ASTATULA, Fla. – Two officers who resigned from the small Astatula Police Department were sworn in this week as Lake County sheriff’s deputies, according to information provided Friday by both agencies.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office identified the former Astatula officers as Rodney Brown and Natalie Quandt. LCSO spokesperson John Herrell said both were sworn in Tuesday, July 21.

Their departures reduced Astatula’s police force from 10 officers to eight—meaning the town lost 20% of its sworn department in the same week.

The resignations initially came to News 6 through a tip claiming half of the department had resigned, that several officers had been hired by the sheriff and that the departures followed a dispute over take-home police vehicles.

The confirmed number is two—not half of the department. The mayor, police chief and sheriff’s office also agree both officers resigned voluntarily rather than being fired.

However, News 6 has confirmed the departures happened against the backdrop of a dispute involving department fuel spending, enforcement of the town’s vehicle policy and preliminary conversations about whether LCSO could one day provide law enforcement for Astatula.

Officers left days before being sworn in by LCSO

Mayor Zane Teeters Jr. said Brown and Quandt submitted resignation letters July 15, with both departures becoming effective July 17. Neither officer was terminated, according to the mayor.

Astatula Police Chief Wally Hoagland said the two officers left to accept positions with larger law-enforcement agencies.

Four days after their resignations took effect, Brown and Quandt were sworn in by LCSO.

Herrell said no other current or former Astatula officers are undergoing the sheriff’s office hiring or background process.

The sheriff’s office is also not providing additional patrol or emergency coverage inside Astatula because of the staffing change, Herrell said.

Chief Hoagland said the department now has eight officers and two vacancies.

“Any employee departure affects staffing levels; however, response times and criminal investigations have not been affected at this time,” Hoagland said.

The mayor said those eight officers include the chief and serve approximately 2,100 residents. He acknowledged, however, that a per-capita staffing figure does not fully account for shift assignments, supervision, training, leave or the number of officers actually available for patrol at a particular time.

Vehicle policy enforced after fuel-budget concerns

Both the mayor and chief said the town’s decision involving police vehicles was driven by fuel spending and enforcement of an existing policy.

On May 16, Teeters sent Hoagland a written memorandum directing the department to begin enforcing the town’s vehicle-use policy on June 1.

The policy generally prohibits town-owned vehicles from leaving Astatula unless the trip involves official town business. It also requires employees to document authorized travel outside town limits.

The mayor’s memo specifically prohibited using town vehicles for personal errands, secondary employment, private business, personal convenience or commuting unrelated to an official duty assignment. It preserved vehicle use for emergency responses, mutual aid, court appearances, investigations, training and other authorized police work.

Teeters said the policy had existed since 2008 but had not been consistently enforced within the police department.

He said the department had nearly exhausted its annual fuel budget with approximately five months remaining in the fiscal year.

“The decision was an administrative and fiscal-management action intended to restore compliance with existing Town policy and ensure responsible stewardship of public resources,” Teeters wrote. “It was not intended as punishment or retaliation against any employee.”

Hoagland similarly described it as an administrative decision connected to rising fuel prices and the department exceeding its budgeted fuel allocation.

However, the chief disputed the claim that the vehicle decision caused the two resignations.

The mayor also urged against automatically linking the two events, noting the vehicle policy took effect June 1 and the resignation letters were submitted approximately six weeks later.

Neither Brown nor Quandt has publicly explained whether the vehicle decision, department morale, pay, career advancement or another factor influenced the decision to leave.

Town approached LCSO before resignations

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office also confirmed that conversations about potentially providing law enforcement in Astatula began before Brown and Quandt resigned.

Herrell said the mayor and town manager contacted LCSO approximately four or five weeks ago to ask whether the sheriff’s office would be willing to provide services.

Informal discussions followed.

LCSO has not provided Astatula with an official proposal, finalized cost or approved staffing plan, Herrell said. However, an LCSO patrol major shared what Herrell described as “very rough numbers” for the town to consider.

“It was just raw information and none of those figures have been finalized or approved by the Sheriff,” Herrell said.

Teeters also confirmed that he requested information about the possible costs, staffing levels, service levels, response considerations and operational effects of using LCSO.

“No decision has been made to eliminate or disband the Astatula Police Department,” the mayor wrote.

He characterized the discussions as fact-finding while the town evaluates staffing, public-safety expenses, its proposed budget and possible revenue constraints.

The mayor said any significant change would require legal and financial review, consideration by the Town Council at a publicly noticed meeting and an opportunity for public comment.

Chief Hoagland said he has not been involved in those discussions. He said he was advised they were intended to better understand the possible effect of a proposed property-tax issue on residents.

That means the leader of the police department has not been directly involved in the preliminary conversations over whether another agency could potentially provide the town’s law-enforcement services.

Residents value knowing their officers

For residents in and around Astatula, the debate is not simply about the number of officers on a spreadsheet.

Kenneth New, who has lived in the area for years, said one of the department’s strengths is that its officers are familiar and treat people with respect.

“I think they do an excellent job,” New said. “They treat everybody with respect. I’ve never been disrespected by any of the officers here.”

New said he does not expect the two resignations to immediately affect patrols. However, he said Brown had deep ties to the community.

“Lieutenant Brown’s been here all of his life,” New said. “Everybody really respected him, and he seemed to respect everyone.”

Former Astatula councilman Ryan Wilbur also praised the department’s relationship with residents, describing its officers as personable and engaged with the community.

Wilbur, an outspoken critic of the mayor, said he believes the town is moving in the wrong direction. He raised broader concerns about employee morale and town leadership, although News 6 has not independently verified all of his allegations.

Wilbur said staffing a small police force around the clock is more complicated than simply counting the names on its roster.

“We have 10 people. Why don’t we see them?” Wilbur said. “Well, because it’s 24/7, 365. They’ve got to rotate through and make sure we have some sort of coverage.”

When asked whether he would be comfortable with LCSO taking over, Wilbur said his principal concern would be whether the town maintains reliable coverage and reasonable response times.

“As long as we have coverage, I think that’s what the citizens are mainly looking for,” Wilbur said. “But I like our police force. I think they do a good job, and I’ll support them right up to the end.”