Next Broward sheriff should meet same standards as deputies

I’ve lived in Broward County for 48 years and I thought I had seen it all — the good the bad and now the ugly.

I have been through a lot in my lifetime. I understand what it’s like to lose a child to murder. I buried my daughter Marissa in 2002, so I get what the Parkland families are going through.

That said, what I don’t understand is how such a small group of self-proclaimed experts feel that they are entitled to determine the destiny of an entire county as it relates to the current Broward County Sheriff race.

On the surface, they would have you believe that it’s all about public safety. But in digging deeper, at its core, there is much more at stake. Regardless of how we got here, and whether or not we like it or not, we are faced with facts that we should not easily dismiss, regardless of my personal likes or dislikes.

We hold our law enforcement officers to a higher standard than the average person. Broward’s top cop should be held to the same standard as those who serve under his leadership.

Lying or omitting information on a law enforcement application should not be condoned and would result in the immediate termination and decertification of anyone other than the incumbent sheriff.

It’s time to take the politics out of our local sheriff ’s race and elect a sheriff based upon his or her qualifications, and get back into the business of law enforcement.

Gary Karp is a former assistant to former Broward Sheriff Al Lamberti and former vice president of Broward County Crimestoppers