Region One -Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe Counties

Region 1 meetings are held four times a year and hosted by different agencies within the region. Members of the media are invited to some of the meetings. If you would like to be added to the mailing list, please email Philip Toman at ptoman@psd.plantation.org

 Biography of Philip Toman

Detective Philip Toman has been a Police Officer with the Plantation Police Department for 19 years. During that time, Toman spent 6 years on road patrol where he served as a Field Training Officer. In 1995, Toman became a School Resource Officer. 

Toman remained in that position for the next 6 years working in both Plantation High School and South Plantation High School. In 2002, Toman transferred to the Criminal Investigations Bureau where he is currently a property crimes investigator specializing in burglary and grand theft investigations. In 2005, Toman took on the added responsibility of being one of the Public Information Officers for the department. This required him to be assigned to a Major Crimes Team.

Region Three - Lee, Collier, Hendry, Charlotte, and Glades Counties

We have three types of meetings:

1. Monthly luncheon meetings among the law enforcement/FLEPIOA PIO’s in the region – no specific day/date is established – TBA

2. Quarterly luncheon meetings for Region 3 PIO’s from various disciplines including fire, EMS, city / county government, hospital and city / county / state law enforcement. Each meeting is held on the last Tuesday in January, April, July and October at 11:30 a.m., Lee Memorial Hospital, 2776 Cleveland Avenue, Fort Myers (in the Conference Room adjacent to the cafeteria). Various guests, topics and general discussions are planned.

3. SWFCADI (Southwest Florida Coalition for the Accurate Dissemination of Information) meets twice a year. Members include Region 3 law enforcement, fire and emergency services PIO’s and local broadcast and print media editors, news directors and reporters. The meetings are scheduled for the second Tuesday in January and July beginning at 10:00 a.m. in the meeting room at FDLE, 4700-1 Terminal Drive, Suite 1, Fort Myers (on the north side of the Page Field Airport). The goal of SWFCADI is to provide an open forum for media management and public safety CEOs to discuss issues of mutual concern. One of the early benefits of the organization was the establishment of a “Live Coverage Agreement”, which enables law enforcement to respond to critical incidents such as hostage situations with limited media distractions. In turn, the media has enhanced opportunities in covering the high-profile event with the emphasis on the safety to all concerned.
 

Biography of Tony Schall

Tony has spent 20 years in the media, working as a television reporter, photographer and news, weather and sports anchor in Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois and Florida.  He has worked in the Southwest Florida market (Fort Myers/Cape Coral) since 1995.  Tony is currently Public Information Officer at the Lee County Sheriffs Office, where he started in February 2007.  He also served as Public Information Officer at the State Attorney’s Office -  20th Judicial Circuit in Fort Myers from 2000-2003.

The Region Four chapter met with local media representatives on April 30, 2009 at the FDOT in Tampa. Here are the minutes from the meeting:

Regional Tampa Bay PIO/Media Meeting

Introduction: Kevin Doll (Pasco Sheriff’s Office), Kris Carson (DOT) 

I.  Terry Hensley, DOT - Traffic Management Center tour; update on pending DOT agreement to share traffic camera images with media. 

II.  John McShaffrey, Consultant Interstate PIO, previous weekend’s Interstate 275 traffic changes, and proactive media coverage. 

III.  Update on June's FLEPIOA state conference - Debbie Carter (Hillsborough Sheriff's Office) and Carrie Eleazer (Polk Sheriff's Office). 

IV.  Steve Fenske, WTVT Planning Manager - The creation of a Tampa Bay area local news service, where tv stations will be pooling resources to share footage and cover more stories. 

IV.  Kevin Doll - Social media by government agencies (Texting; Twitter, MySpace; YouTube, Facebook). 

V.  Open Forum: Steve Huard, State Dept. of Health Region 4 - Media coverage of swine flu.

BIO of Kevin Doll

Kevin Doll is currently the director of public information for the Pasco Sheriff’s Office, the six largest law enforcement agency in the state.  He has been a PIO at the agency for more than 11 years.  He was the recipient of the FLEPIOA 2004 Internal Crisis Award for his media coordination after the ambush murder of a high-ranking Pasco Sheriff’s deputy in 2003.  For the last three years, he has been the director of FLEPIOA’s Region 4 (West Central Florida). 

Doll is a former U.S. Marine Corps combat correspondent, and served during the first Gulf War. He was the recipient of numerous awards for his writing and photography during his military service, including the Marine Corps Print Journalist of the Year Award, and the runner-up in the Dept. of Defense Print Journalist of the Year Award. 

Doll received both his bachelor’s and master’s degree in Mass Communication/Public Relations from the University of South Florida, Tampa.

Biography of Twis H. Lizasuain

In May of 2005, Twis Lizasuain joined Sheriff Bob Hansell's administration as Public and Media Relations Director. In this position, Ms. Lizasuain oversees public information and outreach for the Osceola County Sheriff's Office in addition to serving as primary spokesperson for the agency.

Ms. Lizasuain has over 14 years of communications experience and 10 years of government experience. Prior to joining the Sheriff's staff, Ms. Lizasuain served as the first Public Information Officer for the Osceola County Board of County Commissioners. She created many new public information programs that helped increase the visibility of the Board of County Commissioners and help educate citizens. These successes include an annual citizen survey, educational programs and televising weekly commission meetings airing on WMFE Channel 24, town hall meetings, a formal volunteer program, the Citizen Action Center and speaker's bureau. A graduate of the University of Central Florida,
Ms. Lizasuain began her career at WMFE Channel 24/90.7 FM where she served as Audio Reading Service Manager, a radio program for the visually-impaired audience. Ms. Lizasuain also has experience working with grant development and marketing having worked for several local non-profit agencies.

In addition to professional organizations such as the Florida Law Enforcement Public Information Officers Association, National Association for County Information Officers, Florida Government Communicators Association and Florida Women in Government, Inc., Ms. Lizasuain is active in the local community. She currently serves as Chairman of the First United Methodist Church of Kissimmee's Staff Parish Relations Committee and on the Board of Directors for
Junior Achievement of Osceola County. She is also a member of the Rotary Club of Kissimmee Bay.

Twis and her husband live in Kissimmee with their three-year-old daughter.

Region Seven - Columbia, Putnam, St. Johns, Bradford, Union, Baker, Duval, Nassau, and Clay Counties

Greetings and welcome to FLEPIOA Region 7. We are here united together to assist you with any type of media concern you may have. Your agency may be small in size but you may have large media issues that we might be able to help you with. Please feel free to call on us, it is our pleasure to serve you.

Biography of Chuck Mulligan

• 21-year law enforcement veteran with the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office.
• Served 4 years on SWAT Team and Street Crimes Unit.
• Has worked alongside U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Marshal's Service providing security for Presidential and Federal Judge Protection Details.
• Developed the agency's DUI task force in 1993. In 1994, the county saw its lowest traffic fatality rate since 1963.
• Currently supervises Community Affairs Section and serves as Media Spokesperson. Has appeared on national news agencies to include CNN and Fox News. Recently coordinated filming with 48 Hours; 20/20; and Dateline.
• Appointed to the NE Florida Domestic Security Taskforce as Chairman of Public Information for 13 counties. Has served in this capacity since January 2002.
• Successfully fought for and negotiated funding for Florida's first Mobile Joint Information Center. There are currently 7 of these units in the state for all hazardous responses.

Region Ten - Santa Rosa, Escambia, & Okaloosa

Biography of Michele Nicholson

As Public Information Officer for the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office, Michele Nicholson handles media and public inquiries, writes news releases and conducts TV interviews, helps host a monthly cable television show called "Okaloosa Eye on Crime," and helps host or organize a weekly radio show on WFTW-AM.

She graduated with honors from the University of South Carolina with a degree in broadcast journalism. Upon graduation, she worked as a reporter for WLTX-TV, the CBS affiliate in Columbia, South Carolina before moving with her husband, Scott, to his hometown of Fort Walton Beach in 1987.

Over the next several years, Michele worked for WFTW radio, eventually becoming News Director at the station. She also wrote freelance newspaper feature articles for the Northwest Florida Daily News.

In 1988, Michele went to work as the first Public Information Officer for the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. After approximately a year in that position, she returned to her career field, accepting a job as the Okaloosa County Bureau Chief for WEAR-TV. She then spent the next 16 years covering events in Okaloosa County for Channel 3 News.

In October 2005, Michele returned to the Sheriff’s Office to become the Public Information Officer for a second time.

Michele remains involved in numerous civic and charitable organizations. She has served on the Board of Directors of the American Heart Association, Sergeant-at-Arms of the Fort Walton Beach Rotary Club, Board of Directors for the Panhandle Animal Welfare Society, on the United Way Marketing Committee, and as a founding member of the Okaloosa County Commission on the Status of Women. She is also a member of the Florida Law Enforcement Public Information Officers Association and National Information Officers Association.

Michele and her husband Scott have two children, Cody and Shane.