Mike Scott's rehiring of Lee Bushong

Everything is hunky-dory between Sheriff Mike Scott and Sgt. Lee Bushong.

Miracles never cease.

The sheriff reinstated his foul-mouthed deputy Monday, two days short of two months after firing him.

“We met with the sheriff (Tuesday) morning,’’ said Stu Pepper, Bushong’s Cape Coral attorney. “I think the sheriff saw a mistake was made. He overreacted. The sheriff corrected his mistake.’’

Pepper was prepared to call 39 witnesses for Bushong’s civil service board hearing that had been scheduled for Tuesday.

The lawyer was ready to make his case, but Scott said it wasn’t because the former deputy tried to prove Scott broke the law by conducting personal background searches that he rehired Bushong.

“Lee already made the complaint to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement,’’ Scott said. “I didn’t hear they found I had done anything wrong.

“It’s ludicrous if anyone thinks I took Lee back to somehow exonerate me.’’

Scott said 99 percent of the reason he reinstated Bushong was a comment former Maj. Scott Ciresi made in Ciresi’s own hearing before the board.

When Ciresi told Bushong he was suspended, Bushong said, “What do they want me to do, eat my gun?’’

Ciresi said he didn’t mention the remark because Bushong immediately took it back.
“Everything after that comment from Lee was inappropriate,’’ Scott said. “We had to determine the right course of action.’’

Pepper and Scott said the suicidal remark was not like Bushong and should have been brought to the sheriff’s attention.

“I think the sheriff realized Lee was not himself,’’ Pepper said. “There was a lot of personal stress, but now Lee is back to himself.

“Everything is rosy right now. Lee’s very popular. He’s a poster boy for the sheriff’s department.’’

It wasn’t rosy March 18.

Scott demoted Bushong, 35, from lieutenant and head of the Intelligence Unit to deputy for improper conduct and abusive insubordination.

Bushong sent a threatening, off-color e-mail Jan. 23 to two sergeants chastising the unit for taking too much time away from the job.

Bushong said former Capt. Dominick Ferrante counseled him about putting abusive terms in writing.

He was fired April 3.

Bushong called and cussed out Deputy Steve Drum — the target of his e-mail and a party to the agency’s Internal Affairs investigation.

Scott was steaming.

Now, Bushong is back as a patrol division sergeant.

Well, knock me over with a feather.

I would have given former Sheriff Rod Shoap — Scott’s two-time political opponent and antagonist — a better chance of being rehired than Bushong.

The sheriff sent me an e-mail April 13, when my first column appeared about the firing. He was incensed with Bushong’s self-serving statements.

“Beyond comments that nearly sickened me like we use that kind of language, it’s a man’s game — testosterone, ‘I’ grew that unit into a wonderful, intelligence gathering monster, ‘I’ deal with the scumbags, ‘I’ deal with violence, Dominick Ferrante knows how ‘I’ am.’’

In my second column April 17, Bushong said Scott violated laws.

Bushong said the sheriff ignored federal and state law by directing employees to collect criminal background information on two job seekers for his cousin — John Taylor’s Taylor Carpet One.

Bushong said crime analyst Rachel Newman, listed as a witness, told him she was “uncomfortable’’ gathering personal information from the criminal search systems.

Scott admitted ordering the search. Taylor confirmed receiving information from Scott.

Bushong said information gleaned from the National Crime Information Center and Florida Crime Information Center or Computerized Criminal History cannot be released to noncriminal justice personnel.

Does that sound like a sheriff who is ready to forgive and forget?

It is no coincidence the sheriff, his attorney Barry Hillmyer, Bushong and Pepper hammered out an agreement Monday.

Pepper says he was ready to present evidence and witnesses to show Scott violated search laws.

“That might have come out if it had to come out,’’ Pepper said.

Scott said the accusation was irrelevant.

“The hearing was not about me, it was about Lee,’’ Scott said. “The civil service board doesn’t decide a complaint like that; the FDLE does.

“If Lee had something on me, why didn’t he ask to be reinstated as a lieutenant? Why settle for sergeant?’’

— Sam Cook’s column appears Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Call 335-0384 or fax 334-0708.

It looks like Sheriff Scott got caught again and is doing his usual dance around the truth. I’m sorry but I won’t buy that the reason Scott hired back Bushong was because of the comment he made to Ciresi. Scott is just using this as an excuse to throw Ciresi under the bus to take the attention away from himself knowing that his testimony in the hearing would show he broke the law. Now I would question all the recent firing and demotions, Scott definitely has an unethical agenda and needs to go.
:devil:

It looks like Sheriff Scott got caught again and is doing his usual dance around the truth. I’m sorry but I won’t buy that the reason Scott hired back Bushong was because of the comment he made to Ciresi. Scott is just using this as an excuse to throw Ciresi under the bus to take the attention away from himself knowing that his testimony in the hearing would show he broke the law. Now I would question all the recent firing and demotions, Scott definitely has an unethical agenda and needs to go.
:devil:

Agreed! An insult to the intelligence of all here at LCSO! Its now become clear that Mike has a hard time taking resposibility
for his careless and impulsive actions! It seems scapegoats and lies are much easier for him. :oops:

It looks like Sheriff Scott got caught again and is doing his usual dance around the truth. I’m sorry but I won’t buy that the reason Scott hired back Bushong was because of the comment he made to Ciresi. Scott is just using this as an excuse to throw Ciresi under the bus to take the attention away from himself knowing that his testimony in the hearing would show he broke the law. Now I would question all the recent firing and demotions, Scott definitely has an unethical agenda and needs to go.
:devil:

Agreed! An insult to the intelligence of all here at LCSO! Its now become clear that Mike has a hard time taking resposibility
for his careless and impulsive actions! It seems scapegoats and lies are much easier for him. :oops:

Look at what he did to the Chief, the truth of the matter is that Charlie was the only one who balanced things out in the agency. Now look at what is going on, it is obvious that he and others wanted Charlie gone for a reason and now we are starting to see it. He said the Chief ran the agency by fear and intimindation (lie) now we are seeing true colors of people, Charlie might not have been the most warm and cuddly type of person, but he was controling these power mongers and making sure that everyone was being treated fairly.

Now that Bushongs back try to realize your mistakes sooner than a day before a hearing! Caught that just in time Ha?
What about the chief? Using a lame accusation from Bell that happend 4 months prior? The same Bell who had numorous complaints of abuse and intimidation creating a hostile work enviorment for many in the crime scene unit! Bell dished the same abuse to Balke and others on a daily level! He gets reported, an IA follows, and guess what happens? At the conclusion of the investigation, it was determined that he had not violated any agency policy! The chief wasnt so lucky! Its too bad Charlies from New Yawk and doesnt have daddy to back him! It was a lame attempt to get him out
and fell way short of convincing the educated ones! Wonder what the real reason was! I guess Mike felt it was time to rid the Fonz from the cast of Hee Haw! Somehow he managed to squeeze his role of Pinocchio in there and thinks it works! Not fair!