The Sheriff of Rockdale County went in front of the commissioners last week to make a big push for salary increases and incentives.

As far as we are concerned, some of the most underpaid staff in Rockdale County are our law enforcement personnel. A study done by the Sheriff’s Office found starting salaries for deputies rank 51st out of 57 agencies in the Atlanta area.

That this has been allowed to happen is disgraceful.

We sympathize with Sheriff Levett and his entreaty. Unfortunately, there are not sufficient funds to honor his entire request.

We urge the commissioners, no matter how they juggle the money or what compromise they reach, to ensure that our law enforcement personnel receive raises; we need to make sure we keep quality law officers in our county and we need to start that process now.