FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Fort Lauderdale has named its new Chief of Police. The attorney for the four officers who filed the EEOC complaints said in a statement that she hopes the "city continues on this path making improvements within the agency.. Bill Schultz; retired Miami Assistant Chief Dennis Jackson; Chief Kristen Ziman from Aurora, Ill.; Orlando Chief Orlando Rolon; and Houston Assistant Chief Heather Morris. They were promoted because they were the best candidates.. Fort Lauderdale Police Department at City of Fort Lauderdale College Degrees Designed for Police Officers, Best Practices for Active Shooter Response and Police Training, The Tennessee Department of Public Safety Increased Visibility, Accountability and Accuracy with Inventory Management Software Designed Specifically for Law Enforcement, DC Mayor Taps Veteran Metro Officer as Next Police Chief, After Murders of Officers in Charlotte Area NC Chiefs Ask Governor to Condemn Attacks on Police, CA Sheriff Defies Judge's Order to Release Violent Inmates Over COVID, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Chief Tests Positive for COVID-19, Chicago Police Superintendent Announces Resignation. The Fort Lauderdale Police Department has been without a permanent leader since July 9. RELATED: Fort Lauderdales interim police chief vows to reform troubled department, RELATED: Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Rick Maglione removed as officers face scrutiny over protest brutality. Karen Dietrich is stepping down as interim chief of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department after six months in the role, effectively taking herself out of the running to be the agency's top cop. Click for details on her case and to see how you can help. All Rights Reserved. Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Larry Scirotto has been fired for prioritizing minority candidates during the hiring process, reported CNN. According to the job posting, the ideal candidate will be interpersonal and culturally sensitive; ethical and of high integrity; a supporter, coach and mentor; and a diplomatic, prudent and highly effective conflict manager. Seven contenders are in line to lead Fort Lauderdales police department. Local activists said OPDs reform under Roln has not gone far enough to address the needs of the community. Maglione had been chief since 2016. The tactics used by a few officers to discredit the promotions of Black and minority officers with masters degrees, stellar reputations, and exemplary work history, are nothing short of appalling," Cecil Stone, the head of the Fort Lauderdale Black Police Association, previously wrote. Former Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Larry Scirotto is seen in this file photo from the Fort Lauderdale Police Dept. Orlando Police Chief Orlando Roln is in the running to become chief of police at the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, records show. In a statement the city said it had decided to cut ties with the police chief, who was not on a contract, saying: After a thorough and extensive investigation of employee complaints at the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, City Manager Chris Lagerbloom has determined that it is in the Citys best interest to separate employment with Larry Scirotto.. During the search, we learned that there might be several additional candidates who were interested in the position but chose not to apply out of respect for the interim chief. Scirotto did not return NBC 6's requests for comment. Previous chief Rick Maglione was reassigned in July 2020. Its a wait-and-see attitude, Diaz added. Humane Society of Broward County Kicks Off VCA Walk for the Animals in Fort Lauderdale, BSO Searching forMissing 11-Year-Old Girl From Pompano Beach, Miami-Dade Mayor, State Attorney Announce New Measures to Protect HOA Residents, Check Your Change! Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Larry Scirotto, a former assistant chief from Pittsburgh, will be taking the helm on Aug. 16. There would have been 12 white men, one white woman and two minorities if I had promoted as the complainants say I should have, Scirotto told the paper. As a leader, I will be visible and engaged with the community and the officers. He said the context of the comment is built around how do I convince the community that we are an inclusive and diverse organization if this wall is so white? the report said. . Additionally, about 120 of the filled positions are recruits that have not completed training, according to the police department. Lagerbloom has declined to say just what prompted the move, but five days earlier Maglione had posted a public statement defending the actions his officers took during aMay 31 protestover the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. I have a vision for the department, Scirotto said at the time. Kentucky now has 899 state troopers, which is an increase of about 22% compared to their staffing level in November 2021. Thats not the case, and it never was. He told CNN the report that triggered his termination from the department was vague on the facts. These Valuable Pennies Are Worth Thousands, From Haiti Through Liberty City to Top Federal Prosecutor in South Florida: the Unlikely Story of Markenzy Lapointe, Driver Arrested After Fleeing Margate Crash That Killed Mother, Hospitalized Toddler Last Month. Roln declined to comment on the application process. Bill. He comes to us at an important moment in law enforcement as departments nationwide work to ensure community trust and that everyone is treated equally and fairly in interactions with officers. 10:25 PM EST, Sat March 5, 2022. Critics lambasted officers for firing tear gas and rubber bullets during what began as a peaceful protest. I dont see the delay as something negative. In Fort Lauderdale, he beat out dozens of applicants including three internal candidates to step into the role of chief, a job that comes with a $200,000 salary and a $140 million budget . Larry Scirotto says he promoted minority candidates because they were exceptional not because they were minority. El Paso Chief Dies After 15 Years Leading Department. Other units directly under the Office of the Chief are the FBI Broward County Public Corruption Task Force, the Legal Unit,Performance Analysis and the Police Departments Grants Office. Lagerbloom says he made his choice partly based on the positive feedback Scirotto got from both police and the community including religious leaders, NAACP officials and Fort Lauderdales citizens police review board. Glenn Sapp - Chief of Police for the Quincy Police Department since 2014, and the Assistant Chief from 2011 until then. The Madison, WI, Police and Fire Commission voted Monday to stop requiring credit checks of prospective police officers. Officers would be paid the salary they had when they left but wouldnt receive vacation time or any health, disability and retirement benefits. The promotions I made of minority candidates were because they were exceptional candidates who excelled at every level of the organization, who deserved to be promoted and who were, by the way, happened to be minority not because they were minority., Scirotto was sworn-in as police chief in mid-August last year. Please enable JavaScript in your browser for a better user experience. Interviewed by officials, Scirotto denied asking which candidate was blacker when deciding on the promotion, but admitted to making comments about the wall of staff photos being too white because, he felt, it did not reflect the ethnically diverse community the police department serves. Other candidates vying for the Fort Lauderdale position come from similar leadership roles. A Warner Bros. Fort Lauderdales now-former police chief has hit back at officials in the Florida city who fired him after just six months on the job, accusing him of focusing too heavily on a diversity policy in hiring and promotion. Copyright 2021 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved. A list of eight semifinalists. WI Agency Ends Credit Checks for Recruits. If I die on the hill for promoting diversity, as I was charged by the city manager to do from the day I was hired, then I will sleep well at night, he told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. I reached out and asked if hed be willing to come out of retirement, and thankfully, he said yes. With Dietrich out as interim chief, Lagerbloom turned to former Davie Police Chief Patrick Lynn to oversee the agency while the national search was under way. They called for racial justice in response to a grand jury decision in Louisville to charge one officer involved in the raid that killed Breonna Taylor. What would the optics have been on that?. The new chief came to town. Larry Scirotto, 48, the son of a white mother and Black father and the departments first openly gay chief, was fired last Thursday after a city report related examples such as how he had once pointed to a display of photos of the departments command staff in a conference room and said: That wall is too white and Im gonna change that.. The bottom row had several white males and one white female. It doesnt need fixing. State police said a $15,000 salary increase for state polices sworn personnel had helped increase the number of officers in the agency. Fort Lauderdale Police names Patrick Lynn chief. After a year of uncertainty, putting this behind us and being able to move forward is going to be a positive for everybody on the police department, Diaz said. Lagerbloom now has a new plan: appoint a new interim chief from outside the department who is not interested in the job. Police say protesters started it all when they threw rocks, bricks and fireworks. Det. The agency is down nearly 30 deputies. (City of Fort Lauderdale/Courtesy). He came in as the department was dealing with backlash from incidents during protests after George Floyds murder in Minneapolis. City Manager Chris Lagerbloom, the man who will make the final decision on whom to hire, says he doesnt expect to make a pick until early next year. Lagerbloom,. In February, Dietrich announced she planned to step down from the role. Soon after being hired, Scirotto promoted 15 officers nine were white men, six were minorities through ethnicity or gender. Many believed that Chief Scirotto made clear his intention to promote, based on race, gender, or sexual orientation," Lagerbloom said. As assistant chief, Scirotto was responsible for oversight of the police bureaus accreditation, policy development, labor management, internal investigations, and criminal intelligence and education. "You came to the wrong county. He did talk about wanting to hire from outside to bring in fresh energy., [RELATED: Pop his ass. Bodycam videos show protesters throwing things at police. While I appreciate that respect, I strongly feel the playing field must be level for all candidates.. A list of eight semifinalists for the open chief position provided by the City of Fort Lauderdale lists Roln among its candidates, and Orlando Police Department spokesperson Autumn Jones confirmed Thursday that Roln is in a selection process for the position. The Fort Lauderdale Police Department offers one of the highest starting salaries in Florida ($67,620.80-$104,395.20) and a great retirement structure, great health benefits and a slew of other incentives such as paid time off and department-issued uniforms and equipment. The report said Scirotto once pointed to a conference room wall displaying photos of the departments command staff and stated, that wall is too white, and Im gonna change that.. In 2020, Lynn stepped into a former role as Davies police chief after Dale Engle resigned. Some believed it was about time changes were made, but stated if promotions were based on things such as race it would even hurt or undermine the people promoted, the report said. The report concluded that most believed that Chief Scirotto made clear his intention to promote based on race, gender or sexual orientation and that almost every witness was dissatisfied with Scirottos approach to promotions. Lagerbloom says some potential candidates are not applying out of respect for Dietrich. Scirotto denied asking which candidate was blacker when deciding on the promotion, but admitted to making comments about the wall being too white, because he felt it was not reflective of the community, according to the report. [RELATED: Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Rick Maglione removed as officers face scrutiny over protest brutality]. The investigation concluded that during his time as police chief, Scirotto implemented an approach to hiring and promotion that was unfairly focused on minority candidates. He came from a department that shared the most information on data and statistics.. And were talking in conversation as it relates to our community and the expectation of a diverse and inclusive organization. NBC 6's Julie Leonardi reports, Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. I wont allow them to tarnish the work that Ive done in the 24 years Ive been in this profession., In one example in the report, Scirotto is alleged to have overlooked a White man with 20 years tenure with the department, and instead narrowed the choice between two men of color, and asked, which one is blacker.. (John McCall/South Florida Sun Sentinel). And how do I purport we have that when the entire bottom row are white men? Scirotto told WFOR. I believe weve found that.. Protestors assemble outside Fort Lauderdale Police Department headquarters on Sept 27, 2020. For nearly a year, Fort Lauderdale's troubled police department has been without a permanent leader, with two different interim chiefs taking over while a national search was underway. But in an interview with Miamis 7News, Scirotto denied that he had made promotions based on minority-status. Some believed it was about time changes were made, but stated if promotions were based on things such as race it would even hurt or undermine the people promoted, the report said. He turns 63 in October of this year the mandatory retirement age for Chicago police officers. Larry Scirotto has been selected by the city manager to become Fort Lauderdale's next police chief. He comes to us at an important moment in law enforcement as departments nationwide work to ensure community trust and that everyone is treated equally and fairly in interactions with officers, Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said in a tweet. Scirottos supporters expressed disappointment, saying the chief was heading towards positive changes for the department. By choosing Scirotto, Lagerbloom rejected three internal candidates who were among the semi-finalists. He started making positive changes that would impact the whole community in a more positive direction than we had been in," community activist Jackie Scott said. Provide a safe and orderly environment in our city through professionalism, dedication, an active partnership with the community and concern for individual dignity. Make no mistake weve had events occur in our police department in the last month, but I can tell you theres not been one event that has been the decision-making event, Lagerbloom said in July. I know we dont release the data publicly in a way I want to, so the public can see when we use force and the outcome of that force.. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) Tallahassee's Community Partners Committee narrowed the list of candidates for the city's new chief of police from 17 names to 10 names. Sign up for NBC South Florida newsletters. The report said that Scirotto had responded that the context of his comment had been built around how do I convince the community that we are an inclusive and diverse organization if this wall is so white?. Three of the semifinalists named by the City of Fort Lauderdale were internal: Interim Assistant Chief Frank Sousa, Maj. Dana Swisher and Capt. Be the first to know with email alerts on important breaking stories from the Orlando Sentinel newsroom. The Sun Sentinel reports the list of candidates includes Interim Chief Karen Dietrich,a veteran Fort Lauderdale officerwho came up through the ranks; Craig Capri, former chief in Daytona Beach; Todd Chamberlain, a former Los Angeles school police chief and retired commander with the Los Angeles Police Department; Jack John Dale, a former Fort Lauderdale police captain and former colonel with the Broward Sheriffs Office; John Pate, city manager and director of Public Safety for Opa-locka; Tomas Sanchez, former chief of the Hollywood Police Department; and Cecil Smith, police chief in Sanford. Documents obtained from city officials by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel earlier this month show three internal candidates under consideration for police chief and five police officials from across Florida and the nation. When asked about his approach to promotions, Scirotto told investigators he was going to consider diversity at every opportunity, and he had to be intentional in his decision-making process. It cited 21 witnesses on Scirottos hiring and promotion practices. Some officers seem to revel in the return fire. Robert Chabali, retired assistant chief in Dayton, Ohio. FLPD Seeks to Identify Man Captured on Video Near Homicide Scene, Employee Recognition-Complaint Hotline 954-828-6956. appreciated. He plans to stay onboard for awhile to help with the transition, Lagerbloom said. More FLPD Seeks to Identify Man Captured on Video Near Homicide Scene Career Paths We must change our tactics, our strategy, our training and the way we are accountable to the public for our actions.. This past year, he was chosen to be one of the referees to officiate in the mens NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis. Sheriff Thorntonposted a photo on Facebook of at least 17 unused patrol cars. Fort Lauderdale Police Department | Home Home News Sitemap Contact Us Employee Recognition-Complaint Hotline 954-828-6956 RSS Home About FLPD News Community Solve Crimes Employment FAQs Help Us Find Sophie Reeder Click for details on her case and to see how you can help. Fort Lauderdale For nearly a year, Fort Lauderdales troubled police department has been without a permanent leader, with two different interim chiefs taking over while a national search was underway. Larry Scirotto is sworn in as the new chief of the Fort Lauderdale Police Department by Chief Judge Jack Tuter on 24 August 2021, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Willie Dennard, captain . The Fort Lauderdale Police Department has been primarily operating under the direction of Assistant Chief Karen Dietrich since July, when City Manager Chris Lagerbloom demoted former Chief. He then rose through the ranks retiring as the citys Deputy Chief in 2007. 2. They are trained in Critical Incident Stress Symptoms and Management as well as Fort Lauderdale Police Policies and Procedures. FLPD had been criticized for its handling of downtown protests on May 31 and the aftermath, but Lagerbloom said at the time that there wasnt one event that led to the change.
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