Wythe County Sheriff's Office at odds with county on overtime pay

WYTHEVILLE (WSLS 10) - Money issues at the Wythe County Sheriff's Office are causing some deputies to go without overtime pay.

This year, the board of supervisors said it will only approve overtime money for officers who are working the interstate. Officers working any other type of case will receive comp time off instead of money.

The board said it will hear emergency situations on a case-by-case basis.

Sheriff Keith Dunagan said the comp time policy is often causing shortages in investigators and patrol deputies.

"Of the six investigators we have, we're lucky to have a couple of them here," said Dunagan. "There was one day where we didn't have any of them here."

County spokesman Jeremy Farley responded by saying that it is the sheriff's responsibility to make sure there is always an investigator on duty.

"No one is saying that the investigators have to all take their comp time off on the same day," Farley said. "It becomes a management issue at that time."

Dunagan said in the past, investigators have split overtime compensation with both money and time off.