VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Intense body camera video shows the moments Volusia County Sheriff's Office deputies exchanged fire with an armed man.

The union representing those deputies is now calling out DeLand Police Chief Jason Umberger and the department's policies, questioning their impact on public safety.

Volusia County Deputy Associate President Brodie Hughes says deputies are furious after DeLand Police Chief Jason Umberger held a press conference Wednesday.

 “Quite frankly it’s appalling to us,” Hughes said.

Thursday the union published a letter to their Facebook page giving a scathing criticism of the Chief.

“Not once does he offer any empathy to what these officers will now have to live with for the rest of their lives,” Hughes said.

Body-cam video released Thursday shows the fatal run-in, which happen Tuesday. The driver, Gregory Home, reportedly opened fire on deputies, who retuned 80 rounds of their own.

Hughes says they wrote the letter because Chief Umberger made it clear in his press conference  that his officers did not join in the pursuit.

Umberger said their policy doesn’t allow for a chase for civil traffic violations, saying that "that pursuits are dangerous and unpredictable and can create additional risk to the public."

Hughes says they feel the chief was calling out the actions of deputies.

"This was a felon, the minute you flee from law enforcement you’re a felon,” Hughes said.

Umberger denies that was his motivation – sending us a statement tonight that reads:

"I’m grateful that our officers and the deputies involved in this incident are OK and were able to go home after it was all over. Things could have been very different had the suspect decided to use the firearm during the traffic stop our officers conducted.

All we were trying to do yesterday was convey accurate information about what happened. After several incidents in the past before my time here, our community had asked that we be transparent with them and so that’s what I was trying to do and will continue to do."

Sheriff Mike Chitwood says he has no problem with the Chief clarifying the facts and their policy. But he says the way he did it made it seem like he was passing judgment.

“I think what Chief Umberger did is extremely misguided… and I also think that the chief weighed in on something he had no right to weigh in on,” Chitwood said.

In its letter, the union also alleges that DeLand police officers don’t have stop sticks in their patrol cars, making it difficult for officers to catch fleeing suspects.

Hughes says the public has a right to know that.

“Stop sticks are a common tool in law enforcement today, there’s nothing controversial about them! We throw them in front of a car we deflate the tires and we take out the risk of a fleeing driver,” Hughes said.

We asked, but Chief Umberger did not comment on the removal of stop sticks from officer’s cars, or about their pursuit policy.