By Milena Malaver
Miami Herald
MIAMI — The Miami-Dade sheriff may be responsible for law enforcement in the most urban and suburban areas in Florida — but when it comes to fashion, she’s all in on the cowboy.
Jumping into a trend seen in other parts of the state and country including Texas and the Deep South, Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz ordered 1,000 cowboy hats for deputies. Her agency says it’s embracing the longstanding tradition among Florida sheriff’s offices.
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The sheriff unveiled the hats in a social media video featuring several deputies.
“More than a hat, a legacy, a responsibility, the hat is iconic...” text on the video reads.
The hats cost $132.50 each. MDSO purchased 1,000 hats, bringing the total cost to $132,500, according to sheriff’s spokesman Angel Rodriguez.
The sheriff’s Instagram post got over 600 comments, with some questioning whether such a purchase was necessary. Others praised the new / old look.
The cowboy hats come amid an ongoing budget battle between Cordero-Stutz and Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
The Miami-Dade County Commission approved a record-high $1.2 billion budget for the sheriff’s office. But the sheriff says the funding falls $42 million short of what the agency needs, and she plans to ask Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to force the county to cough up more money.
The 1,000 cowboy hats won’t be enough to top the heads of all 3,000 Miami-Dade deputies.
They’re also “an optional addition to our deputies’ authorized uniforms, not a new budget item. It is purchased using funds already allocated in our existing uniform budget. Deputies may choose to wear no hat, the authorized Sheriff’s Office-branded baseball cap, or the cowboy hat, which provides additional protection from the Florida sun,” Rodriguez said in a statement to the Miami Herald .
The sheriff’s spokesman also pushed back against criticism of the spending, noting that Cordero-Stutz saved the agency about $10.5 million in rebranding from a police department to a sheriff’s office in January 2025 .
He said the savings happened by keeping the existing brown uniforms and updating vehicle graphics rather than repainting roughly 1,700 vehicles.
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