Maj. John Barrow PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN BARROW CAMPAIGN

MIAMI, Fla. – Two African Americans, one a police major and the other a retired law enforcement officer, have thrown their hats in the ring for MiamiDade County sheriff.

Miami-Dade police Maj. John Barrow and retired Miami-Dade police Lt. Johnny Mitchell are among a field of 14 candidates seeking to become sheriff in 2024.

With a law enforcement career that spans 17 years, Barrow, 40, officially launched his campaign last week at St. Christopher’s Church by the Sea in Key Biscayne, where he is a choir director and has been a member for 11 years.

Mitchell, a Miami native, filed paperwork earlier this year for sheriff.

The two Democrats and former federal agent Susan Khorury will face off in the August 2024 Primary.

Eleven Republicans including former Police Benevolent Association President John Riveria and former law enforcement officers Mario Knapp and Ernesto Rodriguez are also vying for the position.

Barrow, also a Miami native, said electing a sheriff is a big change for Miami-Dade County because voters get to pick who they want to run the largest police department in Florida and the eighth largest in the nation.

The Miami-Dade Police Department currently employs 4,700 police officers and non-police officers with eight district stations throughout the county.

"They get to choose who they want to protect them and enhance their public safety," Barrow told the South Florida Times. "People voting how they want their community to be policed is the biggest benefit."

Florida voters reinstated the sheriff position in 2021 when they allowed citizens to elect sheriffs, election supervisors and property appraisers statewide starting in 2024.

In 1966, Dade County Sheriff’s Office was eliminated by voters after a grand jury found that officers were allegedly engaged in corruption including illegal gambling, accepting bribes to look the other way and protecting organized crime figures.

In the 1980s, elected officials appointed a police director to oversee the police department and report to them but the position of Miami-Dade mayor assumed that power in 1996 and picks the top cop and second in command.

Under county law, current MiamiDade Mayor Daniel Levine Cava is the sheriff for the police department until a sheriff is elected next year.

Unclear is how much power Levine Cava and the new sheriff will have after some of the department’s duties are transferred over to the newly elected official.

Barrow joined the Miami-Dade department after he graduated from college in Ohio and rose through the ranks.

As a major, he currently oversees 250 police officers working on homicide, armed robbery, burglaries, domestic violence cases and other criminal investigations.

Barrow said one of his hallmarks is building a strong relationship with the community, which he learned while doing street patrol in Goulds and West Perrine earlier in his career.

He said he constantly reaches out to the community to see if they need help and answers their calls even while off duty.

"I give the community my personal phone number because I want to stay in contact with them when they need a police officer," Barrow said.

Barrow said through his initiatives and the work of his officers, the police department was able to curb gun violence by 22 percent this year and successfully combat gang violence.

With the help of the Circle of Brotherhood, a nonprofit by Black men who provide economic development and crime prevention programs to the Black community, they were able to impact the school-to-prison pipeline for some at-risk youths.

"They were involved as well in improving the community by providing resources and job programs to deter youths from violence," Barrow said. "We were able to get young people to change their lives in a positive way."

Despite police and community organization efforts to bring down the crime rate, Barrow said some residents and business owners still don’t feel safe.

He said that’s why it’s important for voters to have a say in electing a sheriff and hold that individual accountable.

"Some people want the police to address their concerns like mental health issues, homelessness and other quality of life issues," Barrow said. "It’s important to the voters to work with a candidate who wants to progress and not regress."

Barrow, who grew up in Miami Gardens, graduated from MAST Academy in Key Biscayne and remained close with the island ever since.

He sang in the school’s chorus and studied music in college, earning a master’s in music from Florida International University.

Barrow also has a master’s in public administration.

He said he wanted to launch his campaign at St. Christopher’s because it’s like his second home.

"I know a lot of people there at the church," he said. "So we did it there."

Barrow is not married nor has any Mitchell also said an elected sheriff gives people the voice on who should run the police department.

"Their concerns can be expressed directly to the sheriff," Mitchell told the South Florida Times. "The election of the sheriff is by the people to serve all people of the county. This should be the focus of the office."

Mitchell, who grew up in Liberty City, retired from the Miami-Dade Police Department following a 25-year career.

He began as a uniformed training officer, then moved up to corporal, sergeant and lieutenant working mostly on homicide and narcotics cases.

"Throughout my 25-year career in law enforcement, I have witnessed the strength of our community firsthand," Mitchell said. "I have walked these streets, engaged with our residents, and understand the challenges and hopes that define our neighborhoods."

Mitchell said that serving the community was a rewarding experience for him but some changes he wanted to make were beyond his control.

"Making the changes I was allowed to make, realizing the ones I had no control over, and understanding that I was given the job to enforce the law, not to make them," he said.

Mitchell said he didn’t want to spend the rest of life in law enforcement and decided to open his own funeral home business.

But the county sheriff position piqued his interest, once again, in law enforcement because the top cop has more power to combat crime and reach out to the community, among other issues.

Mitchell said his political platform focuses on prioritizing safety in the community, schools and churches, rooting out police corruption, excessive force and police brutality, bolstering the department’s resources for better education and training for officers and tearing down the walls of discrimination and stereotypes within the department.

"By preventing discrimination and blackballing, we will build a strong and united Sheriff’s Department that reflects the diversity and values of our community," he said.

Mitchell is the father of six children and grandfather of six, two of whom followed in his footsteps and became police officers.

Mitchell said that, "From the grandkids to my wife, my family is very supportive of my candidacy."

Whoever wins the election will be in charge of a large diverse police department.

About 75 percent of Miami-Dade police officers are males and 24 percent females, with Hispanics constituting 58 percent of the population, and 20 percent each for Black and white police officers.