The vCriminal Justice Standards and Training Commission hereby gives notice:
that on July 7, 2011, the Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission, received a petition for a permanent waiver of subsection 11B-27.00212(14), F.A.C., from Eatonville Police Department on behalf of 18 officers. Subsection 11B-27.00212(14), F.A.C., requires officers to requalify with a firearm every two years on a course of fire mandated by Commission rule. The petition supported the requested waiver by stating that the officers did successfully complete the course of fire, however, the firearms instructors who supervised the shoots were not fully certified firearms instructors during the 2008 and 2010 reporting cycles. The instructors had not completed their internships with certified firearms instructors prior to supervising the officer’s completion of the mandatory firearms requalifications. Petitioner stated that the agency’s officers will suffer a substantial hardship if their certifications are rendered inactive as a result of this situation. Petitioner further stated that it would violate the principles of fairness to fail to recognize that the officers affected by this situation did successfully complete the requirement simply because their instructors had failed to complete their instructor internships prior to supervising the 18 officers’ mandatory firearms retraining. Notice of receipt of the petition was published in the F.A.W., Vol. 37, No. 29, July 22, 2011.
On August 11, 2011, at its regularly scheduled business agenda meeting held in Tampa, Florida, the Commission found that the Petitioner’s situation is unique. The Petitioner demonstrated that the strict application of the Commission’s rules in this case would violate the principles of fairness. The Petitioner’s officers had, in fact, completed the Commission’s course of fire and achieved a passing score. The only deficiency in the officers’ firearms requalifications was that the firearms instructor who conducted the mandatory firearms requalifications for Petitioner’s officers had not complied with all administrative aspects of becoming a CJSTC certified firearms instructor on the date he supervised the requalification shoots. The Commission found that the purposes of the underlying statute, to ensure that officers receive adequate and timely retraining, will be met by granting this waiver request. The Commission granted the Petitioner’s waiver.
A copy of the Order or additional information may be obtained by contacting:
Grace A. Jaye, Assistant General Counsel, Florida Department of Law Enforcement, P. O. Box 1489, Tallahassee, FL 32327, (850)410-7676.