Taking over one of the country’s largest law enforcement agencies with zero transition time – and in the wake of a school shooting – has been quite the challenge for new Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony. But he’s up to the task.
“The first day hasn’t ended,” he says. “We’ve been going nonstop.”
When he started in January, he immediately began making agency-wide improvements.
“There were no commands in place,” says the Broward County resident and the county’s first African-American sheriff. “We had to review deficiencies and start reassigning people to temporary roles so we could be sure the community had an intact office. Training policies were changed from five trainers to 25 so we can train our personnel on an annual basis. We are taking a hard look at our shooter policy and working to make sure we’re not missing anything.”
Tony, 40, was appointed after Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended Scott Israel, citing incompetence following the 2018 shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Tony grew up in Philadelphia and moved to South Florida at age 20. He graduated from Florida State University in 2002 with a degree in criminology and criminal justice and earned a master’s in criminal justice from Nova Southeastern University.
Then, he worked for the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and the Department of Corrections before joining the Coral Springs Police Department. He left in 2016 to start Blue Spear Solutions, specializing in active shooter response, with wife Holly. (He no longer works there.)
One of the issues Tony faces in the aftermath of the shooting is the question of arming teachers.
“I am not one to promote any haphazard program,” he says. “Teachers did not sign up to be law enforcement officers. I think if teachers are armed in an area that is heavily populated by students, it should include a very comprehensive program in firearm proficiency.”
Meanwhile, he’s working to ensure Broward Sheriff’s Office shooter policies meet Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security standards.
These days, Tony has little free time, but he works out when he can and relishes date nights with Holly. From his perspective, the future looks bright.
“Five years from now, I’ll be in this position ensuring the policies we’re putting in place are sustained and continuing the progress we are making.” O