Gregory Tony

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This article is about American law enforcement officer. For the martial artist, see Grégory Tony.
Gregory Tony
Gregory Tony.jpg
17th Sheriff of Broward County
Assumed office
January 11, 2019
Appointed byRon DeSantis
Preceded byScott Israel
Personal details
Born1978/1979 (age 42–43)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic[1]
Spouse(s)Holly Tony
ResidenceBroward County, Florida, U.S.
Alma materFlorida State University (B.S.)
Nova Southeastern University (M.S.)

Gregory Tony (born 1978/1979) is an American law enforcement officer and the 17th Sheriff of Broward County, Florida.

Early life and education[]

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Tony attended Florida State University, in Tallahassee, Florida, where he played football under Bobby Bowden. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in criminology and subsequently obtained a master's degree in criminal justice from Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He is a Ph.D. student at Nova Southeastern University, where he is earning a doctorate in criminal justice. For several years he has also served as an adjunct professor.[2]

Appointment as sheriff[]

Gregory Tony was appointed sheriff of Broward County by Florida governor Ron DeSantis on January 11, 2019, after the prior sheriff, Scott Israel was suspended for allegedly mishandling both the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting and the Fort Lauderdale airport shooting.[citation needed] Replacing Israel was a campaign promise of DeSantis.[3]

Tony was recommended to DeSantis by Andrew Pollack, father of a girl killed in the Stoneman Douglas shootings, who was a chief supporter of DeSantis during his campaign. Other Parkland parents also supported Tony. A factor in his favor was that his business, Blue Spear Solutions, provides training on how to deal with active shooting situations, such as the two in Broward County.[3]

According to the Sun Sentinel, DeSantis's vetting of Tony was "rushed".[3]

Vote of no-confidence[]

After one deputy died due to COVID-19 and 20 other deputies testing positive for the virus in April 2020, the deputies' union president criticized Tony over the lack of personal protective equipment for the officers and failing to respond to their memos about the situation. Afterwards, Tony suspended the union president and placed him under administrative investigation.[4] The Broward branch of the International Union of Police Associations announced a vote of no-confidence by its officers in Tony.[5]

On June 3, 2020, the deputies union wrote DeSantis to formally request that Tony be removed, calling him unqualified and alleging that he "lied under oath".[6] The governor took no action.[7]

1993 killing[]

In 1993 when he was 14 years old living in Philadelphia, Tony shot and killed his neighbor. He was initially charged as an adult with murder and held without bail pending a preliminary hearing.[8][9] Bail was eventually set at $15,000 at the hearing.[10] The case was transferred to juvenile court, where he was found not guilty after he maintained that the shooting was in self-defense. He did not disclose the shooting when he applied for law enforcement jobs. In his application for the Coral Springs Police Department, he answered no to "Have you ever been arrested, charged, received a notice or summons to appear for any criminal violation?", but Tony states he was not "technically" charged with a crime.[11] DeSantis did not know about the shooting prior to appointing Tony and it did not come up in a background check during vetting.[12][11] When asked about the shooting, Tony denied he was arrested, saying that he simply went to the police station to provide a statement and was allowed to leave with his father.[13][11]

Investigation opened[]

On January 7, 2020, Gregory Tony filled out a Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Affidavit of Applicant form. On this official document, Tony checked off no to the question of ever having a criminal record sealed or expunged. Tony asserts that since he does not have a criminal record, he filled out the form correctly. However, on May 8, 2020, FDLE announced the matter had been upgraded from an inquiry to an investigation.[14]

On May 19, 2020, it was discovered that in 2003, Tony applied to the Tallahassee Police Department. Ultimately, Tony was rejected for employment after admitting to using LSD. Tony then applied to the Coral Springs Police Department, at which time Tony omitted his drug use from his application.[15]

2020 election[]

After contending against Scott Israel and several lesser-known candidates in the August 2020 Broward County Democratic primary election, Tony won the nomination. Tony campaigned against Republican H. Wayne Clark and independent Charles "Chuck" Whatley in the general election, and won with 63.3% of the vote.[16]

References[]

  1. ^ "Broward County Sheriff Bio". Archived from the original on August 28, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  2. ^ Sheriff Gregory Tony Broward County Sheriff's Office. 2020. Retrieved August 31, 2021
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c Swisher, Skyler (June 8, 2020). "Newly released records shed light on Gov. Ron DeSantis'hurried vetting of Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony". Sun Sentinel.
  4. ^ Cohen, Howard (April 4, 2020). "BSO deputy dies of COVID-19. 'And we're probably going to lose another'". Miami Herald.
  5. ^ Anwer, David Selig, Terrell Forney, Saira (April 20, 2020). "Deputies vote no confidence in Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony". WPLG. Archived from the original on May 2, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  6. ^ Selig, David (June 4, 2020). "Broward deputies union asks Gov. DeSantis to remove Sheriff Gregory Tony". WPLG (local10.com).
  7. ^ Swisher, Skyler (June 4, 2020). "Governor's office passes on union's request to oust Sheriff Gregory Tony". Sun Sentinel.
  8. ^ Russel, Don (May 5, 1993). ""Joke" turned sour for 2 pals in North Phila". Philadelphia Daily News. p. 5.
  9. ^ Gibbons, Thomas, Jr. (May 5, 1993). "Suspect, 14, surrenders in killing of friend". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 18. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  10. ^ "Teen Facing Slay Trial". Philadelphia Daily News. May 13, 1993. p. 14. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b c Bryan, Susannah; Man, Anthony; Wallman, Brittany (May 3, 2020). "Broward sheriff's race rocked by decades-old incident: When Gregory Tony was 14, he killed a man". South Florida Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  12. ^ Dean, Mensah; Brennan, Chris (May 6, 2020). "Fla. sheriff under scrutiny for not disclosing that he killed a man 27 years ago in Philadelphia". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  13. ^ "Broward Sheriff Gives Details on Fatal Shooting When He was 14". NBC 6 South Florida. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  14. ^ Huriash, Lisa J. "State starts investigating Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony's paperwork". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  15. ^ Huriash, Lisa J. "Sheriff Gregory Tony was rejected for cop job after admitting LSD use. The next year, he left it off another application and was hired". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  16. ^ Man, Anthony (January 17, 2020). "The clash between sheriff's candidates Scott Israel and Gregory Tony". Sun Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 5, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2020.

External links[]

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