TAMPA, Fla — After more than 30 years on the force, Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan is calling it quits. At the end of the week, Dugan will work his last day with the department.
He says it's been an honor to serve as police chief but not what he anticipated when in 1990 he moved to Tampa. According to Dugan, he never intended to stay in the Bay area.
"I was 23 and single. Moved here two days before I started the police academy," Dugan said.
It was his dream to be an officer, so to finish his career as the chief of police was just the icing on the cake.
"What a privilege to be able to do what you've always wanted to do," Dugan said.
Dugan can recall the day he was appointed chief. He was the interim chief of police as investigators worked to solve a string of murders in Seminole Heights. One day in 2017, then-Mayor Bob Buckhorn told Dugan that he was calling off the search to find a permanent chief — he wanted Dugan for the job.
Dugan says he was caught off guard by the proposal but accepted the role. He says, because the department was in the middle of an investigation, there was no time for a formal press conference or swearing-in ceremony. So, all that was done to announce the move was a simple press release.
"We were worried that the community might think we weren't focused on catching a killer so we just did a simple press release," Dugan said. "That's kind of the way I've tried to carry myself as chief. With some humility...If I could leave quietly, I would."
Dugan has experienced Hurricane Irma preps, the arrest of Howell Donaldson III in the Seminole Heights case, social justice protests, major league sports championship celebrations and a pandemic as police chief.
As for what he leaves behind, Dugan says there is still work to be done but the foundation has been set for Tampa officers to have a good relationship with the community.
"You’re angry, I get it," Dugan said during a contentious June 2020 meeting of the Citizens Review Board. Protestors called upon Dugan and Mayor Jane Castor to step down. "And when you calm down, and you’re willing to have open dialogue, I will continue to listen to you."
Dugan hopes after retirement he can reconnect with the people he didn't have much time for during his tenure as chief. He also hopes to get back to some of his other hobbies.
"I love to cook. I love beer and I love bourbon, so I'm sure all of that is going to be in my immediate future," he said.
Asst. Chief Ruben "Butch" Delgado will step in as interim chief while the city embarks on a nationwide search for Dugan's replacement.