Jeff was born and raised in Long Island until he and his parents moved
to Citrus County where he graduated from Crystal River High
School. After earning an honorable discharge from the Air Force,
he went on to earn a Masters Degree in Business Administration from
Nova University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice from
St. Leo College. He is a graduate of the Chief Executive Seminar
and National Sheriff’s Institute. Jeff has been in the criminal
justice profession for over 25 years. During that time, he achieved
the ranks of Deputy Sheriff, Patrol Sergeant, Patrol Lieutenant,
Assistant Patrol Commander, and Captain of the Emergency Operations/911
Center. In 1996, he was elected sheriff of the county. In 2000,
he was unopposed in the race for sheriff. In 2004, he was successful
in his run for re-election. Some of the many accomplishments he
has
achieved as Sheriff include the establishment of the Citizens
Academy, bicycle patrol and IMPACT (Informative Meeting Providing
Accountability on Crime & Traffic), the establishment of the Victims
Advocate Program, the Sexual Offender/Predator Unit and the Internet
Crimes Against Children Unit, the C.O.P. (Community Oriented Policing)
program, the PSO (Public Safety Officer) program, and Seniors vs. Crime
program. Presently being established is Safety Town (a miniature
replica of a town with all the public entities to teach children safety
and the responsibilities of surviving in a community as they grow
older). Within Safety Town is an area reserved for “Jessie’s Place”,
dedicated in memory of Jessica Lunsford, which is a comprehensive
community-based service center for children that have experienced abuse
or neglect. In 2005, the Citrus County
Sheriff's Office was nominated and received the National Model School
Resource Officers Agency Award, which is granted by the National
Association of School Resource Officers. Currently 37 agencies in
the country have received this status, four being in Florida. In
October 2006, Jeff was invited to Washington, DC to participate as a
panelist for a conference on School Safety with President George Bush
and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
Jeff is currently involved in several affiliations; some of those being,
Honorary Rotary Member, Masons, Tri-County Chambers of Commerce, Boys &
Girls Club of Citrus County Board Member, Past Nature Coast Football
Coach, Past President of Sertoma and is currently a Commissioner of the
Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation.
In 2000, the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office received law enforcement
recognition from the Florida Commission of Law Enforcement Accreditation
(CFA), in 2003 received law enforcement recognition from the Commission
on Law Enforcement Accreditation (CALEA) and received national
accreditation from CALEA in 2007. Also in 2007, the Communications
Center at the Sheriff’s Emergency Operations Center received national
accreditation from the Public Safety Communications Accreditation
Program (PSCAP).
Jeff is married to wife, Gail, and has three children: Brian, Destin and
daughter, Stacey, son-in-law Billy, and a new grandson, Nathan.