Bryan Drinkard has had what can charitably be called a checkered career in law enforcement. Or as hernandotoday.com delicately puts it, he’s suffered “frequent lapses in discipline.” As a result, he’s moved around a bit in his twenty-some years protecting and serving the people of Florida. For instance, during nine years with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, he was the subject of 44 – yes 44 – internal affairs investigations. For the the numerically challenged, that’s an average of one investigation launched every 75 days. Kinda makes you wonder how he made it nine years, no?
Officer Drinkard was ultimately forced to retire from the Manatee County job because of a stalking charge for which he was ultimately acquitted. That’s when he landed with the Brooksville PD. That gig went well for a while, but then the problematic policeman reverted to form. Like when he made a call to his former employer’s dispatcher from a bar just to settle a bet. It seems it’s hard for a leopard to change his stripes. Or something.
Drinkard earned consecutive merit bonuses and was promoted in March 2008 to detective, according to his personnel file.
During the last nine months of his employment at Brooksville, he was disciplined three times and was transferred from criminal investigations back to patrol, which came with a reduced salary.
On Monday yet another internal affairs investigation – something with which Drinkard should be very familiar by now – was opened against the officer in Brooksville and he was suspended. Brooksville Chief George Turner won’t say what was being investigated, but Drinkard was notified that he needed to turn in his duty pistol. And turn it in, he did.
On Tuesday, he entered the Brooksville Police Station and laid it down near the administrative assistant’s workstation.
The problem was that the .45-caliber Glock, which was loaded with 14 hollow-point rounds, was carelessly placed in an empty lobby, Police Chief George Turner said.
Glock pistols don’t have safety mechanisms. To use firing-range slang, the weapon was hot.
Drinkard walked out and the gun lay there for a few minutes until an employee came in and noticed it, Turner said.
And that was the last straw for Chief Turner. Drinkard tried to resign, but he resignation letter was rejected by the Chief who fired him the next day.
“This constitutes gross negligence on your part that placed the general public and other department members at great risk of possible injury, accident or otherwise,” Turner wrote in his termination letter.
Judging from his body of work, it doesn’t seem that Bryan Drinkard was cut out for a career as a police officer. He is, however, unquestionably qualified for Irresponsible Gun Owner of the Day honors. A commendation he’ll no doubt point to with pride when he applies for that next law enforcement job.
“Glock pistols don’t have safety mechanisms.” As if this were relevant. A loaded pistol is a loaded pistol.
It’s also not true.
It is most definitely true unless you call the trigger a safety.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that, if that’s your thing.
It’s absolutely true. Having a trigger that’s slightly more difficult to accidentally catch on something is NOT a safety. A mechanism that disables the trigger is a safety.
It is relevant as even a person with zero firearms knowledge knows that you pull the trigger to make it go boom. Plenty of people do not know how to disable the safety on a 1911 or Beretta 92.
“Kinda makes you wonder how he made it nine years, no?’
He must be one charming fellow when he has to be, although he certainly doesn’t look very winsome in his mugshot.
Perhaps it’s the opposite: the guy just rubs people the wrong way and gets written up for minor offences.
He’s probably a hothead who joined the force for the wrong reasons.
Just goes to show how police departments, police chiefs in particular, don’t care about officers that are abusive to citizens. They characteristically side with the officers on most complaints or charges unless the publicity is overwhelming.
I agree. This guy should have been dismissed years ago.
It’s time for Officer Drunkard to go into the private sector. How about opening a for-profit police academy with Officer Hairless?
Hey, I’ve got no problem with LEO – bashing when it’s legit.
Here’s your next Walmart security guard.
Now that’s scary.
Who the hell is doing the background investigations on this fool? He should be taken to the nearest flag pole and strung up by the balls. Cheeze and Crackers
I have to disagree with some of the above posts, this guy should NOT be in private security, or offering training, or in any way involved with protecting people, teaching defence, or guarding anything. I personally think a career in pet supplies, or landscaping, or maybe house painting would be a better fit. That many investigations in his LEO career makes him unfit to continue in that area in any manner in my opinion.
What other job except maybe the post office do you get to screw up 44 times and have basically nothing happen to you
Congress.
You are of course neglecting to bring up UAW auto assembly worker. Trust me, I know.
National Weather Service.
What’s amazing is how long guys like this do stay employed, moving from agency to agency. Here in Portland, the city had to settle multiple lawsuits because of a few bad cops, but it takes forever to get rid of them, then they go to some podunk sheriffs department in Idaho. These are not people at the post office. These are people who can pretty much get away with murder.
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