Richard Harvell Enfinger

Term of Office, 1972 - 1981

Harvell Enfinger, as he was known, was born November 30, 1913 in Santa Rosa County, during the term of Sheriff John H. Harvell, for whom he is named. Enfinger’s family goes back several generations with the common thread of law enforcement running through the family tree.

Enfinger served in the law enforcement arena for twenty-seven years. He served at the rank of deputy for ten years, chief deputy for nine years, and was elected sheriff, in 1972,  serving two consecutive terms. During his terms of service, Enfinger established divisions for both investigations and identification. Through grant funding, Enfinger was able to invoke a Major Crime Task Force, Mobile Crime Lab, Special Tactics and Rescue Team and a 911 Emergency Number. Enfinger retired, from the sheriff’s office, January 5, 1981.

During his career, Enfinger was also an entrepreneur and a civil servant  employed at Whiting Field Naval Air Station. Despite other career fields, Enfinger felt best suited for law enforcement. Enfinger died on April 8, 1997 and is buried in the Milton Cemetery. He is survived by his wife Ethel and seven children.