Marine Patrol and various state, government, and local agencies. All team members are instructed in less lethal munitions, impact weapons, and gas deployment and also attend classes in subjects such as navigational tactics. Many of the deputies have received certification and instructor certification in specialized schools and their expertise is utilized to educate team members. The team is privileged to have two paramedics assigned from Okaloosa County Emergency Management. Kenneth Worley and Wally Ebbert are Okaloosa County Paramedics and have received Advanced Paramedic Tactical Certification. The SRT unit has been deployed to various call-outs that include; barricaded suspects, hostage situations, and high risk warrant services. They are also utilized for covert field intelligence gathering.
Crisis Negotiations Unit
Another special unit within the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office is the Crisis Negotiations Unit (CNU). The CNU was formed in 1998 and currently consists of ten members of the Sheriff's Office who are available on an as-needed basis. The primary responsibility of the Crisis Negotiation Unit is to negotiate or "talk" barricaded individuals out of their situation. It is their job to settle the problem in as peaceful a manner as possible so that no one gets hurt. First and foremost, the CNU will attempt to establish communication with the barricaded person by phone, verbal conversation, or face to face interaction. The Crisis Negotiations Unit will exhaust all avenues peacefully to subdue the barricaded individual before the Special Response Team is required to use any kind of force.
Okaloosa County Sheriff's
Office
1250 North Eglin Parkway
Shalimar, FL 32579
(850) 651-7410