Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone

A Colorado Springs firefighter charged with careless driving resulting in death, pled guilty to the misdemeanor charge. Wesley Cosgrove was driving a brush unit to a fire in a park on October 16, 2022. While proceeding down a dirt path he drove over what appeared to be debris. A 76-year-old homeless woman, Margaret Miller, was under the debris.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for March 14, 2023, Bill Maccarone and Curt discuss a lawsuit filed by an Alabama fire department against a Florida-based dry cleaner over damage to seven Santa costumes; criminal charges brought against a ...

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An Alabama fire department has filed suit against a Florida-based dry cleaner claiming that the cleaning process damaged seven Santa costumes. The Lillian Volunteer Fire Department filed the small claims action against Modern Dry Cleaning, of Pensacola, Florida, seeking $1618.12 in damages and $225 in costs.

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A former Georgia fire chief has been charged with using a departmental credit card to purchase approximately $200 of gasoline for a personal vehicle. Peach County’s former chief Jeff Doles is accused of inappropriately using the credit card six times over a two-year period.

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The City of Encinitas has agreed to settle an FLSA lawsuit with four current and former battalion chiefs. The chiefs filed suit last year claiming they were wrongly classified as exempt executives ineligible for overtime.

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A woman who was injured in a collision caused by “equipment or firehose” coming off a Nashville fire truck in 2022, has filed suit against the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County and the driver of a third vehicle that struck her from behind after the initial collision. Kristin Boesen filed suit in Davidson County Circuit Court alleging negligence.

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A San Francisco firefighter who claims he was assaulted by a colleague while both were off-duty, has filed suit against the other firefighter, the city, the fire chief, two other chief officers, and two company officers. Gabriel Shin filed suit earlier this year alleging battery, assault, race discrimination, disability discrimination, retaliation and several related counts.

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Los Angeles County has agreed to a final settlement with the family of Kobe Bryant over claims that emergency responders took and shared grisly photos from at the helicopter crash scene. The January 26, 2020 crash killed nine people including Bryant and his 13 year-old daughter.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for March 6, 2023, Brad and Curt discuss a volunteer theft case out of North Carolina; a Louisiana Court of Appeals ruling on cancer presumptions for firefighters; a Ninth Circuit decision holding the ...

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The former treasurer of a North Carolina volunteer fire department has been charged with stealing over $48,000 from the department. Kimberly Hutchens Reeves is facing felony larceny charges for her alleged theft from the Pearce’s Mill Fire Department.

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The Louisiana Court of Appeals has reversed a worker’s compensation decision that denied a firefighter benefits for cancer. James Schexnayder, a firefighter in Jefferson Parish, was diagnosed with lymphoma on May 28, 2020.

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The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the City of Seattle is not liable to the mother of a 19-year-old special needs man who was shot and killed in the CHOP zone in 2020. Donnitta Sinclair claimed the city’s conduct caused the death of her son, Horace Lorenzo Anderson, Jr.

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The civil service appeal of a Boston fire captain over his right to sit for an upcoming promotional examination for district chief has been denied by the Massachusetts Civil Service Commission. Captain Kevin Ranahan filed the appeal after he was denied the opportunity to take the district chief exam scheduled for March 25, 2023.

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Three FDNY chiefs who were demoted by Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh earlier this month have filed suit claiming they are being retaliated against for raising legitimate safety concerns. Assistant Chiefs Joe Jardin, Michael Gala and Fred Schaaf filed suit today in Kings County Supreme Court.

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