Kissimmee's police chief announced Thursday that he was stepping down from the agency.
- Chief Lee Massie resignation effective Aug. 9
- Massie previously worked for Winter Garden Police, Orange County Sheriff
- Massie said he wanted to put 'family first'
Chief Lee Massie told employees at a department-wide meeting that he was leaving, effective Tuesday, Aug. 9, for family reasons.
Massie issued this statement:
"This was an extremely difficult decision but one that was made based on personal matters, primarily maintaining the focus of 'family first.' I would like to express my thanks and appreciation to each and every one of you for having allowed me the opportunity to serve alongside some of the most professional and committed individuals I have ever met."
Massie joined the agency as police chief in 2012. Before that he worked for the Winter Garden Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff's Office.
During his time at the Sheriff's Office, Massie helped establish the Regional Fusion Center after 9/11. The center led to the creation of the Central Florida Intelligence Exchange, an organization to help streamline and share information on crime and terrorism. He was a director of that group for several years.
Also, under Massie, various accusations were made about his officers:
- In May of this year, Cpl. James Rabb, was arrested on sexual misconduct charges.
- Later that same month, Officer Mario Badia was arrested on charges that he abused a 13-year-old student.
- In March, three police officers were accused of giving false testimony.
At the time of Rabb's arrest, Massie stated, “These alleged actions do not represent the Kissimmee Police Department’s philosophy, nor should they be a reflection of the men and women who proudly serve our city.”
For the allegation that Badia abused a student, the officer arrived at Kissimmee Middle School for a domestic disturbance between the teenager and his mother in the school's lobby. In his report, Badia stated that the unnamed student was “belligerent and aggressive” toward him, and he bent the boy’s wrist and placed him on the ground.
However, a Kissimmee Police Department corporal reviewed surveillance video from the school’s lobby and found that Badia allegedly shoved the teenager in the chest, knocking him off balance.
The case involving the three officers accused of giving false testimony started during a drug-related arrest at the Tropicana Motel. During testimony, one of the officers said she entered the motel room alone while her other two colleagues were conducting a traffic stop, but surveillance video showed all three entering the motel room.
Those three officers were members of the Street Crimes Unit that dealt with drugs and prostitution. After the incident, the entire unit was suspended, where three another members of the unit were moved to different departments.
However, a review of these cases and others showed that Massie made the decision to have those cases investigated.
Before Massie went to Kissimmee, he also served briefly as interim police chief for the Town of Windermere in 2012 after Chief Mike McCoy left to become the police chief in Altamonte Springs.