New Florida’s Kissimmee mayor seeks to restore trust in Police Department tainted by ‘culture of cover-up’

ORLANDO, Fla. — Mayor-elect Jackie Espinosa takes office Tuesday and says her first priority is to restore trust in the Kissimmee Police Department after a grand jury's revelations about a "culture of cover-up" prompted the chief's resignation.

"That is a very big priority for us," Espinosa said during an interview about plans for when she takes the gavel next week.

Two weeks ago, Chief Betty Holland resigned after the Orange-Osceola State Attorney's Office named her in an Oct. 21 letter among 11 current and former officers whose credibility was questioned after Officer Andrew Baseggio's indictment in August for unlawfully beating a man during his 2023 arrest.

A grand jury report revealed Holland and other officers attempted to block the investigation, failed to report missteps to higher-ups and unlawfully tipped off Baseggio about the probe's progress. After Holland's resignation, Maj. Robert Anzueto of the Orange County Sheriff's Office was appointed interim chief.

Espinosa said she supports bringing back a civilian oversight board to help create a sense of safety and security for current and future city residents.

"In this climate that we're in currently, we just have to reestablish faith of the people of Kissimmee and of the people wanting to move here and understanding that having an advisory board might be a way to make people feel that they're part of the solution," she said.

But Espinosa's task is not without challenges. A state law that took effect in July limits what civilian police oversight boards can do. Kissimmee disbanded its oversight board in June.

Similarly across the state, multiple local governments disbanded or paused their civilian oversight boards, including in Orlando. At the time, Holland and city staff assured residents there was no need to redirect the board to only look at policies and procedures — a requirement of the new law — because the agency operated under standards reviewed by the state annually.

Gene Paoline, professor and chair of the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of Central Florida, said issues with the Police Department are serious and could leave a negative lasting impression with residents.

"We have to make sure that there's not something more systematic going on in that agency," Paoline said. "If you have a police chief that's ignoring violations of policies, procedures and laws that's problematic.

"That's the stuff where you start to question every decision that was made in that police department from a top leadership perspective."

State law says civilian review boards cannot investigate police misconduct. Instead it allows a police chief or sheriff to establish a civilian oversight board only to review policies and procedures. Supporters of the law said citizen boards were not qualified to second-guess a department's disciplinary processes, but those who opposed it said it removed a vital layer of review.

Now in one of the state's first tests of the law, Paoline said the board can still be effective by reviewing policies, monitoring policy breaches and ensuring accountability.

He said the Kissimmee incident could have far-reaching implications. Not only could the serious nature lead to mistrust in the Police Department, he said, it could spread to neighboring agencies as well — factors that highlight the importance of getting trust back.

Some residents also call for creating some form of oversight board as evidence revealed the agency couldn't discipline itself.

"This is disheartening to hear," resident Alex Alemi said during a recent City Commission meeting. "Going forward it is going to take time to restore confidence and trust in the city's police department and I think there's an opportunity to revisit the question of recreating or reinstituting the citizen review board with a specific focus on policies and procedures."

Alemi, who regularly attends meetings and offers suggestions for addressing city issues, told commissioners a civilian oversight board would be a step in the right direction. He voiced his concern and opposition to disbanding the board at the initial hearing in May.

"It seems like it took another citizen oversight in the form of the grand jury to kind of bring some of these issues to light," he said.

Paoline said a civilian oversight board combined with a departmentwide investigation by a neighboring agency is a good solution to bring back trust.

And despite restrictions of state law, he said if the board is assembled it could still be effective in bringing back trust even if it only monitors policies and procedures.

"You have a form of civilian review which is a civilian monitor," Paoline said. "They basically say I'm going to tag along, I'm going to be there and make sure that you're following what you should be doing and the investigation is a real one."

What happens next is up to the City Commission.

City spokesperson Alibeth Suarez said by email that commissioners will decide whether to move forward with reinstating an oversight board, how to do so and if the scope of the board's authority under state law would be an effective solution to address issues identified by the grand jury.