Seth Johnson
Assistant Gainesville Police Chief Lonnie Scott Sr. began serving as Acting Chief of Police on Monday, temporarily taking over the reins with GPD Chief Tony Jones transfers to a role in City Hall.
The City of Gainesville chose Jones to fill the role of chief operating officer (COO) within the city manager’s office. He also started that position on Monday.
Jones will serve as COO until the city finds a replacement for the newly minted position, one of several that interim City Manager Cynthia Curry announced last week.
Curry has begun restructuring the city’s staff, including merging departments and eliminating roles.
Scott has served as assistant chief, along with Assistant Chief Terry Pierce, since the end of 2019. Scott served with GPD for more than 25 years before moving to the Tallahassee Police Department for a stint.
Jones has been GPD chief since 2009 and has been with the department since 1975. Among his many roles, he served as interim assistant city manager in 2005.