Former sheriff made omissions in check

Israel, running again for Broward job, left some background items off application

Scott Israel, the ousted Broward sheriff who’s running to again be the county’s top cop, is answering questions about his omissions in a past job application.

Israel appears to have omitted details from an official application he filled out when appointed to the job of North Bay Village police chief in 2004 after serving as a Fort Lauderdale police officer since 1979.

He’s now in the middle of the high-profile sheriff’s race in which the candidates’ honesty has become a key issue: His leading opponent, Sheriff Gregory Tony, dealt with renewed attention over his application paperwork. Tony’s campaign raised the issue of Israel’s omissions but otherwise declined to comment.

Tony, who was appointed by the governor last year to replace Israel, faced scrutiny over issues ranging from his personal life to his decision not to disclose his experimenting with LSD and a juvenile arrest on a murder charge in Philadelphia, for which he was found not guilty.

Israel’s application in 2004 was part of a background check by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Israel wrote on his application that he had never been named as a defendant in a lawsuit and never had a lien against him. He swore that his answers on the application were true, but both statements were incorrect: Israel had been named in two foreclosure actions and twice as a named defendant in lawsuits against the Fort Lauderdale Police Department.

Both foreclosure actions involved the same property, and in the first one, according to records, Israel was never served with a notice.

“In the mid-1980s, Sheriff Is

rael lent money to a friend to buy a condo and cosigned the mortgage for him,” Israel campaign consultant Amy Rose explained in an email. His name was not on the title. “Sheriff Israel never owned the property or lived in it. … It became apparent that Sheriff Israel and the Homeowners Association were only named as defendants to wipe out their interest in the property.”

As for the police lawsuits, Israel again said he was never served and was unaware he was sued.

“During the time period these suits were filed [in the 1980s] Sheriff Israel worked as an undercover narcotics detective and it was common for the city to be sued for seizures,” Rose said. “All lawsuits against the city or an officer in his/her official capacity were served on the Police Dept. and handled by the City.”

Both suits were dismissed soon after they were filed, according to court records. There’s no online record of the substance of the suits.

Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended Israel in January 2019 over criticism of his handling of mass shootings at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

On his FDLE form, Israel did disclose a 1975 arrest for trespassing at a motel in Key West.

Israel