Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
Additional details are emerging about the lawsuit filed today against the Charlotte Fire Department by former fire investigator Crystal Eschert.
Eschert filed the 75 page suit claiming that after she raised health, safety, and financial management concerns she was retaliated against by the fire department and terminated in September, 2014. Her termination was ostensibly over a post she made on Facebook stating: “White guy [was] shot by police…. So tired of hearing it’s a racial thing. If you are a thug and worthless to society, it’s not race – You’re just a waste no matter what religion, race, or sex you are.”
According to WSOCTV.com, Eschert’s attorney Meg Maloney released the following statement relative to the suit:
“Crystal Eschert has provided a detailed account of the retaliation against her by the Fire Department. We continue to be very troubled by the City’s failure to acknowledge the retaliation in violation of her First Amendment right to raise concerns about health, safety, and financial mismanagement, and engage in public debate. Rather than do the right thing and address the problems, we believe the City turned its sights on Crystal as the problem. Now we’ll ask a judge and jury to do the right thing.”
Here is a copy of the complaint: Eschert v Charlotte
