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About Barnstable County
Barnstable County consists of the 15 coastal
towns located on the peninsula known as Cape Cod. Bordered on the north by Cape Cod Bay, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean
and to the south by Nantucket Sound, it is the easternmost point of land in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. With over 550
miles of shoreline and more than 360 lakes and ponds, the maritime heritage of the region is deeply rooted. Approximately
396 square miles of land are home to over 205,000 year round residents, swelling to more than three times that number during
the peak summer months.
The County seat is located in Barnstable
Village on Historic Route 6A, the Old King's Highway, in the Town of Barnstable. County offices are located in the Superior
Court House, the First District Court House and the Registry of Deeds and Probate Building.
Established as a County in the year 1685,
the current boundary lines were drawn in 1707 and have not changed since that date. Although initially the counties of the
Commonwealth were mainly judicial in nature, over time additional responsibilities were assigned by the state legislature.
Subsequently, many counties served as subdivisions of the state government, serving as an adminstrative arm of the Commonwealth
on a regional basis, but without legislative authority. This changed in Barnstable County with the passage of the Barnstable
County Home Rule Charter, signed into legislation in July of 1988, which guaranteed certain rights of home rule for the county
and established a legislative body with the power to enact ordinances. This increased Barnstable County's accountability to
the residents of Cape Cod and provided for increased citizen participation and input in the function of County Government.
Barnstable County government has long been
recognized as a model for successful regionalization of services, ranging from public safety to fiscal, health, human service,
economic development, planning and land use functions.
Source:
barnstablecounty.org/
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Michael Levine, called “America’s top undercover agent” by
60 Minutes, is one of the Drug Enforcement Administrations most highly decorated officers and the author of New York Times best-seller Deep Cover and national bestsellers The Big White Lie, Fight Back and Triangle of Death. During his 30 year law enforcement career
he has served with the following agencies; U.S. Air Force(Air Police Officer, Sentry Dog Handler, 1958 -1961; IRS Intelligence,
Organized Crime Unit, (1965-1966); Special Agent; Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco &
Firearms, (1966-1970); Special Agent; US Customs Agency Service, Hard Narcotics
Smuggling Division Special Agent and Assistant Squad Leader (1970-1973); Drug
Enforcement Administration, Group Supervisor, Country Attaché, Special Operations Officer, South Florida Task Force Supervisory
Officer, Supervisor FBI/DEA Task Force, Supervisor New York City Drug Enforcement Task Force (1973-1990); Barnstable County
Sheriffs Department (Massachusetts), Director of Drug Bureau (1992-1993).
He is also a world recognized court-qualified expert witness, trial consultant
and lecturer in all matters relating to undercover work, narcotics trafficking and the handling of criminal informants. He has testified as an expert in over 250 civil and criminal trials internationally
and domestically. As an author his books also include the community anti-drug
plan Fight Back (and with co-writer
Laura Kavanau); national best-seller The Big
White Lie and fact-based fiction Triangle
of Death. His articles and interviews on the drug war have been
published in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Esquire and The Journal of Crime, Law and Social Change,
among others. As a lecturer, he has appeared before government sponsored conferences
in Europe and South America, corporate groups such as The World Presidents Organization, educational institutions, as well
as law enforcement agencies throughout the world. In 1998, he was invited
to address the United Nations conference on “Drugs and Minorities” and in 1999 the CATO Institute’s National
Conference on Drug Policy. He has served as consultant and on-air expert
for various national programs in both Spanish and English, including 60 Minutes,
Crossfire, MacNeil Lehrer News Hour, Good Morning America, the Crier Report and Contrapunto.
Michael
Levine is currently the host of New York City’s Expert Witness Radio Show. 99.5
FM. http://www.expertwitnessradio.org
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