DELAND — A Volusia County courthouse deputy investigated for a range of inappropriate workplace incidents retired while under Internal Affairs scrutiny, a 13-month investigation shows.
The investigation into Tammy Thoman, 49, started on Nov. 3, 2016, and was closed Dec. 4 of this year. Thoman did not remain on the job for the completion of the unraveling inquiry and neither did her husband, a high-ranking deputy in the agency. Both retired from the Sheriff's Office in April, eight months before the investigation was closed, officials said.
According to investigative documents, Thoman's behavior at her work at the Volusia County Courthouse in DeLand became the subject of an investigation after a complaint she filed about her supervisor was deemed unfounded.
Thoman, who was paid $42,000 in 2016, did not like newly instituted courthouse cross-training implemented by her supervisor Sgt. Robert Rohm and accused him of creating a hostile work environment. As the inquiry into the sergeant was ongoing, Thoman spied on him using courthouse security cameras, investigators said.
After the complaint about Rohm was declared unfounded, Tammy Thoman was brought under Internal Affairs scrutiny when many of her co-workers reported she made them feel uncomfortable at work. Some of Thoman's behavior was even distracting enough to get her banned from the chief judge's courtroom, documents show.
A captain, a lieutenant and two sergeants interviewed during a review of the case said they had difficulty with Thoman and could not discipline her in many instances because “upper management” would not take action on their recommendations, the reports state. They said there was interference from Thoman’s husband, Lt. Patrick Thoman, 51, whom Tammy Thoman always boasted had strong ties with former sheriff Ben Johnson, investigative documents state.
According to the investigation, issues between Rohm and Tammy Thoman started in June 2015, when Rohm was transferred to courthouse services and started taking steps to improve morale among courthouse deputies. Rohm started a cross-training program that required deputies to work in all departments so they could learn all aspects of courthouse security functions. This meant that Tammy Thoman, who had been working nine years solely in the DeLand courthouse’s security control room, had to work in other court areas, reports show.
The friction between Tammy Thoman and Rohm resulted in Thoman's November 2015 complaint.
As the supervisor’s inquiry was being done on Rohm, Tammy Thoman “took an offensive posture” toward Rohm and used video surveillance cameras in the courthouse to spy on the sergeant, investigators said.
A courthouse video reviewed by investigators showed Tammy Thoman zooming in on Rohm’s face in an attempt to read his lips and even focused on a notepad Rohm had in his hand, reports detail.
Sheriff's Office spokesman Andrew Gant declined to provide video, citing public records exemptions. Gant said the length of the investigation can be attributed to its thoroughness, and there wasn't an estimate of what the inquiry cost the agency.
When Tammy Thoman, who was working front door security at the DeLand courthouse, was given the findings of the inquiry into Rohm, she read it where she was working and made a public scene calling other deputies "liars" and "dirt bags," reports state.
Other deputies later approached Rohm and reported that Tammy Thoman was creating a hostile work environment. A total of 22 other deputies were interviewed and they shed light on her behavior, which IA investigators concluded created a negative work environment.
Investigators said there was no evidence to support claims of a hostile work environment as defined by law but determined that Tammy Thoman created a negative work environment, based on the deputy interviews with other deputies, the report concludes.
Both Tammy and Patrick Thoman also made several Facebook posts that made courthouse deputies feel threatened, as though they were being watched by the couple all the times, reports state.
A posts from one of the Thomans read, "I'm not sure whether I want to go on a shopping spree or a shooting spree," investigators said.
Another deputy disclosed that Tammy Thoman's "horseplay" with deputy Steven Wells in the control room made him feel uncomfortable.
The horseplay was described as being, "to the extent of pretty much fondling each other. Sitting in each other's laps. Hands on each other's legs acting like they are going to grab each other," investigators wrote.
Chief Judge Raul Zambrano asked that Tammy Thoman be banned from the area of his chambers and working in his courtroom because other deputies were uncomfortable, calling her a distraction and because of her "arrogance and behavior," reports state.
Capt. Eric Westfall expressed concern to investigators about Tammy Thoman and said that on several occasions he requested she be formally disciplined but that upper-management would not act.
In one instance Tammy Thoman found a firearm in a purse while working security at the historic courthouse and allowed the person to take it back to their car. No action was taken against her but a deputy, who did the same with a belt knife was suspended without pay, investigators said.
When she received the results of the inquiry into her complaints about Sgt. Rohm, Tammy Thoman said to co-workers, "Wait until my husband finds out. We're going to get an attorney, everybody's heads are gonna roll," the report states.
Editor's note: Information about the conclusion of the report, about a "negative" work environment has been added to the story.