TALLAHASSEE, FL — The Florida Senate on Wednesday disregarded a recommendation to give former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel his old job back and instead voted 25-15 in favor of Israel’s removal.
Three days after taking office in January, Florida’s new Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, suspended Israel over the sheriff’s handling of the horrific Valentine’s Day 2018 school massacre in Parkland that claimed the lives of 17 students and faculty as well as his handling of the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport shooting in which five people were killed.
Israel has vowed to run for his old job in next year’s election, and DeSantis has said he would not seek to remove Israel a second time should the former sheriff win. See also 25 Reasons Florida Governor Gave For Suspending Broward Sheriff
“I’m so happy that the Senate made this decision to make sure that Mr. Israel does not get his position back this year,” Parkland parent Lori Alhadeff told WPLG-TV after the vote. She is the mother of slain Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School student Alyssa Alhadeff and she now sits on the Broward County School Board.
“Mr. Israel needed to be held accountable for the many failures and incompetencies that he had as sheriff,” Alhadeff said.
A Florida Senate investigator recommended Israel be reinstated, saying the governor had not proven his case against the embattled sheriff.
“While the governor has offered a plethora of criticism, he has not shown that Sheriff Israel’s policies, procedures or trainings on active shooter situations were inconsistent with Florida law enforcement standards,” special master J. Dudley Goodlette wrote in his 34-page report.
DeSantis named former Coral Springs police Sgt. Gregory Tony to fill Israel’s post. Tony, a former college football player with Florida State University in Florida, became Broward’s first black sheriff.
“I hope the outcome provides some measure of relief to the Parkland families that have been doggedly pursuing accountability,” DeSantis said on social media after the Senate vote.
The outcome in the Republican-dominated Senate came two days after the Senate Rules Committee sided with the governor’s decision to oust Israel.
In a message to Broward County voters, Israel said politics won the day.
“Your vote has been stolen and the results of our 2016 election have been overturned,” Israel insisted. “From 450 miles away, the governor substituted his judgement for yours and installed his own sheriff in Broward County.”
The senators met in a special session convened specifically to weigh Israel’s fate.
Five key members of the sheriff’s office handed in their resignations or retirements shortly before the governor announced Israel’s suspension. Some of the separation forms blamed the governor’s action, according to copies reviewed by Patch.
Israel’s attorney, Ben Kuehne, called the Senate vote disappointing.
“The clear violation of due process requirements will invalidate Sheriff Israel’s removal for baseless political reasons,” he said.
Parents of the Parkland victims praised DeSantis’ action in suspending Israel at the time and a number of them attended the Senate hearing.
The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission unanimously approved a 446-page report on the school shooting that was critical of the sheriff’s deputies who failed to confront the shooter and of Israel, whose office did not at the time have a policy requiring them to rush the three-story freshman building where the shooting happened.
Prior to being suspended, Israel issued new guidance that requires sheriff’s deputies to “eliminate the threat” before all else when they arrive at the scene of an active shooter.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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