Sheriff Eric Flowers was sworn-in as the 11th Sheriff of Indian River County in 2021. As the chief law enforcement officer for the county, Sheriff Flowers is responsible for all aspects of the agency and answers directly to the citizens of Indian River County.
He began his career with the Sheriff’s Office in 2003, after being moved to serve his community following the attacks of September 11, 2001. He began as a patrol deputy and later worked as a field training deputy, S.W.A.T. team and honor guard member, undercover narcotics detective, criminal investigations supervisor, lieutenant of Community Affairs, and as a major in both the Bureau of Administration and the Bureau of Law Enforcement.
Sheriff Flowers is a graduate of Sebastian River High School and he earned a bachelor of business administration from Stetson University as well as a masters of science in criminal justice from the University of Central Florida. Additionally, he is a graduate of the 270th session of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Academy program and of the Leadership Indian River and Leadership Florida’s Connect Class IX. In 2019, Sheriff Flowers was named one of the 40 Under 40 Awardees from the International Association of Chiefs of Police. He was the first member of a Florida sheriff’s office to receive this honor.
He has served as the past president of the Board of SafeSpace, the Treasure Coast’s only domestic violence shelter and outreach program as well as being on the board for United Way, the Senior Collaborative, Kids Tag Art, vice-chair of Treasure Coast Chiefs of Police and Sheriffs Association and vice-chair of Children’s Services Advisory Committee. Additionally Sheriff Flowers serves on the Employee Benefits Trust Fund for the Florida Sheriff's Risk Management Fund.
Sheriff Flowers is committed to providing a safe community and ensuring any interaction the public has with the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office is based on a customer-service oriented approach. He considers his agency’s customers to be not only the public, but the employees as well. By helping his staff develop in their careers and providing them the tools they need to succeed, the community can be assured they will be well served by their Sheriff’s Office.