Sheriff Johnson Names Robert Jones New Chief Deputy, Promotes Four Others

Date Added: March 03, 2015 12:00 pm

Gary Davidson
Public Information Officer

With his second-in-command off to become New Smyrna Beach’s top cop, Sheriff Ben Johnson’s command staff underwent a make-over Tuesday that included the promotion of veteran lawman Robert Jones as the agency’s new chief deputy. His more than 27 years of well-rounded experience, including commanding the district operations in Deltona as well as two of the agency’s three operating divisions, made Jones the logical choice to be his right hand in the organization, according to Sheriff Johnson. Others earning promotion to their new ranks included Major Shane Summers, Captain Paul Kammerer, Lieutenant Lou Marino and Sergeant Brian Cobb. While the promotions were announced within the agency last week, Sheriff Johnson made them official on Tuesday during a ceremony in front of a packed house at the Deputy Stephen Saboda Training Center in Daytona Beach. “We’ve got a lot of good people to promote from,” said Sheriff Johnson. “I feel very fortunate about the caliber of the people that we have to run this organization.”

The 51-year-old Jones, a graduate of the prestigious FBI National Academy in Quantico, VA, becomes the third chief deputy under Sheriff Johnson since his election in 2000. Jones follows Bill Lee and Mike Coffin, who recently retired from the Sheriff’s Office to become New Smyrna Beach Police Chief. Jones -- who has a bachelor’s degree in organizational management from Warner Southern College -- started his career with the Sheriff’s Office in June 1987, working his way up through the ranks to command both the Law Enforcement and Support Services divisions. While Support Services Division commander, Jones helped plan and implement the Sheriff’s Office’s expansion into a consolidated dispatch center serving all public safety agencies in the county. He also served stints as head of the Sheriff’s Office’s elite SWAT and Crime Suppression teams. In 1992 Jones was named the nation’s top cop by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, which bestowed upon him the organization’s J. Edgar Hoover Gold Medal Award. As chief deputy, the second-highest rank in the agency after Sheriff, Jones will oversee the daily operations of all three operating divisions as well as the agency’s fiscal and public information operations. It’s a big job and a tall order, and one that Sheriff Johnson said Jones is clearly ready for. “You’ve been here for a long time working hard,” noted Sheriff Johnson said. “It’s truly an earned position.” A DeLand native, Jones lives in Orange City with his wife, Nancye. The couple has two sons.  

Another graduate of the FBI National Academy, the 46-year-old Summers got the nod from Sheriff Johnson to fill Jones’ former slot and become the Sheriff’s Office’s newest major. Summers joined the Sheriff’s Office 20½ years ago, in July 1994 after a stint as a patrol officer for the South Daytona Police Department. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, he has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Central Florida. Summers’ resume of service with the Sheriff’s Office includes commanding the agency’s law enforcement operations in DeLand and New Smyrna Beach. He also served as the Sheriff’s Office’s second homeland security director. In his new assignment, Summers will command the Judicial Services Division, which includes court security, prisoner transport, central records and the civil section. He takes over for Major Chico Mandizha, who has assumed command of the Law Enforcement Services Division. “It’s an honor and a pleasure to present you with your major’s badge,” said Sheriff Johnson. “I’m very proud of you.”

Captain Kammerer joined the Sheriff’s Office in September 1997 after serving as a police officer in Port Orange and a paramedic in New York. While he has spent some time over the last 17½ years in patrol and judicial services, the bulk of Kammerer’s career with the Sheriff’s Office has been in investigations. His assignments there have included narcotics investigations and supervisor of the multi-agency Volusia Bureau of Investigation (VBI). As lieutenant, he also supervised other investigative components such as sex crimes, gang suppression and Internet crimes against children, overseeing several successful on-line predator stings. In his new assignment, he will serve as commander of Investigative Services. The 41-year-old Kammerer has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice management from Union Institute & University.

Hired in February 2005, Lieutenant Marino has served in road patrol, narcotics investigations as a supervisor with VBI and as academic coordinator of the Sheriff’s Office’s training section. The 40-year-old Marino has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Keiser University. He will be serving as one of the Sheriff’s Office’s two night-time watch commanders.

Sergeant Cobb has been with the Sheriff’s Office since August 2008, serving in road patrol and investigations. The 29-year-old will be going through an in-house supervisory training program before getting his permanent job assignment.

Other recently-announced staff reassignments include the following:

• Captain Dave Brannon, commander of the District 4 office in Deltona, has been reassigned to command the District 2 office in DeLand. Lieutenant George Maddox will serve as the assistant district commander in DeLand.

• Captain Erik Eagan and Lieutenant Don Taylor have been transferred from the District 2 office in DeLand to serve as commander and assistant commander of the District 4 office in Deltona. Lieutenant Joseph Gallagher, who had served as one of the two assistant district commanders in Deltona, has been transferred to investigative services.

• Captain Charlie Brown has been transferred to the District 5 office in New Smyrna Beach as commander, replacing Major Summers.