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Highlands Today

Protecting Is In Her Blood

Jasmina Meyer, Highlands Today

From left: Susan Condrey speaks with Highlands County Deputy Amanda Dettman about a mass mailing she believes to be a scam Saturday in Sebring.

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By BRAD DICKERSON

Highlands Today

Published: February 16, 2009

SEBRING - Deputy Amanda Dettman hears many excuses when pulling people over for speeding, but the most common one references the call of nature.

"Everybody has to go to the bathroom," Dettman said. "It's like, 'Really? Well, you're going to have to wait a few more minutes.'"

Being on road patrol with the Highlands County Sheriff's Office provides Dettman the opportunity to respond to any number of calls, from burglaries to domestic disputes.

And that's just the way she likes it.

"I like being out there with the people and being right there instead of following up later on," Dettman said.

The 24-year-old has been a deputy in Highlands County for two years and is the third generation of her family to serve and protect.

Dettman's grandfather was a police chief in Helen, Ga., while her father, Thomas Dettman, holds the rank of top cop with the Sebring Police Department. Before that, she said, her dad was chief of police in Boynton Beach.

"We always used to ride around in a patrol car," Dettman said of growing up with police officers in the family.

Working with her father was never an option, since a nepotism clause would have prevented it.

"Unless he was going to retire, I couldn't go work there (in Sebring)," Dettman said.

Now, she works the 3 p.m.-3 a.m. shift. She enjoys the hours because of the camaraderie between all the deputies on duty.

The flip side is that it gives her less time to spend with her children.

"It's a toss up," she said.

When not at work, Dettman enjoys time with her family, like taking those trips to Disney World. Her personal favorite rides at Magic Kingdom are Space Mountain and Splash Mountain.

Between work and family, free time can be hard to come by. Still, when Dettman does have the time, she likes scrapbooking.

In her career, Dettman sees herself one day testing for sergeant. What she does not see is trying to move to a different unit, such as the detective or special investigations divisions.

Right now, she is happy with the diversity of calls and camaraderie found by working road patrol.

"There are a lot of calls that you don't specifically get trained for," Dettman said. "You're everything. You're not just 'that cop.' You're not out there just writing tickets. You're the dog catcher, you name it."

During her two years, Dettman said she has dealt primarily with burglary and domestic-related calls.

What she has not dealt with much is foot chases.

In fact, there has been only one, and she did not manage to catch the suspect.

"I was like, 'Well, I guess I'm going to start running from now on,'" she quipped.

Highlands Today reporter Brad Dickerson can be reached at (863) 386-5838 or bdickerson@highlandstoday.com.

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