Cuyahoga County Sheriff Harold Pretel is suing the county executive鈥檚 office, the latest step in a long-running conflict over the sheriff鈥檚 department鈥檚 overtime spending and who has ultimate authority over the sheriff鈥檚 budget.
In December, County Executive Chris Ronayne moved the sheriff鈥檚 budget office directly under his office鈥檚 control, which led the sheriff to take legal action.
鈥淒efendant is actively seeking to commandeer the management of the finances of the Sheriff鈥檚 Department, including unilaterally 鈥榬eassigning鈥� or 鈥榬echaracterizing鈥� employees of the Sheriff鈥檚 Department to departments under the control of the County Executive and taking over payroll responsibilities from the Sheriff related to Sheriff鈥檚 Department employees, including senior staff members, who report directly to the Sheriff,鈥� the department鈥檚 outside counsel, Aaron Glasgow, wrote in a complaint filed Tuesday in Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.
A dispute over the sheriff鈥檚 department鈥檚 budget for 2026 and 2027 played out partially in public, during budget hearings at county council toward the end of last year. Employees from the sheriff鈥檚 office told council they would not be able to get through the year with the funding proposed by the executive.
The sheriff鈥檚 budget staff was physically relocated to the county鈥檚 administrative headquarters and placed under the direct supervision of the executive鈥檚 budgeting office shortly after.
The executive鈥檚 office said at the time the move had been planned for months prior to the budget dispute. The lawsuit is seeking an injunction to reverse that step and a finding that the sheriff has ultimate authority over his office鈥檚 spending.
The county executive鈥檚 office has yet to respond to the complaint in court and declined to respond to the sheriff鈥檚 legal arguments.
鈥淲e are disappointed that Sheriff Pretel has chosen to waste public taxpayer money on a meritless lawsuit,鈥� said Communications Director Kelly Woodard. 鈥淲e will continue to maintain strong financial controls for all County departments, including the Sheriff鈥檚 Department, while keeping our focus on serving the residents of Cuyahoga County, where it belongs.鈥�
Cuyahoga is the only county in Ohio with an appointed sheriff instead of an elected one. The executive appoints the sheriff.
The county鈥檚 charter gives the sheriff the authority to hire staff and, according to the lawsuit, 鈥渄oes not provide the authority to the Executive to operate the Sheriff鈥檚 Department, or otherwise manage or control the daily operation or functions of the Sheriff鈥檚 Department or its employees.鈥�
Under Pretel, the sheriff鈥檚 department has exceeded its overtime budget each year.
鈥淚n 2022, we added 16 [million], 2023 鈥� 19 [million], 2024 鈥� 16 [million]. 2025 we鈥檙e on board to add 15 [million]. So, this is nothing new. But we always do it. And it鈥檚 got to stop. We鈥檝e got to get to a number,鈥� said Councilmember Michael Gallagher during budget hearings in December.
Shortly after that hearing, the executive took over control of the sheriff鈥檚 budget office.
