Fire lieutenant can’t retire before he faces discipline, department chief says
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Version 0 of 1. A D.C. firefighter who was poised to retire while facing internal charges in a botched response to a choking toddler has been told he cannot leave the department with benefits before a review panel disciplines or clears him. A fire department spokesman said the firefighter, Lt. Guy Valentine, remains on duty with his retirement listed as conditional. The 28-year veteran has been charged administratively with neglect of duty. Fire officials said Valentine was in a station blocks from the choking child when the call came last March, but did not interject when a dispatcher sent paramedics from more than a mile away. The department has blamed a faulty reading on a computer tablet for not recognizing Valentine was available. The 18-month-old died. Earlier this month, it appeared that Valentine was primed to take advantage of a mistake by fire officials when he sought to retire before facing a trial board. While a law passed by the D.C. Council last year bars firefighters facing serious misconduct cases from retiring, the department said it had not taken the administrative steps required to put the law in place. Officials said the department failed to write the regulations for the new law and publish them in the D.C. register for public comment. District and fire union officials said two weeks ago that it appeared Valentine could retire with full benefits. But Gregory M. Dean, chief of the D.C. fire and emergency medical services department, said Thursday that after a review, authorities decided to block Valentine’s retirement. Valentine has put in his retirement papers, but they generally take up to 60 days to process. Dean said the regulations were finalized on Tuesday and will be published Feb. 5. [New law never implemented governing firefighter retirements] Dean said he expects Valentine to appeal. “He has a lot of tools at his beck and call and we would assume that he will do whatever he thinks he needs to do,” the chief said. “We are going to move forward, and we’re going to see what happens.” Before the new law, members brought up on internal charges could leave the department with full rank and benefits, making any future discipline moot. A change was made following the retirement of another lieutenant who faced punishment after firefighters ignored a dying man outside a fire station in 2014. Valentine did not return calls to his home or cellphone on Thursday. Ed Smith, the head of the firefighters’ union, said he could not comment until after attorneys reviewed Dean’s decision. The union has expressed support for the new law. The father of the 18-month-old boy who died after choking on a grape said Thursday that he is relieved there is a chance to hold someone accountable. “I would be very satisfied if action were taken,” said Jose Cuesta, an economist with the World Bank and a professor at Georgetown University. “It was unacceptable that a person could get away with this.” Clarence Williams contributed to this report. |