PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony said on Sunday during This Week In South Florida that the law enforcement’s strategy in response to motorcyclists’ street demonstrations held on Martin Luther King Jr. Day needs to change.
Tony said the law enforcement community in South Florida has a reactive approach. He said lawmakers and commissioners need to equip deputies with more punitive measures to have a more preventive approach.
“The activities of these men and women riding these ATVs are putting our residents in harm’s way,” Tony said. “They are overlooking any type of law that exists.”
Tony also said legislators need to grant deputies with “more authority to act before things start to go wrong in the streets.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Tony after removing former Sheriff Scott Israel over BSO’s response to the 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, in which 17 people were killed in Parkland.
Tony said Israel’s biggest weakness is that he was “too political" during his service as Sheriff from 2013 until his Jan. 11, 2019 suspension.
“If you look at how the agency was managed, the public safety aspect came second,” Tony said while touting the investments he has made on improving deputies’ training and community policing.
Tony is campaigning against Israel over the support of African-American voters. The outcome of the primary election in August will define the results of the November election.
Tony and Israel will debate the issues on a later episode of Local 10 News’ This Week in South Florida.