Deputy achieves highest rank for woman in Volusia Sheriff’s Office history

Date Added: May 01, 2017 8:15 am

Deputy achieves highest rank for woman in Volusia Sheriff’s Office history

(Daytona Beach News Journal/published May 1, 2017) 
By Patricio G. Balona

Sheriff Mike Chitwood has shuffled his command staff, paving the way for a female deputy to achieve the highest rank held by a woman in the history of the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.

Chitwood eliminated the rank of major in his agency to create two new division chiefs positions. One of those positions was filled by Lt. Corey Piser, 41, who will now oversee the Sheriff’s Office Support Operations Division.

“When we looked at restructuring we thought we could break the department in two divisions and create a chief’s position that will oversee support and operations,” Chitwood said.

The other promotion to division chief went to Tim Morgan, 48, formerly a captain with the agency.

The positions pay $111,000 a year, the sheriff said.

Chitwood, at a public meeting at Spruce Creek High School in Port Orange on Monday night, introduced Piser and Morgan to a team of captains and other officers as well as members of the public at “The First 100 Days: A Volusia County Sheriff’s Office Town Hall Event.”

Piser, who has been with the Sheriff’s Office 13 years, previously worked with the Daytona Beach Police Department nine years before joining the agency. Piser rose through the ranks and went from lieutenant to division chief.

“It’s humbling,” Piser said, who in her 22 years has been a road cop, a SWAT team member and a K-9 handler among other things. “I’m excited to get up top to have a larger umbrella of influence and be able to do good things for our people.”

Morgan remains in charge of the law enforcement services division. Morgan is the second-highest ranking African American in the history of the agency. The highest-ranking black deputy was Leonard Davis, a former chief deputy of Sheriff Bob Vogel, said Andrew Gant, sheriff’s spokesman.

Morgan was hired by the Sheriff’s Office in December 2000. He was promoted to captain in June 2016 and took over command of District 6 in DeBary. Earlier this year (still as captain) he became executive officer of the agency’s law enforcement services division.

During his time with the Volusia sheriff, Morgan worked in road patrol, internal affairs and assignments on the Deltona street crimes unit, and on the Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team. He was an assistant district commander for the Sheriff’s Office law enforcement operations in southeast Volusia County. Morgan has worked as a police officer in Daytona Beach, Colorado and Ohio.

“Personally, I believe I worked my way up and I’m happy to be in this position,” Morgan said. “I’m glad that the sheriff, the chief deputy, they trusted me with their vision and the future of the county.”

As division chief, Morgan will oversee all the district captains, the narcotics captain and Investigative Services captain.

Piser will supervise Special Operations, Training, Court Services, Extraditions/Records/Warrants, Information Technology, the Communications Center, Evidence and Fleet Services.

“Now at the top of the organization, we have two new people that are bringing in different set of eyes, a different passion,” Chitwood said. “They both come with great respect from within the organization and that’s what we need.”

Besides, shuffling his command staff, Chitwood has launched a CompStat program in Deltona, where a computer analysis of crime targets trouble areas. He also has outlined his plans to better serve migrant works in northwest Volusia and has had bouts of disagreements with the county manager on how he should perform as sheriff.

But at heart he continues to lobby for better pay for his deputies, whom he says put their lives daily on the line to keep out citizens safe.

His first 100 days have been a roller coaster, he said.

“Obstructionism is still there. That’s the down side, you have to fight for everything that when you talk to a county council about moving forward they want to tell you about what happened in 1970,” Chitwood said. “The up side has been getting out to the community, meeting folks in the community, working with these outstanding men and women of Volusia County.”