New Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel via an executive order on Friday and plenty of students and parents in the community are ready to cheer the decision.
Israel was criticized for his lackluster leadership in the aftermath of last February's shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, which left 17 people dead. In the days after the carnage, reports revealed how the Broward County Sheriff's Office ignored several red flags, and were guilty of several missteps during the actual shooting. For instance, the school officer on duty at MSD failed to enter the building where the shooting was taking place for minutes.
Israel had created the department’s active-shooter policy which obviously let the community down. Asked for his own role in the department's shortcomings, however, Israel failed to take any responsibility. That will explain why several students and parents in Broward - including those on either side of the ideological spectrum -wanted him gone.
Sheriff Israel Suspended!
— Kyle Kashuv (@KyleKashuv) January 8, 2019
About time, this spineless joke of a sheriff is being held accountable for his massive incompetence.
Great work by Gov. Desantis on his first day.
Sheriff Israel being replaced ??
— Cameron Kasky (@cameron_kasky) January 11, 2019
In an interview before DeSantis's decision, Israel's lawyer Stuart Kaplan said the sheriff plans to "respect the process" and may contest it.
One saving grace may be that Israel is now taking steps to correct their mistakes - although critics are wondering what took so long.
Sheriff Israel signed an agreement with the School Board of Broward County granting BSO for the first ever access to live feeds from school security cameras. Real-time video feeds from schools would greatly assist in a more effective, directed police response. pic.twitter.com/c9QGdq7sYm
— Broward Sheriff (@browardsheriff) January 8, 2019
DeSantis is expected to replace Israel with former Coral Springs Police Sgt. Gregory Tony. He would be Broward County's first African-American sheriff.