LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) — A more than $26 million budget just took effect in Limestone County for Fiscal Year 2026, and the sheriff’s department said the money is already being put to use.
Sheriff Joshua McLaughlin told News 19’s Peyton Newman about a severe staffing shortage in July after he presented the data to the County Commission, asking for more funding.
“The lack of growth in the sheriff’s office to obviously adjust to the number of citizens, calls, different responsibilities of the sheriff’s office that continue to grow,” McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin said the department should have 1.8 deputies per 100,000 residents in the county. This summer, that number added up to 234 deputies. Limestone County had only 59 sworn officers at the time, amounting to less than 25% of the staffing recommendation to adequately serve the population.
But that will soon change.
“Our commission gave us ten more deputy spots and two investigators, and also five corrections officers.”
While the county’s 2026 budget does not bring the department’s staffing up to par with that recommendation, McLaughlin said it will be a tremendous help. He emphasized the timing being crucial, especially after the county was named the fastest-growing in the state for the fourth consecutive year.
“It’s going to allow us to combat the growth, just address the issues that come with the growth as far as more civil papers, more calls for service,” McLaughlin said. “Obviously, you need more patrols for traffic.”
McLaughlin looks to expand the Limestone County Jail to address the growing number of arrests properly as the next need on his list.
News 19’s Peyton Newman reached out to Limestone County Commission Chairman Collin Daly several times for a breakdown on the new budget and received no response.
The post Limestone County approves funding for much-needed deputies appeared first on WHNT.
