MICHAEL MCCLUNG, APPELLANT,
v.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE STANDARDS AND TRAINING COMMISSION, APPELLEE

Fla. 5th DCA | 1984-11-15
No. 83-1649
DAUKSCH and COWART, JJ., concur.
458 So. 2d 887 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fifth District (1984) Positive Treatment
Cited by 2 cases

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Synopsis

Former deputy Michael McClung appeals his decertification as a police officer by the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission based on admitted marijuana use over a two-year period. The court reversed the decertification, holding that isolated misconduct does not rise to the level of 'gross misconduct' required by statute for permanent revocation of certification.


Holding

The court held that an isolated incident of marijuana use occurring two years previously, while unlawful and constituting misconduct, does not rise to the level of gross misconduct required by statute to justify permanent revocation of a police officer's certification.


Headnotes

[1] An isolated incident of unlawful conduct occurring two years prior to an investigation does not rise to the level of gross misconduct sufficient to warrant permanent revo…

[2] Statutes providing for the revocation of a license must be strictly construed because they are penal in nature.

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Key Quotes

“We do not believe that an isolated incident occuring two years previously, while certainly unlawful and therefore misconduct, rises to the level of gross misconduct specified by the statute authorizing permanent revocation of an officer's certificate.”

The court's central holding distinguishing between misconduct and gross misconduct, the latter being required for permanent revocation.

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Facts & Procedural History

McClung was a deputy with the Seminole County Sheriff's Department for twelve years. When questioned by the Department of Internal Affairs, he admitte…

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Opinion of the Court
FRANK D. UPCHURCH, Jr., Judge.

FRANK D. UPCHURCH, Jr., Judge.

Appellant Michael McClung, a former deputy with the Seminole County Sheriffs Department, appeals an order by the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission decertifying him as a police officer. Section 943.145, Florida Statutes (1983) provides the specific authority and grounds for revocation or suspension of an officer’s license:

(3) Grounds for revocation or suspension of certification shall consist of:
(a) Failure of the certificateholder to maintain qualifications established in s. 943.13 or specific standards promulgated thereunder as rules.

(b) Falsification or a willful material misrepresentation of information in an employment application to an employing agency.

(c) The commission of conduct by the certificate holder constituting gross insubordination, gross immorality, habitual drunkenness, willful neglect of duty, incompetence, or gross misconduct which seriously reduces the certif-icateholder’s effectiveness to function as a law enforcement officer or a correctional officer. (d) For officers holding concurrent certification under s. 943.234, suspension or revocation of certification in one of the two disciplines.

(e) Bribery by the certificateholder in obtaining certification.

In response to a question by the Department of Internal Affairs, appellant admitted to using “a marijuana cigarette through the period of two years” prior to the interview. He denied any other use or possession of marijuana other than some marijuana seeds which he held as a curio in a container. Appellant denied that this was part of any pattern in his twelve years with the department, but was an isolated incident during a period of domestic difficulties with his wife. No criminal violations were ever filed against appellant and no other complaints formed the basis for appellant’s decertification.

The only question is whether the evidence against appellant was sufficient to warrant the permanent revocation of his certification as a police officer. Paragraphs one and two quoted above from section 943.145(3), Florida Statutes, are not applicable here. There are no allegations of gross insubordination, gross immorality, habitual drunkenness, neglect of duty, or incompetence. We do not believe that an isolated incident occuring two years previously, while certainly unlawful and therefore misconduct, rises to the level of gross misconduct specified by the statute authorizing permanent revocation of an officer’s certificate. In State v. Pattishall, 99 Fla. 296, 126 So. 147 (1930), it was held that where a statute provides for revocation of a license the grounds must be strictly construed because the statute is penal in nature. No conduct is to be regarded as included within a penal statute that is not reasonably proscribed by it; if there are any ambiguities included, they must be construed in favor of the licensee. See Lester v. Department of Professional & Occupational Regulations, 348 So. 2d 923 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977). '

REVERSED.

DAUKSCH and COWART, JJ., concur.


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Cited By

  • Lewis v. Crim. Just. Standards & Training Comm'n, 462 So. 2d 528 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985)
    …addition, as the hearing officer noted, a statute which has been amended to allow suspension or revocation of an occupational license is to be construed strictly and prospectively. See: McClung v. Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission, 458 So. 2d 887 (Fla. 5th DCA 1984); Necktman v. Saker, 271 So. 2d 26 (Fla. 3d DCA 1972). We find that the Commission improperly charged appellant under authority of a statute which has no retroactive application. Therefore, the Commission’s order revoking appella…

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