VERO BEACH — Vero Beach Police Chief Don Dappen was placed on a five-day administrative leave Friday afternoon, two weeks after being asked to resign.
City Manager Jim O’Connor said the leave started Friday and would provide the required time period during which Dappen has the right to appeal his termination.
“Our personnel policy allows for five days,” O’Connor said.
Dappen had been asked to resign and retire after nearly 35 years with the city due to differences in management philosophies with O’Connor, who took the helm at the city in late July.
O’Connor said Friday’s move was a follow-up to his request to Dappen two weeks ago, not the result of new information about an alleged incident between Dappen and Councilwoman Tracy Carroll during the week of budget workshops.
“The matter with Mrs. Carroll is something I still need to look into,” O’Connor said.
Carroll told Vero Beach 32963 that, during the week of budget workshops, Chief Dappen physically and verbally intimidated her behind closed doors in the City Manager’s conference room at City Hall.
That incident occurred, according to Carroll, after she questioned his budget and the department’s involvement of members of the public in protesting proposed cuts to police spending.
Concerned after reading the report about Carroll’s account of the incident with Dappen, Councilman Brian Heady on Friday drafted a memo to Jim O’Connor, City Attorney Wayne Coment and City Clerk Tammy Vock urging decisive and immediate action be taken regarding the situation with Dappen.
During administrative leave, city employees are not permitted to perform their work duties or to have access to city buildings or property in a work capacity.
The appeal period allows for employees to bring out issues that may serve to work in their favor. It is presumed that Dappen will appeal his termination, as he has reportedly hired local trial lawyer Louis B. “Buck” Vocelle to represent him in the matter.
“He does have an attorney,” O’Connor said, but he would not confirm a statement by Heady that Dappen hired Vocelle.
Vocelle represented former City Attorney Charles Vituac, who sought to obtain a large severance package when the City Council began termination procedures against him in February.
