Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
Two Indiana firefighters who were terminated for submitting for hours they did not work have been sued by the state’s attorney general for return of the amounts they received.
Former White River Township firefighters Anthony Slusher and Mike Rude were accused of putting in for roughly $25,000 in hours they did not work. The discrepancy was discovered following a state audit.
However the firefighters have a different story. They claim they never put in for hours they did not work, and that the computerized tracking system was full of discrepancies.
Slusher is reported to have told Channel 6 News in Indianapolis that : “Upon my legal teams examination of the payroll records in a 20 month period ranging from 2005 to 2009, we found over 200 discrepancies between time cards and time sheets. We concluded that White River Fire Department’s time system has systematic flaws.”
The suit also names Arch Insurance Company as a defendant. Arch provides insurance to the fire department, including a $100,000 commercial crime policy. A grand jury is being conveigned to consider bringing criminal charges.
Here is a copy of the audit. White River Audit
