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Newly-elected Marion County sheriff promises transparency in department plagued by scandal

MARION COUNTY, Fla. — Marion County is getting its third sheriff in a year after voters elected a new person for the job Tuesday night.

Billy Woods defeated Dennis McFatten with more than 60 percent of the vote.

Woods, a former Ocala police officer, will start his new role in January but it may not be a simple transition.

Woods met with current Sheriff Emery Gainey on Wednesday to get up to speed on everything from investigations, budgets and day-to-day operations.

In his acceptance speech, Woods said he wants to make sure the agency stays on track and that transparency is key.

“We have to let our citizens see what we do, so that they don’t believe or think that we are hiding anything from them,” he said.

That hasn’t always been the case for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

Gainey was appointed by the governor after former Sheriff Chris Blair was removed from office.

Blair was arrested and charged for allegedly lying under oath about seeing a suspect’s injuries after the suspect had been roughed up by deputies.

Blair denied the allegations, but prosecutors said video from the scene shows otherwise.

Blair eventually took a plea deal.

Under Blair’s watch, there were other scandals, including a group of deputies arrested and charged for beating up a handcuffed suspect in a parking lot.

And some deputies have been accused of lying on reports.

There was also the crime-fighting kiosk program which came to a screeching halt when it was discovered Blair and one of his top lieutenants had a financial interest in the company that produces the kiosks.