Fort Myers top cop nominee took high-tech approach in Toledo

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Derrick Diggs, the man whom the Fort Myers city manager nominated to take over the city’s police force, left a positive impression as chief in Toledo, Ohio, where he made advancements in using technology to battle crime, a former reporter there said.

The Fort Myers City Council is expected to confirm City Manager Saeed Kazemi’s selection of Diggs in a meeting Thursday.

“People in the city generally seemed to like him,” said former Toledo Blade police reporter Taylor Dungjen. “The department did advance a lot under Diggs.”

Diggs moved forward with technology, and Toledo police got involved in social media during his time there, Dungjen said. He implemented what was known as “Skycop” technology, with 150 cameras placed in high-crime areas. Some credited the system with reducing crime while others deemed it an invasion of privacy.

“In public areas, I’m not really that concerned about it, as long as we’re not talking ‘1984’ cameras inside of people’s houses type of thing,” Fort Myers resident Armando Poveda said.

Diggs served as chief in Toledo from 2011-2014, capping a 37-year career with department. He stepped down in January 2014, citing “irreconcilable differences in policing philosophy” with the incoming mayor of Toledo, according to news reports.

If the Fort Myers City Council gives its OK, Diggs would be the first chief from outside the department in 21 years, and he’d be the first black chief in more than a decade.

“We just need some fairness,” Fort Myers resident Vivian Hodge said. “Yeah, someone to be fair. And someone to solve some of these unsolved murders out here. And someone to find something to do with our young people.”

Fort Myers has been seeking a new chief since firing Doug Baker in August 2015 amid controversy surrounding the wrongful arrest of NFL player Nate Allen. Dennis Eads has been serving as interim chief.