The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office is putting a new tool in its deputies’ hands — one without a trigger, a badge, or a set of handcuffs. The agency has begun distributing sensory support kits to select members of its team, with the goal of making law enforcement encounters less stressful for people with neurological or mental health conditions.
What’s in the Kit
Each kit contains four items: earmuffs, sunglasses, a fidget marble maze mat, and a liquid motion timer. The items are meant to address three of the human senses — hearing, sight, and touch — that can become overwhelming during high-stress situations.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, the kits are intended to help individuals who are neurodivergent, such as those with autism or ADHD, as well as people with developmental disabilities, anxiety, or PTSD. The stated goals are to reduce sensory overload, provide focus, and help ground a person during an interaction with law enforcement.
Who Gets the Kits
The kits are not being issued department-wide. They are going to deputies assigned to four specific units: the Community Policing Division, school resource deputies, the Behavioral Response Unit, and the Professional Development Unit — the areas of the agency most likely to encounter individuals who may benefit from these tools.
A total of 250 kits have been purchased and distributed.
No Cost to Taxpayers
The kits were paid for entirely using drug-seized assets, meaning no Flagler County tax dollars were spent on the program.
Sheriff Rick Staly addressed both the purpose and the funding in separate statements. On the mission behind the kits, he said: “Our commitment to service is something that applies to everyone, and we want to ensure our neurodiverse residents, particularly children, have positive interactions with law enforcement. These items are small but helpful tools that will enable us to better interact with them, and now our deputies are equipped with these tools when they need them.”
On the use of seized funds to pay for the program, Staly added: “We love taking profits from poison peddlers and putting them to good use in our community.”
The Sheriff’s Office did not provide data on how frequently deputies encounter individuals who may benefit from sensory support tools, or how the effectiveness of the kits will be tracked going forward.
