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SHANNON COLAVECCHIO-VAN SICKLERDonald Goff's latest review pointed out a need to "make better decisions in (his) personal life."
TAMPA - Even before an FBI investigation into Internet crimes prompted Donald M. Goff to retire suddenly last week as Hillsborough County's fire marshal, his 18-year career with the fire department had begun to fray.
Personnel records show that his most recent evaluation, completed in December and covering the period between October 2002 and September 2003, was mixed.
While Goff was praised for his dedication to improving the county Fire Department's image and production, the evaluator said Goff "needs to make better decisions in (his) personal life that directly affect his job performance."
The review came just four months after Goff, 61, was arrested in southern Hillsborough on a charge of driving under the influence. Goff refused a blood alcohol test and was released from jail after he posted $250 bail.
According to his personnel file, Goff's license was temporarily suspended following the arrest. But the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reinstated it in October. Fire rescue spokesman Ray Yeakley said Goff would have lost his job if his license were not reinstated, because driving is a requirement of his job.
The department did not punish Goff for the arrest because it happened during his off-duty hours, Yeakley said.
Still, the arrest was a setback in Goff's ascending career with the department. He started out in 1986 as a fire training instructor, moved up to fire inspector, deputy fire marshal and then fire marshal in 2002.
"His performance showed he could handle additional responsibilities," Yeakley said of Goff's promotion to fire marshal, a job that pays about $85,000 a year. "He was very productive, he had the experience."
But that came to an end June 21 when Goff abruptly left a convention in Pinellas County and drove to his department headquarters in Tampa, where he dropped off a two-line resignation letter:
I will terminate employment as a fire marshal on 6/21/2004. My termination is for the purpose of retirement.
Yeakley said Goff had previously put in notice that he planned to retire, but that wasn't supposed to happen until the end of this year when Goff turns 62.
"His whole purpose (of retiring early) was not to bring discredit to the department," Yeakley said.
He said the department later learned from Goff's attorney, Brian Gonzalez of Tampa, that Goff is being investigated by the FBI for "inappropriate use of a home computer."
"They're saying it was done off-duty, at his own home," Yeakley said.
FBI officials would not comment.
"We don't confirm or deny investigations," said Special Agent Sarah Oates, spokeswoman for the Tampa FBI office. She noted that no charges have been filed.
But Yeakley said the FBI seized Goff's home computer. And while the department does not think any illegal activity was done at Goff's work computer, technology services technicians this week began inspecting it just to be sure.
Goff had been working in the fire prevention field since the late '70s, when he worked for the fire prevention bureau in Plattsburgh, N.Y., where he also studied fire science at Empire State College-SUNY.
He took a hiatus from firefighting in the early '80s, when he ran his own sporting goods store in Port Richey.
In 1984 and 1985 he was a substitute teacher at Hudson Senior High School in Hudson. He also worked as a carpenter and as a substitute teacher in Pasco County, according to his job application to the Hillsborough County Fire Department.
Goff could not be reached Monday, and his attorney, Gonzalez, declined to comment.
Frank Fernandez, who has been deputy fire marshal for the past two years, will be acting fire marshal until the post is filled permanently, Yeakley said.
The department expects to spend about two months on an open search, meaning people outside the fire department can apply. The job requires a master's degree and at least four years' experience in a supervisory position, Yeakley said.
"It's a well-paying job and there's lots of responsibility," he said.
- Shannon Colavecchio-Van Sickler can be reached at 813 226-3373 or svansickler@sptimes.com