FLORIDA – Five former Florida law enforcement officers from throughout the state have been inducted into the Florida Law Enforcement Officers’ Hall of Fame.
Inducted into the Hall of Fame on Saturday were David F. Harvey, Henry Neil Kirkman, Arthur Lee McGehee, Charles R. Press, and Stephen D. Wayne. Mark Glass, Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Acting Commissioner, presided over the ceremony in Tallahassee.
“I want to congratulate the distinguished inductees of the 2022 Florida Law Enforcement Hall of Fame, as they embody the many important roles of law enforcement officials in our communities,” said Nikki Fried, Commissioner, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.”
“This year’s recipients have improved rural policing, enhanced public safety, developed educational programs for criminal justice, implemented new standards of accountability and transparency, and worked to protect our fish and wildlife resources.”
The inductees were nominated by the Florida Sheriffs Association, Florida Police Chiefs Association, Police Benevolent Association, Fraternal Order of Police and the State Law Enforcement Chiefs’ Association and then were selected by a committee, according to the FDLE.
The inductees were approved by Governor Ron DeSantis and Florida’s Cabinet.
“I commend the officers inducted into the Florida Law Enforcement Officers’ Hall of Fame for their remarkable service and dedicated duty keeping Florida families and communities safe,” said DeSantis.
Here is more about the inductees, according to the FDLE:
David F. Harvey started his law enforcement career in 1972 as a parole and probation officer for Franklin and Wakulla counties. In 1976, at 26 years of age, he was elected sheriff of Wakulla County. He went on to serve nine terms and retired 35 years later as Florida’s longest-tenured sheriff.
Harvey grew an office of 11 employees and an 18-bed jail to one with 180 employees and a 350-bed jail. The Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office also became one of the state’s first rural sheriff’s offices to be accredited in both law enforcement and corrections. He later served as the executive director of the Florida Sheriffs Risk Management Fund (FSRMF). FRSMF became the largest owned-and-operated law enforcement self-insurance fund in the nation.
Henry Neil Kirkman began his career in law enforcement in July 1936, as major of the State Road Department’s Traffic Enforcement Division. Three years later, Department of Public Safety and Florida Highway Patrol Director W.F. Reid appointed Kirkman as captain of the newly created Florida Highway Patrol. The appointment was due, in large part, to his experience in the United States Army during World War I.
Just a few years later, Kirkman was called to serve his country once again as a soldier in the United States Army during World War II, where he was awarded the Legion of Merit medal and achieved the rank of colonel before he retired from the Armed Forces in 1945. After the war, Kirkman was appointed director of the state’s Department of Public Safety. He held this position until 1969, when he became executive director of the newly formed Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Colonel Kirkman retired on February 11, 1970.
Arthur Lee McGehee began working part-time for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office in 1957, at the age of 14. He received his undergraduate education at Florida State University and went on to become a patrol officer for the Ocala Police Department. In 1970, he graduated with a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Georgia.
In 1971, McGehee moved to St. Petersburg to take a position as Director of Administration for Police and Fire at the Public Safety Agency. He was appointed Chief of Police for the city of Ocala in 1974, where he remained for just over 20 years. Upon retirement from the Ocala Police Department, he was appointed as director of the Florida Criminal Justice Executive Institute (FCJEI), a position he held until his untimely death on September 19, 2000. McGehee also served as chairman and a founding member of the FCJEI Policy Board, as well as president and lifetime member of the Florida Police Chiefs Association.
Charles R. Press began his 46-year career in law enforcement as a police officer in 1975 with the Miami Beach Police Department. Retiring as assistant chief after 29 years, he became chief of police with the Village of Key Biscayne in 2004. Press developed and implemented innovative police management and community involvement programs that received local and statewide recognition.
Press initiated the accreditation process with the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation (CFA), culminating in an Excelsior status. He re-created the department with a focus on transparency, accountability, and excellent service delivery. Press served as president of the Miami-Dade County Association of Chiefs of Police and also served on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.
Stephen D. Wayne began his law enforcement career in 1991 when he was accepted into the Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission’s Law Enforcement Academy. Upon graduation, he served as an officer in Okeechobee County and later in Lake County. He was promoted to lieutenant in 2003. With his promotion to captain in 2007, Wayne led 30 officers across Brevard, Indian River, and Osceola counties until 2012, when he decided to direct his career towards investigations and became the first full-time port investigator for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Wayne’s hard work throughout the next nine years brought to life one of the most robust and effective fish and wildlife port investigation units in the nation, focusing on the illegal sale, import, export, and commercialization of fish and wildlife resources.
