TALLAHASSEE — A Vero Beach barrier island resident has been named to Florida’s Commission on Ethics, appointed by Gov. Charlie Crist.
Marty Ford, a 14-year resident of Vero Beach, heard from Gov. Crist’s office earlier this week and expects to get started serving on the commission soon.
“I was totally surprised,” 73-year-old Ford said of the appointment, adding that, though retired, he keeps working to “keep the gray matter working.” Ford is no stranger to investigating ethics complaints and working with those who have had issues dealing with ethics.
He has served in various positions, including as Unit Chief of the Office of Responsibility at the FBI’s headquarters where he supervised misconduct inquiries of all FBI employees, and as an appointed member of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners where he participates in hearings of attorney misconduct.
“It’s an area I’m comfortable in,” Ford said, adding that his daughter is the Director of Ethics in Kentucky and that he comes from a law enforcement family.
He has more than 20 years experience in conducting and managing investigations, his application for the post states. He has also directed investigative programs including Organized Crime/Narcotics, Foreign Counterintelligence, and personal crimes.
“It’s been my whole life,” he said. “It comes naturally.”
The Commission on Ethics reviews complaints pertaining to breaches in ethics of officers and employees of the State of Florida and various levels of government.
The 9-member commission is responsible for investigating and issuing public reports on such complaints and issues binding advisory opinions interpreting the states ethics laws. Commissioners serve 2-year terms.
Ford joins Susan Maurer, 53, of Fort Lauderdale, and Roy Rogers, 72, of Lighthouse Point, in Gov. Crist’s recent appointments to the Commission on Ethics. The State Senate is expected to confirm the appointments.
Ford is a US Air Force veteran who served in the 1950s in the Military Police – Combat Air Police in the United States and France and was honorably discharged.
He is a member and trustee of Our Savior Lutheran Church in Vero Beach, where he lives with his wife, Beverly Ford, a Realtor with Dale Sorensen Real Estate. They have three grown children, Elizabeth Vermilyea, Marcia Ford Seiler, and Martin Ford.
