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FDNY Captain Sues For Injuries
An FDNY captain has filed suit against the city alleging negligence following an in station accident involving the decon unit. Captain Frank Sorito was injured on December 10, 2010 when the Decon Shower Unit housed at Engine 160 suddenly moved and pinned him. According to reports he was crushed, suffering numerous lower back fractures. The decon unit was apparently not chocked and was being serviced at the time. Captain Sorito’s suit includes an allegation that the mechanic was not properly trained, and that the unit was not properly secured. Most negligence suits by employees against their employer and/or co-workers are…
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California Captain Asks for $500k Because He Was Hazed
Here’s today’s burning question: “I’m a fire captain and I was assigned to work at a station in a different fire department as an observer for a day. While I was there the guys played a series of mean pranks on me. Can I sue them?” Ask Rialto Fire Department Captain Joshua Gilliam, who filed a claim for $500,000 against the city of Long Beach. On February 10, 2011 he worked at Long Beach Fire Department Station 11 as an observer. He was welcomed with a series of pranks including the venerable: Hot ball of tin foil Water dump (down the…
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Texas Refinery Firefighters File FLSA Suit for Overtime
Two former industrial firefighters at the port of Corpus Christi, Texas have filed a Federal lawsuit alleging they were wrongfully not paid overtime for all hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week. Joe Dale Martinez and Fidencio Lopez Jr. worked for a privately owned firefighting cooperative group named Refinery Terminal Fire Co. and owned by industrial companies including Calpine Corp., Citgo Corpus Christi Refinery, Diamond Shamrock’s Corpus Christi facility, Elementis Chromium, the Lyondell Chemical Corpus Christi plant, El Paso Corp., Koch Pipeline Co., Flint Hills Resources, the Port of Corpus Christi Authority and Valero Refining. The suit seeks…
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How Long is Too Long: Civil Suit in Ohio
An Ohio widow is suing the City of Northwood claiming the fire department took too long to respond to her 911 call for EMS assistance for her husband. On March 3, 2011, Ellen Mix called 911 three times over a 22 minute period to get help for her husband, Tim, who was having difficulty breathing. It took 28 minutes for an EMS unit to arrive. By then Tim had stopped breathing. He died 2 days later. The suit alleges not only that the EMS response was slow, but that local officials “knew or should have known that the City’s emergency…
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Oklahoma Fire Chief Arrested in New Mexico
The missing fire chief from the Terlton Volunteer Fire Department in Pawnee County, Oklahoma has been arrested in New Mexico. Chief Charles Badgwell is wanted in connection with the embezzlement of fire company funds. Chief Badgwell was arrested last Friday along with his girlfriend, Janet Kirby, by police in Luna County. They are awaiting extradition back to Oklahoma.
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Fire Service Court Radio
Here is the latest edition of the Fire Service Court web radio show. Listen to internet radio with fireengineeringtalkradio on Blog Talk Radio
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DNR Tattoos: Are You Kidding Me?
Here is one for all the paramedic legal eagles out there: You arrive on the scene of an unconscious 80 year old female. During the course of your patient assessment you notice a tattoo on her chest stating “Do Not Resuscitate”. Do you have to honor that request? We have discussed DNR orders here quite a bit, but this case is a bit different. Not that 80 year olds should be prohibited from getting inked, nor that people should be limited in their decisions on the extent to which their lives should be prolonged, but seriously? A DNR tattoo? That…
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Change in Pension Contributions Challenged in Alabama
Today’s burning question: Can a city unilaterally increase the amount that firefighters pay each week toward their pension while reducing their own contribution by the same amount? That is the issue in a case filed Thursday in Federal District Court in Gadsden, Alabama by seven members of the Gadsden Fire Department. On August 23, 2011 the City Council of Gadsden voted to increase the firefighters’ pension contributions from 6% of their salary to 8.25%, and reduce the city’s contribution. The suit alleges that the city’s action violates the U.S. Constitution and the State of Alabama’s constitution by being an “unlawful…
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Use of Prisoners as Firefighters
A friend of mine sent me this story about the use of prisoners as firefighters in Georgia. Apparently it is old news to many, but it is such a radical idea to me that I felt it was worth airing this issue here. What do you think, good idea, bad idea? My concern is over the opportunity that firefighters have to enter into buildings in the absence of the owner, having access to keys, security code information, etc. Is the cost of a firefighter’s salary that outrageous that responsible officials would subject citizens to such a threat? Or is it…
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1st Amendment Dilemma: Can a Patient Video Their Own Treatment?
In response to our discussions about the 1st Amendment and the right of the media and citizens to photograph emergency scenes, I received a great question from Firehrguy. We will turn that into today’s burning question: One of our Paramedics asked if there was any rule on a patient recording and filming their treatment. He had a patient that was recording the Paramedic as he was taking vitals and assessing the patient and the patient recorded all this with his phone. I am not aware of any law or case that even remotely begins to address this issue. The closest…
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Not Again: Volunteer Theft and 1st Amendment Violation Caught on Tape
Two New York cases are in the news today, both of which raise the same frustrated response: not again! In Charlton, New York, the treasurer of a volunteer fire department is accused of stealing between $400,000 and $500,000. Virginia DeCapria, 50, who served as treasurer of the Charlton Volunteer Fire Department was charged with grand larceny and several related charges for writing checks totaling nearly a half-million dollars to herself. DeCapria’s husband Dean served as the Charlton fire chief and she was secretary and treasurer from 2005 until January 2011. The department’s attorney, Terry Hannigan, was quoted as saying “Since we…
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Arizona Fire Chief Sues City Over Pension Denial
Today’s burning question: If you were hired as a fire chief by a city who promised you eligibility for a state managed pension, and it turned out the state pension board ruled your were ineligible, what would you do? An Arizona fire chief is taking steps to sue his employer over that very issue. Fire Chief Thomas Solberg left the Lee’s Summit, Missouri Fire Department in 2009 to become the fire chief in Peoria, Arizona. At the time he was told that he would be eligible for membership in the Arizona State Retirement System, and would vest after 5 years of…
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Second Suit Filed Against Pennsylvania FD Over Train Accident
A second lawsuit has been filed against a Pennsylvania volunteer fire department in the tragic deaths of a mother and son who were struck by a train. Sheila R. Singer, 37, and her son, John Smart, 2, were crossing the railroad tracks on October 30, 2009 when Smart’s stroller got stuck in the tracks. Singer was able to get her two other children ages 5 and 1 away off the tracks, but was struck as she was trying to free her son. According to news reports, a friend had just given Singer $50 and she crossed the tracks to buy…
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Bridgeport FD Hit with $3.4 Million Verdict for Apparatus Accident
The Bridgeport Fire Department has been found liable for an apparatus accident that claimed the lives of two women in 2007. The accident occurred on July 31, 2007, as Ladder 5, driven by Firefighter David Otero, was responding to a reported smoke condition. Ladder 5 allegedly proceeded through a red traffic signal at Congress Street and Housatonic Avenue, colliding with a car driven by Gwendolyn Little, 58, and occupied by her mother, Essie Williams, 76. Both Little and Williams died as a result of their injuries. The trial was held before Judge Theodore Tyma sitting without a jury. In an 18…
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