TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Another candidate is out of the running to become Tallahassee's next police chief.
On Monday, TPD Major Lonnie Scott sent the city manager his resignation.
Major Scott is moving on to become the assistant chief in Gainesville. He says it all boiled down to timing, but there were plenty of other things that Major Scott says made the decision easy.
Scott says the Gainesville city manager showed urgency and confidence that he felt good about.
He says he accepted the job in Gainesville just hours before he found out Antonio Gilliam would not be coming to Tallahassee.
"The problem was I had already accepted the position with Gainesville and I felt an obligation since you had a person that never met me, that clearly showed me he wanted me to be a part of his team and I felt that I couldn't do something different," said Major Scott.
Now that Major Scott is leaving the department, it's raising concerns with the NAACP.
The president says there's a trend at the city and within the department that is troubling.
"While the city manager is the one making the final decision, I hope that he is considering making diversity a forefront of his thought and including it in who becomes the next chief," said Adner Marcellin, NAACP President. "Right now, there's an all white male command staff and that's not reflective of the residents of this city. We demand and we should have a police department that is equally diverse as our community is."
Seven people remain in the running to be the next chief.
There are two black men, two black women, and three white men.
Major Scott is currently out on leave. His last day with TPD will be Jan. 10.
The city has not said when a new chief will be hired.
Major Lonnie Scott, who was a candidate for the TPD Chief job, has submitted his resignation letter to the Tallahassee Police Department.
Scott has accepted a job with the City of Gainesville to serve as Assistant Police Chief.
Scott was the Major in the Administrative Services Bureau Commander of TPD. He also previously served as member of the Gainesville Police Department in the capacities of Professional Standards and Support Services Bureau Commander and Emergency Manager for the City of Gainesville.
His last day with TPD will be on Jan. 10.
This comes just days after Antonio Gilliam decided to back out of the Tallahassee Chief of Police job.
Now, the city has just seven finalists to choose from the chief of police position.
Below are the seven remaining candidates:
- Interim Tallahassee Police Chief Steve Outlaw
- TPD Major Lawrence Revell
- Broward Sheriff's Office Colonel John Dale
- Lake City Police Chief Argatha Gilmore
- Quincy Police Chief Glenn Sapp
- Chief of the Department of Youth & Accreditation Services for the Leon County Sheriff's Office Audrey Smith
- Deputy Chief of Orlando Police Eric Smith
