Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
Two New York firefighters who allegedly stole medication from a fellow firefighter in the fire station last year have been charged with larceny and distributing drugs.
Douglas J. Groesbeck, 39, and Allen Harmon, 24, both firefighters in Camillus, are accused of stealing prescription medication from another firefighter between June 2014 and November 2014. The charges were brought by the Camillus Police Department.
Syracuse.com cited Camillus Police Chief Thomas Winn as saying that at the time of the thefts, Groesbeck was the fire chief and Harmon was a captain, although at the time of the arrests Chief Groesbeck was an assistant chief and Captain Harmon was a firefighter.
Police have refused to reveal the medication involved, but the charges are misdemeanors.
Drug related offenses are one of the 10 disciplinary problem areas we are seeing in the fire service. This is the first case of a firefighter stealing drugs from a coworker that I have come across – and the only one in my database. The more common occurrences are the theft of drugs from an EMS unit, or the theft of meds from patients. We will be discussing these issues as part of the Managing Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service program that is scheduled in North Providence, RI on September 21-22, and in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma on October 8-9. Please join us!!!!
