Rep. Waltz, Sheriff Chitwood on rise in domestic violence calls amid coronavirus lockdown
Rep. Michael Waltz and Florida Sheriff Mike Chitwood discuss the fight against coronavirus on ‘America’s News HQ.’
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A Florida sheriff spoke to Fox News on Sunday about surprising some families by showing up at their doors holding their pizza delivery orders.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood recently posted a video of himself on Twitter delivering fresh pies from a nearby pizzeria with social-distancing advisories in place
Chitwood told Fox News' "America's News HQ Weekend" he was hoping to encourage people to order from restaurants struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, by delivering the pizza himself.
"These folks are the backbone of our county. We cannot have them collapse."
"These folks are the backbone of our county. We cannot have them collapse," Chitwood said. "Unfortunately, we’re seeing businesses close and we don’t think they’re going to reopen... I believe that public safety and the economy are both interdependent on one another. If you have a good economy, then you have good law enforcement with well-paid folks and great technology."
He continued, "What I tried to do was focus on some of the restaurants and just say, 'Hey, the sheriff will deliver your pizza, the sheriff will be out there for curbside service to try to get people to realize the economy is open.'"
CORONAVIRUS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Chitwood's uniform swap was only temporary; his community has faced a slight rise in juvenile crime amid the pandemic, he explained, also noting that the outbreak was not enough to deter drug dealers from taking to the streets.
"We just locked up 36 people for the sale of heroin and cocaine. It was interesting," he said, "that they’re wearing rubber gloves and face masks when they’re peddling this poison on our streets."
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Chitwood later praised Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' response to the outbreak in his state and credited him for "straddling the line between reality and practicality." He also noted that while roughly 15 percent of people living in Florida have disregarded calls for social distancing, "85 percent of the folks are following what needs to be done."
Fox News' Leland Vittert contributed to this report.
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