Former County Planning Director Chris Balter – who resigned in August after being arrested in Palm Bay on felony drug and forgery charges in connection with the death of his terminally ill, 92-year-old grandfather – continued to be paid for one month after he left the job.

In addition to his full salary, in fact, Balter received his automobile allowance, which totaled $500, even though he was no longer working for the county.

Balter submitted his letter of resignation on Aug. 6, two days after his arrest, and was told to leave the County Administration Building on Aug. 8, despite offering to continue working through Sept. 5.

County Administrator John Titkanich defended the decision to honor Balter’s full compensation package, which included a base biweekly salary of $5,550 and more than $12,000 in accrued vacation and holiday time, saying he approved the payoff after consulting with a labor attorney.

“Chris submitted his resignation and gave 30 days’ notice, and we accepted it,” Titkanich said. “We made his resignation effective immediately, but our labor attorney advised us to pay him his full compensation.”

Titkanich said Balter did not receive a buyout or severance package, but payroll records show he received paychecks totaling nearly $29,000 after he left.

According to Titkanich, Balter agreed to make himself available for 30 days to provide information – by phone, text or email – that the county planning staff might need after his departure.

“As we discussed, but more formally, the county accepts your resignation, and in lieu of reporting to work, you will be paid through your date of resignation,” Titkanich wrote on Aug. 13 in response to Balter’s letter.

“During this time,” he continued, “the expectation is you remain available to Assistant County Administrator Nancy Bunt or myself to provide necessary and relevant information that may be required, up to and including your last day of employment, September 5, 2025.”

Titkanich said Balter was heading or involved in several projects when he resigned.

Reached by phone last week, County Commission Vice Chairman Deryl Loar said he was surprised and disappointed that Balter had remained on the payroll after his arrest.

Balter had previously been arrested three times on DUI-related charges, eventually entering pleas of “no contest” to all of them. He was hired by then-administrator Jason Brown despite the first two arrests. He was promoted twice by Titkanich after his third.

“After we found out about the arrest in August, I told John he needed to fire the guy immediately,” said Loar, a former sheriff who served three terms before retiring from law enforcement in 2021 and successfully running for a commission seat in 2022. “Instead, he was allowed to resign.”

Loar said the county needed to “send a message” that it would not tolerate unlawful or criminal conduct from its staffers, especially when it resulted in felony charges.

Titkanich, however, told him Balter’s institutional knowledge was needed on several projects.

Loar wasn’t satisfied, saying the county administration should embrace a next-man-up philosophy and have others on staff ready to fill the void in such situations.

“What if somebody dies?” he asked rhetorically.

As for Titkanich’s contention that Balter must be “presumed innocent until proven guilty,” Loar cited the probable cause presented in the arrest warrant signed by a Brevard County judge – and another judge later determining there was enough evidence to set bail.

Loar also was appalled to learn Balter was paid the automobile allowance when he was no longer working for the county, especially with his history of multiple DUI-related arrests.

“That’s our policy?” he asked.

Actually, it is.

Suzanne Boyll, the county’s human resources director, wrote in an email to Vero Beach 32963 last week that it was “standard practice” to continue paying Balter the biweekly automobile allowance through his resignation date because it was part of his annual compensation package.

Balter, 35, was arrested Aug. 4 and charged with the sale or delivery of a controlled substance and forgery, third-degree felonies that each carry penalties of up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Police have accused Balter of illegally giving his grandfather Zolpidem – a sedative commonly known as Ambien and usually prescribed to treat insomnia – at their Palm Bay home earlier this year.

The alleged crime occurred while Balter’s grandfather, Gilbert, was receiving at-home hospice care. He died on Feb. 1.

It was on that day, according to the arrest affidavit, Balter said in a phone conversation with a longtime friend that he “killed” his grandfather by giving him some of his personal Ambien pills.

Police then arranged a controlled phone call between Balter and the friend, and Balter admitted he gave his grandfather “one pill” and defended his actions, saying, “That’s what hospice is. They load them full of (expletive) pain meds and ease their way out.”

A transcript of the call quotes Balter admitting he contributed to his grandfather’s death, saying, “I didn’t kill him. I helped him out.”

It was the friend’s call to police that prompted the investigation, but, as of Monday, Balter had not been charged with causing his grandfather’s death. He was released from the Brevard County Jail on Aug. 5 after posting a $22,500 bond.

A medical examiner’s report stated the grandfather died from heart disease, but the cause of death was listed as “undetermined.” It also revealed that morphine, Lorazepam and Ambien were detected in the grandfather’s blood.

Only the morphine and Lorazepam had been prescribed, however.

“The combination of morphine, Zolpidem (Ambien) and Lorazepam toxicity cannot be ruled out as contributory to the death,” the report concluded.

An independent toxicologist, though, reported the amount of Ambien found in the grandfather’s blood was “within a therapeutic range of dosage,” preventing any testimony that the Ambien “did or could have caused the death.”

As for the forgery charge, police have accused Balter of falsifying a quit-claim deed in January to transfer ownership of his grandfather’s home.