San Francisco Investigating FF Ordered to Work Who Missed Run

Posted by: Curt Varone September 22, 2015 2 Comments

The San Francisco Fire Department is taking disciplinary action against a firefighter who was ordered to work an extra 24 hour shift, missed a run while working that shift, and was then discovered to be intoxicated.

The strange story gets even stranger. The firefighter, who the San Francisco Chronicle identifies as a 46-year-old transgendered firefighter, was scheduled to fly to the Midwest for a medical appointment the day he was ordered to work. The firefighter’s appeal of the ordering was denied up the chain of command all the way to the deputy chief.

The Chronicle outlines that various factors impacting the case, including:

  • The firefighter had exhausted his allotted number of refusals for the year and for that reason was unable to refuse the overtime
  • The department is short 350 firefighters prompting extensive mandatory overtime
  • The firefighter tested four times the city’s maximum .04% BAL (which itself is pretty generous)
  • The firefighter agreed to go to a 28-day alcohol rehab program which he successfully completed

Here is more on the story.

About Curt Varone

Curt Varone has over 45 years of fire service experience and 35 as a practicing attorney licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. His background includes 29 years as a career firefighter in Providence (retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief), as well as volunteer and paid on call experience. He is the author of two books: Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, (2006, 2nd ed. 2011, 3rd ed. 2014, 4th ed. 2022) and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook (2007), and is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column.
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