Tag Archives: free speech

A Louisiana fire captain who was terminated last year, has filed suit claiming he is being retaliated against for contacting elected officials in his capacity as a union representative, in violation of his 1st Amendment rights. Jonathan Gramm filed suit naming the DeSoto Parish Fire District 9 and Fire Chief Kristopher King as defendants.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for August 5, 2024, Brad and Curt discuss the demotion of an Odessa, Texas fire captain following an investigation into nude photos being taken in the firehouse; a lawsuit filed by a South ...

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A North Carolina fire captain who was terminated in 2023 for sharing social media posts the city considered to be offensive, has filed suit alleging a violation of his right to free speech. Captain Dustin Jones filed suit against the City of Greensboro in Guilford County Superior Court.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for May 6, 2024, Brad and Curt discuss a suit filed by the families of three Baltimore firefighters killed in a building fire; a pink collar theft case in Pennsylvania; a civil action ...

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The initiation of a disciplinary investigation into social media posts by IAFF union officials in Tiverton, Rhode Island, has prompted a federal lawsuit accusing the town of wrongfully chilling the exercise of the firefighters’ First Amendment free speech rights.

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The union president of IAFF Local 3214 has filed suit in federal court alleging the Mountain View Fire Protection District fired him in retaliation for his union activities, and did so in a way that violated his Constitutional Rights. Benjamin Carter was fired on March 21, 2023.

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An Arizona firefighter who was terminated last November, has filed suit claiming the city’s stated reason for firing him was a pretext to retaliate against him for his union activities. Shannon Glynn filed suit against the City of El Mirage and its fire chief alleging violations of the Arizona Employment Protection Act, the Arizona Public Safety Employees Act, the FLSA, and his Constitutional rights.

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An elected official has filed suit against a Connecticut fire district claiming district officials have violated her First Amendment rights by prohibiting her from speaking at district board meetings. Christine Wakefield filed suit against the Dayville Fire District today in US District Court for the District of Connecticut.

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A Nashville firefighter who was disciplined over a social media post is poised to accept a $450,000 settlement from the city. Josh Lipscomb, who besides being a firefighter is a comedian that goes by the stage name of Josh Black, was suspended for fourteen days for the Twitter post he made in February, 2022.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for November 28, 2022, Brad and Curt discuss a federal court ruling that two believed-to-be volunteer firefighters who received shift stipends and point-based bonuses were actually employees entitled to minimum wage and overtime ...

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The 11th Circuit has ruled that a firefighter who was disciplined for calling an elected official to complain about apparatus being out-of-service, was not engaging in protected speech. Cobb County firefighter Scott Millspaugh filed suit last year claiming his demotion was retaliation for his having called Commissioner Keli Gambrill.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for October 24, 2022, Brad and Curt discuss a lawsuit challenging the termination of a union president from Massachusetts for wearing his dress uniform to a firefighter funeral, a Virginia Beach firefighter facing ...

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A Tennessee judge has issued a preliminary injunction barring enforcement of two Nashville Fire Department policies that regulate employee speech. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by a firefighter who was suspended for calling the city council “white supremacists” in social media.

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A Minnesota city that eliminated all five of its career firefighters as part of a restructuring in 2015, has agreed to pay those firefighters $3.9 million in damages. The City of Brainerd’s agreement to compensate the firefighters brings to a close a seven-year legal-saga.

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