Palm Beach Gardens Police Major Robert Wilson has retired from the department following an internal affairs investigation that sustained allegations involving alcohol, a city vehicle, and conduct violations. Wilson, a longtime member of the department's command staff, stepped down after investigators concluded their inquiry into his conduct.
The retirement was first reported by WPEC, which detailed the findings tied to Wilson's use of alcohol, a city-owned vehicle, and other conduct violations uncovered during the internal affairs review. Wilson had built a prominent public profile within the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department over the years, including a stint as the department's designated Public Information Officer in May 2023, according to official department records.
A High-Profile Career Inside PBGPD
Wilson's role extended well beyond spokesperson duties. As recently as August 2024, he appeared alongside Palm Beach Gardens Police Chief Dominick Pape before the City Council to mark the 20th anniversary of the department's Citizens Mobile Patrol unit, a community program he oversaw as head of community operations, per the City of Palm Beach Gardens. Years earlier, in January 2018, Wilson led active shooter and emergency response training for 340 city staff members while serving as a captain, a program that combined run-hide-fight protocols with bleeding-control instruction following national mass casualty events, according to a report from AJC.com.
The Palm Beach Gardens Police Department, headquartered at 10500 N. Military Trail, operates with roughly 128 sworn officers and 61 civilian staff under Chief Pape, per the City of Palm Beach Gardens. The department oversees field operations, administrative services, traffic, K-9, tactical units, and emergency communications, and the city has continued to invest in its infrastructure, allocating $2.43 million for a newly established internal Police Dispatch division in its Fiscal Year 2025–2026 budget.
How Florida Law Handles the Records and What Comes Next
Internal affairs files like the one involving Wilson typically stay confidential while active, but Florida Statute Section 112.533 requires them to become public record once an investigation concludes, as explained by WUFT. Separately, Florida's Law Enforcement Officers' Bill of Rights, codified under Section 112.532, mandates specific procedural protections and formal notification timelines for officers facing administrative investigations that could lead to suspension or termination, according to the Cocoa Beach Police Department.
Wilson's decision to retire rather than face further proceedings does not necessarily close the matter at the state level. The Florida Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission retains independent authority to review sustained internal affairs findings and revoke an officer's state law enforcement certification even after retirement or resignation, per a report from WRAL. Local agencies in Florida are required to submit sustained policy violations to the commission using official reporting forms, meaning it remains an open question whether decertification proceedings will follow in Wilson's case.
Alcohol-related misconduct findings are not isolated within Florida law enforcement. A 2024 study by Florida Atlantic University, which analyzed state disciplinary records from 2012 to 2023 across 241 Florida law enforcement agencies, found that alcohol and drug-related offenses were among the most prevalent categories of police misconduct recorded statewide. Palm Beach Gardens has faced internal scrutiny of its own officers before: in November 2021, WPEC reported that a department officer was arrested on cyberstalking charges following a separate internal affairs review.
No criminal charges have been referenced in connection with Wilson's case, and the findings against him remain administrative in nature, distinct from any criminal proceeding. Whether the state commission opens a decertification review is still unresolved, and Hoodline could not confirm the current status of any such referral.
