Post by WaTcHeR on Jan 31, 2007 12:25:00 GMT -5
01.31.2007 - INVERNESS - One of Sheriff Jeff Dawsy's top lieutenants was pulled over by a deputy this month on suspicion of drunken driving.
It was the second time in his 22-year career that Lt. James Martone was stopped for that reason. He was not arrested either time.
But there were consequences. The Sheriff's Office said Monday that Martone:
-Will serve one year of probation within the agency beginning Feb. 12. Martone, who supervised the school resource officers in Citrus, will no longer be a sworn law enforcement officer. Instead, he will work as a civilian, assigned to the child protective services arm of the Sheriff's Office.
-Will suffer a pay loss - from $70,148 per year to about $52,243.
-Will be suspended without pay for three weeks and will lose part of his special risks retirement pay. The suspension started Jan. 22.
Martone, 43, was pulled over Jan. 13 while driving his personal vehicle, according to a sheriff's disciplinary report.
He was not arrested. Sheriff's spokeswoman Gail Tierney said the deputy who made the traffic stop called a supervisor for assistance.
The Sheriff's Office plans to release the details of the traffic stop, and the contents of the subsequent internal affairs investigation, today.
Martone is a high-profile member of Dawsy's administration and well-known because of his role in the schools.
In November, Martone was pictured in area newspapers standing next to Dawsy after the two completed a run to help raise money for Jessie's Place, a new child advocacy center named for Jessica Lunsford. Both Martone and Dawsy are board members at Jessie's Place.
Martone also participated numerous times in the Key Training Center's Run for the Money fundraiser.
This was not the first time Martone was suspected of drinking and driving.
In summer 1997, Martone, while off duty, was stopped by an Inverness police officer, according to news accounts. He was released without being cited even though he was said to be speeding, he did not have his driver's license or proof of insurance, and the officer said she smelled alcohol on his breath.
Dawsy's discipline at that time: Martone was banned from taking his sheriff's cruiser home for two weeks and was issued a written reprimand for speeding.
Martone joined the Sheriff's Office in 1985 as a road patrol deputy, then became a school resource officer in 1987, sheriff's records show. Later, he was promoted to sergeant and then director of the Juvenile Affairs Division, which oversees the school resource officer programs.
The officers, known as SROs, often counsel children on avoiding alcohol, tobacco and drugs.
www.sptimes.com/2007/01/30/Citrus/Officer_not_arrested_.shtml
It was the second time in his 22-year career that Lt. James Martone was stopped for that reason. He was not arrested either time.
But there were consequences. The Sheriff's Office said Monday that Martone:
-Will serve one year of probation within the agency beginning Feb. 12. Martone, who supervised the school resource officers in Citrus, will no longer be a sworn law enforcement officer. Instead, he will work as a civilian, assigned to the child protective services arm of the Sheriff's Office.
-Will suffer a pay loss - from $70,148 per year to about $52,243.
-Will be suspended without pay for three weeks and will lose part of his special risks retirement pay. The suspension started Jan. 22.
Martone, 43, was pulled over Jan. 13 while driving his personal vehicle, according to a sheriff's disciplinary report.
He was not arrested. Sheriff's spokeswoman Gail Tierney said the deputy who made the traffic stop called a supervisor for assistance.
The Sheriff's Office plans to release the details of the traffic stop, and the contents of the subsequent internal affairs investigation, today.
Martone is a high-profile member of Dawsy's administration and well-known because of his role in the schools.
In November, Martone was pictured in area newspapers standing next to Dawsy after the two completed a run to help raise money for Jessie's Place, a new child advocacy center named for Jessica Lunsford. Both Martone and Dawsy are board members at Jessie's Place.
Martone also participated numerous times in the Key Training Center's Run for the Money fundraiser.
This was not the first time Martone was suspected of drinking and driving.
In summer 1997, Martone, while off duty, was stopped by an Inverness police officer, according to news accounts. He was released without being cited even though he was said to be speeding, he did not have his driver's license or proof of insurance, and the officer said she smelled alcohol on his breath.
Dawsy's discipline at that time: Martone was banned from taking his sheriff's cruiser home for two weeks and was issued a written reprimand for speeding.
Martone joined the Sheriff's Office in 1985 as a road patrol deputy, then became a school resource officer in 1987, sheriff's records show. Later, he was promoted to sergeant and then director of the Juvenile Affairs Division, which oversees the school resource officer programs.
The officers, known as SROs, often counsel children on avoiding alcohol, tobacco and drugs.
www.sptimes.com/2007/01/30/Citrus/Officer_not_arrested_.shtml