Incoming Avon Park Florida Police Chief Matt Doughney Off To A Great Start - Wasn’t Authorized To Use Daytona Beach Police Vehicle To Attend 2nd Job Interview - Wrecked It On His Return Trip
AVON PARK, FL — Incoming Avon Park police chief Matt Doughney used a Daytona Beach police vehicle to make the second job interview late last month, and then crashed into a deer on the way back while in Polk County.
Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood said that Doughney’s March 24 drive violated the vehicle use policy in his contract, since it was not for police business. He added that Doughney will have to pay restitution for using the Chevolet.
“He could have used a little better common sense,” Chitwood said with a bit of agitation. “Why would you be taking a city car to go for a job?”
Doughney, meanwhile, said he was willing to “make it right” and pay for the damages and the use of the car.
“I’m willing to take responsibility for my actions,” he said.
Chitwood said the department is still assessing the damages to the car. He is still determining whether or not Doughney will face any disciplinary action, even though Chitwood emphasized that Doughney admitted that he “made a mistake.”
“He admitted he was wrong about it,” he said.
Attempts to obtain the accident report from the Florida Highway Patrol were unsuccessful by press time. According to Doughney, the deer ran across two lanes of traffic while he was traveling north along U.S. 27 near County Road 630, southwest of Frostproof. The driver’s side of the car struck the deer as it ran across.
Doughney said he did not believe he could have avoided the accident.
“It’s not like I hit the deer, the deer hit me,” he said.
Chitwood further stated that he was going to review his entire department’s vehicle use and take-home policies for his police captains. Currently, they are allowed to take their vehicles up to five miles out of Daytona Beach’s city limits, even though he said he gives them a bit of leeway on that.
Coincidentally, former Avon Park Police chief Frank Mercurio had a vocal dispute over the mileage reports on some of his officers’ vehicles with the City Council before he was forced to resign last year. The council is still reviewing its own city vehicle take-home policy.
Interim Avon Park City Manager Sarah Adelt said that Doughney told her about the accident March 27, the day she gave him the offer for the police chief job. She did not believe Doughney’s use of the car was an issue for Avon Park.
“We would make it very clear what our vehicle policy is,” Adelt said. “It needs to be dealt by the city that the employee is serving at that time.”
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