Disciplinary Action

A lawsuit filed by a deaf Idaho firefighter who was terminated, is headed to trial after a federal court refused to grant him summary judgment. Matthew Burgoyne was terminated from the Rock Creek Rural Fire Protection District for insubordination in 2019.

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A Massachusetts fire lieutenant and union president who was fired in April, has filed suit in conjunction with his union alleging the city’s action violates the First Amendment. Lieutenant William S. Taylor was fired by the City of Marlborough, in large measure because he wore his Class A uniform to the funeral of a firefighter.

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A Virginia Beach firefighter is facing federal child porn charges following an investigation that connected his IP to a firehouse. Douglas France is accused of possession and distribution of child pornography.

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A Tennessee judge has issued a preliminary injunction barring enforcement of two Nashville Fire Department policies that regulate employee speech. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by a firefighter who was suspended for calling the city council “white supremacists” in social media.

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Two Texas firefighters have been dismissed after speaking to a local reporter about what they claim is an abuse of power and hostile environment by a local police chief who is serving as acting president of the local volunteer fire company. Lieutenant Drew Cizek and Benjamin Gullet say they were terminated from the Central Bell County Fire & Rescue

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An FDNY firefighter who was terminated in March for refusing to get a COVID vaccine, has been reinstated by a Justice of the New York Supreme Court. Timothy Rivicci has been ordered reinstated with full backpay and benefits under a ruling by Supreme Court Justice Ralph Porzio last week.

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A Lansing firefighter who filed a race discrimination suit in 2019, and a second discrimination suit in 2020 alleging retaliation and violation of his First Amendment rights, has been awarded $1 million in damages by a federal court jury. Michael Lynn Jr. filed the first suit after he discovered a banana placed between the windshield and the wiper of his assigned truck.

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The crew of a San Jose engine company is under investigation after a video surface last week showing a scantily clad woman exiting the cab and entering a strip club. The video first surfaced on Instagram and quickly got the attention of local officials, including San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and Fire Chief Robert Sapien, Jr.

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A Georgia firefighter who was terminated in 2017 following an off-duty vehicle accident, has lost his suit to regain his job. Robert Bailey was fired from the Henry County Fire Department following an investigation into an accident that occurred on June 14, 2017.

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A Columbia fire captain who was terminated after posting comments online that were critical of law enforcement following a shooting death of one of his relatives, is filing suit to get his job back. Captain Ameer Bagley was fired on April 10, 2020, just 3 days after the death of 17-year-old Joshua Ruffin.

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A San Francisco firefighter is facing a disciplinary investigation following a social media photo of him wearing a “Let’s Go Brandon” shirt while apparently engaged in fire department activities. The photo was posted on Twitter, and the poster tagged Mayor London Breed, a city supervisor, and the fire department, asking the question “is this the new official uniform for the SFFD?"

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A volunteer firefighter in New York who was dismissed for allegedly missing three consecutive monthly meetings, has filed suit claiming First Amendment, due process and equal protection violations. Keith Davis filed suit in federal court naming the Commack Fire Department, the Commack Fire District, the fire chief, the executive board, and the fire commissioners as defendants.

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Twelve African American fire lieutenants with the Chicago Fire Department have filed suit claiming they were discriminated against on account of their race in the scoring of a promotional process for captain in 2017.

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A former West Virginia firefighter who forcibly raped a 16-year-old female in a firehouse in January 2021, has been sentenced to fourteen years in prison. Christopher Lee Osborne, 26, pled guilty earlier this year on federal civil rights violation charges.

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