Sheriff Jim Coats comes to Tiger Bay on Thursday
More than half of Pinellas County’s budget goes to support its 2,800-person Sheriff’s department. But in a year of making do with less, Sheriff Jim Coats has been asked to cut $30 million for 2010-2011. Can it be done without a significant hit to public safety? The sheriff steps into the Tiger’s Den to tell us where he is willing to tighten and what needs to stay. As budget planning begins in earnest will he fight to be spared the…