Broward sheriff Gregory Tony’s problems with the state Ethics Commission could be coming to an end soon. NBC6’s Tony Pipitone reports
Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony’s problems with the state Ethics Commission could be coming to an end Friday morning.
He’s been investigated for allegedly lying about his prior criminal history and driver’s license suspensions, but years of investigation are likely to end with the mildest of sanctions: a public censure and reprimand.
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WATCH HEREThat’s what the lawyer for both him and the commission have agreed to recommend to the full commission in a joint stipulation signed by both sides last month.
When Tony was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2019 with the weakest of background investigations, his killing of a man in Philadelphia when he was just 14 was known to only a few.
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Tony, who claimed self-defense and was acquitted in juvenile court, fled the scene and turned himself in the next day, held for a time in maximum security juvenile detention, according to records provided to the commission.
In becoming a cop, Tony had sworn repeatedly he had never been arrested or detained for a crime, despite police records in Philadelphia that said otherwise. He also claimed no criminal records naming him were ever expunged.
After he was acquitted in juvenile court, the court records were expunged automatically under Pennsylvania law, which also states acts of juvenile delinquency are not considered criminal.
Citing both of those laws, Tony’s attorney argued – and investigators later agreed – there's no evidence Tony willfully lied about having no criminal record – expunged or otherwise.
And the advocate for the Commission on Ethics agreed he should not be disciplined for what he stated on those applications.
The only allegation both sides agree on: failing to note his driver’s license had been suspended many years earlier when he applied for a renewal in February 2019, the month after he was appointed sheriff.
For that -- and only that -- the Ethics Commission is being asked to agree to a “public censure and reprimand.”
As part of the deal, Tony will assure the commission the investigation has taught him a lesson, that it will affect how “he conducts himself as a public official in a positive way.”
The former BSO employee who filed the ethics complaint told NBC6 the recommended punishment is “a corrupt, unprecedented, sweetheart deal.”
The commission will decide whether to accept or reject it at its meeting Friday morning in Tallahassee.
