Sheriff asks county to explore one-year resident MDEA agent to bolster drug enforcement

Sheriff Todd Brackett told the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners at its June 2 meeting that he wants permission to explore a one-year contract with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency (MDEA) to assign a resident MDEA agent to Lincoln County. Brackett said the county has been without a resident agent for roughly four to five years because of staffing shortages and that local data show persistent drug investigative activity and a high number of overdoses.

Brackett said under the arrangement a county deputy would be assigned to MDEA and the state would reimburse salary and benefits, leaving the county with minimal additional costs limited mainly to specialized internal training or meeting expenses. If a deputy is reassigned to MDEA, the sheriff said he would temporarily fill that vacancy within the Sheriff’s Office to maintain coverage.

Commissioners asked whether the arrangement would improve regional coordination and how the sheriff’s office would maintain staffing coverage. Brackett said MDEA’s statewide structure supports interagency coordination and intelligence sharing and agreed to return to the board with a draft contract and a staffing plan before any final decision.

The board took no formal vote on a contract at the June 2 meeting; Brackett’s request was recorded as a presentation and the next step is a return presentation with contract language and a staffing plan for the commissioners’ review.