Politics

Former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel, Criticized For Response To Parkland Shooting, Loses Bid For Old Post

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Former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel lost to Sheriff Gregory Tony in his bid to return to the post on Tuesday night.

“The Democratic voters of Broward County have spoken and I am deeply honored that they have chosen me to lead the Broward Sheriff’s Office into a brighter, safer future,” Tony said in a victory statement Tuesday night, according to The Hill.

Tony beat Israel by two percentage points, CBS Miami reported.

Gov. Ron DeSantis removed Israel from his role as sheriff after the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida which left 17 dead, The Hill reported. Israel was widely criticized because his deputies did not immediately confront the gunman.

Incumbent Gregory Tony narrowly won the hotly-contested race for the Democratic nomination for Broward County sheriff Tuesday night after a campaign centered on a high school massacre and a shooting decades earlier. https://t.co/6iFVnW0i52

— CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) August 19, 2020

Former Marjory Stoneman Douglas student Nikolas Cruz told the police he entered the school and fired at students, according to court documents.

Cruz, now 21, faces the death penalty if convicted, The Hill reported.