Sexual misconduct

The City of Utica has prevailed in its appeal of a lower court ruling reinstating and awarding backpay to a firefighter who was terminated for sexual misconduct on duty. Richard J. Forte was terminated following a bizarre incident in the firehouse in 2018. He was initially suspended without pay while the discipline process began, and later terminated.

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An inadvertent disclosure of an internal disciplinary investigative report by Bedford County, Virginia constituted a waiver of any attorney-client privilege that otherwise would have applied, according to a ruling last week. The case involves a volunteer EMT who was sexually assaulted and abused by a career lieutenant while participating in ride-along training with the Bedford County Department of Fire & Rescue when she was a minor.

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A San Jose firefighter who was terminated in 2009, has lost a second appeal to the California Court of Appeals. Grant Seibert was terminated following allegations that he sent sexually suggestive emails to a 16-year old girl who visited the fire station, and for his behavior toward a female colleague.

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A Columbus, Ohio battalion chief who resigned last year amidst allegation of sexual harassment, has been sued by a “fire cadet” for coercing her to undress and touching her inappropriately. The cadet, whose name was not released in news reports about the lawsuit, filed suit today in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.

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A Kentucky firefighter has been fired from one department and suspended without pay from a second after he was accused of having unwanted sexual contact with a colleague in the firehouse. Elijah Mays was arrested earlier this week, hours after he allegedly assaulted a female colleague

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A lawsuit accusing the La Habra Heights Fire Department of religious discrimination and sexual harassment, has been settled. Former volunteer firefighter Jared Hartstein filed the suit in LA County Superior Court accusing the department of terrorizing him throughout his five months of training.

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A Massachusetts firefighter has been arrested in Rhode Island on charges that he solicited sex from an undercover police officer posing online as a 14-year old girl. Edward Mathias, 40, a ten-year veteran of the Fall River Fire Department, was arrested earlier this week when he attempted to meet the girl in Rhode Island.

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Three Massachusetts firefighters who were terminated just before Christmas last year have filed separate lawsuits claiming their firing was retaliation for cooperating with a state police investigation involving their current fire chief. Capt. Rebecca Boutin, FF David Kennedy and FF Kyle Miltimore filed their suits against the City of Westfield.

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A Missouri firefighter has filed suit against her department, two chiefs, a captain and a firefighter-colleague alleging she has been sexual harassed and retaliated against. Dana Osborne filed suit last week in citing a litany of boorish behaviors perpetrated by her captain and others within the Nixa Fire Protection District.

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The Martha’s Vineyard Times is reporting that FBI agents have been on the island recently investigating the Oak Bluffs Fire Department. According to a source named by the Times, the investigation is looking into Medicare and Medicaid billing issues. The Times is also reporting that subpoenas have been issued to fire department employees.

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A California firefighter who claims she endured years of sexual harassment has agreed to settle her federal lawsuit for $335,000. LisaMarie Mason sued the El Dorado Hills Fire Department and former Fire Chief Dave Roberts last year.

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A female firefighter who was forced to take a medical retirement from the Fort Worth Fire Department has filed a 55-page, 330-paragraph, ten-count complaint naming the city and five officers, accusing them of sexual harassment and violating her civil rights. Identified in the complaint as Jane Doe, the firefighter claims she was sexually assaulted while on-duty by supervisors.

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A second lawsuit has been filed against a Utah fire department and a former assistant chief alleging sexual assault. Whitney Ottley filed suit last month against Assistant Fire Chief Austin James Corry and the Kanosh Volunteer Fire Department claiming she was raped in the firehouse in November 2016.

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Three dispatchers for the Jefferson Parish East Bank Consolidated Fire Protection Bureau have filed suit alleging gender discrimination, sexual harassment and retaliation. Monica Mitchell, Melissa Burkett, and Tammy Cavanaugh claim their supervisor, Robert Funk, discriminated against them and subjected them to a hostile work environment.

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