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Austin Firefighters Challenge New Hiring Process
The Austin Firefighters Association, IAFF Local 975, has filed a grievance challenging the city’s new hiring process. The union supports the recommendations of a consultant who was paid $500,000 by the city to develop a new process, but complains that the department has chosen to go in a different direction in search of more minority candidates. There are over 5,500 applicants competing for 103 openings. AFD to file grievance about hiring: kxan.com Here's a link to a more in depth video on the grievance.
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2010 Review: Is there a Seasonal Variation in Legal Decisions?
Over the past few weeks, I have been working on a fire-law year in review article and I was blown away at how many major legal decisions were handed down in January and to a lesser extent February of 2010. Four of the 10 most interesting and important fire service cases in 2010 were decided in January and two more were decided in February. Many of the runners up for the top 10 were also decided in January. That brings up todays burning question: Was it just a fluke? Why would 60% of the major cases be decided so early…
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Family of Alabama EMT Sues Driver Who Struck Her
The family of an Alabama EMT struck and killed two weeks ago has filed suit against the driver. Laura Pullam, of Lowndesboro was struck and killed by a pickup truck at the scene of an accident on December 15, 2010 on Rt. I-65 near Montgomery. She was 29 years old and leaves an infant daughter. The driver of a pickup, Robert Cumbie, is alleged to have been speeding under icy conditions. Pullam was an EMT for Care Ambulance, and was attending to crash victims when she was struck. The news coverage below reports that Cumbie struck Pullam while she was off the…
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Lowell Captain Prevails in Unusual Discrimination Suit
A retired Lowell, Massachusetts fire captain has won a discrimination lawsuit against the Lowell Fire Department for refusing his request to be reinstated. The complicated story began in 1997 when Captain James McLaughlin was given a disability pension due to an asthma condition. Four years later, when his condition had improved, he requested to be reinstated. The fire department declined to rehire McLaughlin despite the fact that a state appointed "restoration to service" medical panel examined McLaughlin and found him to be fit. The panel’s determination should have required to city to rehire McLaughlin to fill the next available captain’s…
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Missouri Fire District Settles Open Meetings Violation
The troubled Northeast Ambulance and Fire Protection District in Missouri is one step closer to solving the various legal disputes that have plagued it for the past few years. Formerly the Normandy Fire Protection District, Northeast was charged with violating the state’s open meetings law. The district serves a population of 45,000 residents in an area in St. Louis County. In 2009, the fire district’s assets were frozen while state and Federal authorities investigated financial and other irregularities (see the video below). Two months ago, a former board member and fire chief pled guilty to violating the Clear Air Act…
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NH Fire Chief Pleads To Obstruction Charges Ending Lengthy Proceedings
A New Hampshire fire chief charged with over forty theft related offenses has finally wrapped up all outstanding charges against him. Shawn Mitchell, who was a deputy chief in Concord and fire chief in Webster, pled guilty to one charge of obstructing government administration. The plea brought to an end an investigation and legal proceedings dating back to 2006. Mitchell was charged with theft of equipment from Concord, and improper use of a Webster credit card. The equipment taken from Concord was allegedly given to the Webster Fire Department, and was not for Mitchell’s personal use. The credit card was…
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Another Municipality Sued For Shortchanging Pension Fund
Another municipality has been sued for failing to allocate sufficient funds to meet pension obligations. The trustees of the Harvey Firefighters Pension Fund in Harvey, Illinois, filed suit on December 17, 2010 in Cook County Circuit Court because the city failed to meets its contribution obligation for the third year in a row. The suit is similar to suits filed recently by Pittsburgh Firefighters, IAFF Local 1, Providence Firefighters, IAFF Local 799, Baltimore Firefighters IAFF Local 734, and other firefighter unions from around the country challenging the failure of politicians to properly fund firefighter pension systems. Pension related matters are also figuring…
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Firefighter Facing Homicide Charges Following POV Accident
A volunteer firefighter from Ohio has been indicted as a result of a fatal accident he was involve in last July while responding to a building fire in his personally owned vehicle. A grand jury charged Firefighter Timothy Johnson, 41 with two counts, aggravated vehicular homicide and aggravated vehicular assault. The accident occurred in Ottawa County on July 16, 2010, and claimed the life of Ian Huffman, 24. Johnson's speed was estimated at between 96-98 miles per hour. He was in critical condition following the accident, but survived. He faces up to 6 1/2 years in prison if convicted.
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NY OSHA Cites Fire Department In Confined Space Rescue Fatality
The Village of Tarrytown, New York has been cited by state OSHA over a confined space rescue incident that took the lives of two employees, including one firefighter. The incident is eerily reminiscent of another recent incident from Indiana where the Liberty Township Fire Department was cited by the Indiana Department of Labor in September for an incident last May. On September 6, 2010, Tarrytown public works foreman Anthony Ruggiero was attempting to clear a clogged sewer line near a fire station when he entered the sewer and collapsed. Firefighter John Kelly was nearby and without donning SCBA or waiting for…
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Georgia Firefighter Suspected in Over 20 Arson Fires
A volunteer firefighter in Lafayette, Georgia has been arrested and charged with one count of arson. However, Marvin Chase, 32, is a suspect in over 20 fires and is being referred to as a serial arsonist. According to one news report he admitted to setting over 30 different vacant structure fires. The USFA produced a special report on volunteer arson that has some excellent information – particularly about the profile of volunteers who set fires. Click here. Definitely worth reading.
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UK Firefighter Pleads to Cattle Stampede Death
The UK firefighter who was charged with manslaughter after his siren startled a herd of cattle last year, has pled guilty to lesser charge. Julian Lawford, a volunteer firefighter from the Devon and Somerset Fire Service, was responding to an alarm on August 11, 2009, when he came upon a slow moving herd of cattle in the road, being herded by farmer Harold Lee, 75 years old. Lawford sounded his siren, the cattle stampeded and fatally injured Lee. Lawford was originally charged with manslaughter, but pled guilty to careless driving, death resulting. He will be sentenced next year, but various…
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Clearwater Fire Chief Fired & Charged with Sexual Molestation
In a stunning development, the fire chief in Clearwater Florida has been terminated, charged with sexually molesting a minor over an extended period of time – perhaps as long as nine years. The allegations against former chief Jamie Douglas Geer surfaced in August, and culminated in his arrest Monday. The city wasted no time in terminating him. Here is more on the story:
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Indiana Chief Replaced Following LODD Outburst
The fire chief in Sellersburg, Indiana has been replaced following an outburst at the scene of a LODD ambulance accident last week. A county EMT, David Gundle, was killed in the accident on December 8, 2010. Fire Chief Greg Dietz, who was also an auxiliary police officer, is alleged to have directed profanities and obscene gestures at county sheriffs. Following the incident, he was released from the Sellersburg Police Department, and Monday was voted out as Sellersburg fire chief. Here is more on the story.
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