A New York fire department has filed suit against a former fire chief and his wife alleging they improperly used department funds for personal purposes. The Marbletown Volunteer Fire Department filed suit against former fire Chief William Storrs and former treasurer Nicole Storrs.| Fire Law Blog
The City of Honolulu is facing a lawsuit by the family of a 91-year-old man who burned to death in an ambulance during transport. Fred Kaneshiro died in the August 24, 2022 explosion and fire that investigators concluded was related to a faulty oxygen regulator.| Fire Law Blog
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that a mayor who retaliates against a fire chief for refusing to make false statements to the public about a matter of public concern, is not entitled to qualified immunity. As a result, a mayor could be liable to the chief for violating his First Amendment rights.| Fire Law Blog
The Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled that a fire department that uses apparatus to block traffic at an accident scene, is entitled to governmental immunity in the event that an errant driver strikes the vehicle. The decision reverses a trial court ruling that held that the motor-vehicle exception to governmental immunity applied to potentially expose the department to liability.| Fire Law Blog
Columbus Fire Fighters Union IAFF Local 67 and Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 9 have filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of their members following a ransomware cyberattack on the city’s information technology. The attack is believed to have occurred on July 18, 2024, and resulted in the theft of the employees’ personal and confidential information.| Fire Law Blog
The US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has denied the appeal of two former employees of the St. George Fire Protection District who claimed they were discriminated against and forced out of the department over their romantic relationship. Stacie Dellucky and Frank Dellucky filed suit against the district and the fire chief alleging civil rights violations.| Fire Law Blog
The New York Supreme Court for Dutchess County has ruled that a fire department that requests aid from a neighboring community is responsible to compensate that assisting department for damage that occurs to their apparatus, even though the apparatus has been released from the incident, and even though the damage was solely the result of negligence by its driver.| Fire Law Blog
A fire captain with the Los Angeles City Fire Department has filed suit alleging he was harassed, retaliated against, and ultimately transferred after reporting an arson investigator for having left an unsecured firearm in an unlocked vehicle. Captain Brandon Taulli claims that the investigator’s race and gender played a central role in what he characterizes as an “adverse employment action.”| Fire Law Blog
The CA Court of Appeals has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by a LAFD firefighter who claims he was defamed and discriminated against after he was falsely accused of sexually assaulting a patient. Louis Cerda claimed that the department’s handling of a female patient’s accusations damaged his reputation and subjected him to adverse employment action.| Fire Law Blog
A former recruit firefighter who resigned after being accused of placing a noose around the neck of an African American colleague, is now being sued by the insurance company for the fire department. The former Clark County Fire District 6 recruit, John Erickson, was sued by the victim of the racist assault, Elijah Page.| Fire Law Blog
