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Widow Instrumental in Passage of Florida Law to Extend Line of Duty Death Benefits To Firefighters Killed During Training
An important piece of legislation was passed in Florida last month, and signed into law on June 1, 2010 to close a loophole in Florida law that treated the death of a firefighter during training as not “in the line of duty”. This issue came into prominence in 2007 when Volusia County Firefighter John Curry died during a wildland fire training exercise. Personnel were cutting a tree that fell in an unexpected direction, landing on FF Curry, who was 30 years old at the time. His wife and young son were ineligible for state death benefits and her health benefits were…
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Another Twist in the FDNY Discrimination Case
There has been another abrupt change in the FDNY discrimination litigation. On June 1, 2010 Judge Nicholas Garaufis announced that Mary Jo White, a former Federal prosecutor, would take over the role of special master from Robert Morgenthau, who decided to withdraw. Judge Garaufis appointed Morgenthau to serve as special master on May 26, 2010, but the decision came under heavy criticism immediately by the Bloomberg administration. In a letter to the judge, Morgenthau wrote "the city’s Law Department has now objected to my service, claiming I will be perceived as biased against the current administration…[I] request that the Court relieve me of the duties…
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Novel Solution to ER Delays: Fine the Hospital
Have you ever transported a patient to an emergncy room, and had to wait while hospital personnel (usually understaffed) deal with a patient backlog before they can accept your patient? Our fellow EMTs and paramedics in the UK have stumbled upon a possible solution: fine the hospital for keeping amulances waiting longer than 20 minutes, and double the fine after 1 hour. Hospitals in Gloucestershire county now face fines of £95 ($140) per ambulance kept waiting for than 20 minutes before offloading a patient. The fines will be levied and paid to NHS Gloucestershire and given to the Great Western…
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Former Fire Chief Charged in AFG Related Theft
The American Fire Grant (AFG) program administered by the Department of Homeland Security/FEMA, has been one of most important Federal programs to support the fire service. Unlike many other Federal programs, it has been remarkably free from controversy – except for the occasional whining from this group or that about their fair share… but that's another story. Depending on how you look at these things, a recent case from New Jersey represents either a problem with AFG – or it shows that safe-guards built into the program work to prevent problems. The Clayton Fire Department in Gloucester County received an…
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Special Master Appointed to Oversee FDNY Hiring
The ongoing saga of the FDNY employment discrimination case took another turn yesterday, when Federal District Court Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis appointed Robert M. Morgenthau as a special master to address the FDNY’s hiring practices. In remarkably blunt terms, Judge Garaufis explained why he appointed Morgenthau, who recently retired after 35 years as the district attorney of Manhattan: “The city does not appear to understand that it already lost this case, and that its obligation now is not to fight tooth and nail against the possibility of change, but to move with alacrity to cure its illegal practices. Put bluntly,…
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Male on Male Sexual Harassment Suit Dismissed in South Bend
The male-on-male sexual harassment lawsuit filed by a South Bend, Indiana firefighter in February, 2009 has been dismissed. Firefighter John Banacki claimed that a male firefighter rubbed up against him in a sexual manner on at least three occasions in 2007 while the two worked together at Station 6. Banacki alleged that when he complained to superiors about the inappropriate behavior, he was further discriminated against and transferred. He filed suit in Federal District Court claiming that the behavior and retaliation created a sexually hostile work environment. Magistrate Christopher Nuechterlein dismissed the suit law week, concluding that: "In light of…
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Chicago Fire Discrimination Case – Another Fire Service Case Sets Precedent
Another in a long line of precedent setting cases involving the fire service was decided today by the US Supreme Court. The case, Lewis v. Chicago, involved alleged discrimination against African American applicants for the Chicago Fire Department who took a test in 1995. The department set a passing score of 64 on the exam. Applicants who scored at least 64 but below 89 were informed that they passed the test, but would probably not be hired given the number of candidates who scored 89 or above. Applicants scoring 89 and above were classified as “well qualified”. The majority of…
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Copy Machines Pose a Major Risk of Confidentiality Breaches
A recent CBS News expose on the potential security problems associated with copy machines should be of concern to every fire and EMS organization in the country. The potential for violations of patient and employee confidentiality are enormous, not to mention the risk of identity theft. A big thank you to John Murphy for finding this for us.
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Pelham Firefighters Claim FLSA Violation
Firefighters in Pelham, Alabama have filed a lawsuit against the department alleging that their work schedule violates the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). The act requires that firefighters who work more than 52 hours per week, or on average more than 212 hours in an 28 day (4 week) stretch, receive either overtime compensation or compensatory time off. According to the suit, Pelham firefighters work a typical three shift schedule of 24 hours on, 48 hours off, which averages 56 hours per week. The problem is the city requires the firefighters to take compensatory time in lieu of overtime, and…
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Release of Random Drug Testing Results Raise HIPAA Challenge
Fire Lieutenant Shawn Baptist was fired last year from the Zephyrhills, Florida Fire Department after he allegedly failed a random drug test on February 23, 2009. He is challenging the termination as well as the results of the test through grievance arbitration. In addition he filed suit last week alleging the public release of his medical tests violated HIPAA and state medical privacy laws. Baptist claims that both Fire Chief Keith Williams and City Manager Steve Spina at various times told the media that he was fired because he failed a random drug test. Spina is quoted as saying "When…
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Village Escapes Liability for Sex Abuse By Chief
On May 7, 2010, the US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit ruled that a fire department would not be held liable for sexual abuse committed by a former fire chief. The suit was one of two brought by a former cadet at the Village of Thornton, Illinois Fire Department alleging that Fire Chief John Klaczak physically and sexually abused him in 2001. Chief Klaczak was fired in July, 2002, and pled guilty to sexual abuse charges in 2005. Former Cadet Steven Wragg filed one suit in Illinois state court alleging assault, intentional infliction of severe emotional distress, and negligence…
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Alberta Babysitter is Both Hero and Defendant
A Canadian teenager who saved two children from a trailer fire in 2007, is now a defendant in a lawsuit over responsibility for the fire. Aaliyah Braybrook, of Alberta, was 12 years old at the time of the fire, and was baby sitting for two young boys. She is now 14. One of the boys is alleged to have been playing with a cigarette lighter in the bathroom, starting the blaze that destroyed the trailer, and spread to an adjacent house. The house, owned by the grandparents of the boys, was heavily damaged. Aaliyah was able to evacuate both boys…
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NY Volunteer Charged with Drunk Driving While Responding to Fire
A volunteer fire captain in New York state was arrested early this morning when his car struck a police officer directing traffic at the scene of a house fire he was responding to. The captain was accused of drunk driving, and is alleged to have had a blood alcohol level of .15. More on the story.
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