Samuel Portalatin, Major

Major Samuel V. Portalatin serves as the Commander for District III. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and moved to the Tampa Bay Area as a teen.

He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of South Florida. In 2008, he began his career with HCSO as a patrol deputy in District 1. During his earlier years on patrol, he became a gang intelligence liaison and an alternate deputy within the Court Complex Security Section before becoming a detective within the Auto-Theft Section.

As a detective in the Criminal Investigations Division, he was assigned to the Professional Standards Bureau, which led to his promotion to Corporal. During his time as a Corporal and Sergeant, Major Portalatin was instrumental in developing the Body-Worn Camera program and policies for the Sheriff’s Office, as well as developing procedures for digital evidence record sharing with the Office of the State Attorney.

Major Portalatin also served as a member of the Crisis Negotiations Team for ten years as a negotiator, an assistant team leader, and ultimately as the Crisis Negotiations Team leader before being promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Upon being promoted to the rank of Lieutenant, Major Portalatin oversaw the team that led the way for the Sheriff’s Office to achieve the highest level of national accreditation for law enforcement with the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA).

Major Portalatin has completed supervisory assignments in Patrol, the General Offense Section, the Professional Standards Bureau, and the Community Outreach Division.

Samuel and his wife, Melisa, have four children.