LOS ANGELES (KABC) — The former Los Angeles Fire Department chief who was ousted by Mayor Karen Bass after the most destructive wildfire in city history has filed a legal claim against the city and the mayor.
Former LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley filed the formal tort claim on Wednesday, according to a statement from the public relations firm representing her.
“The claim sets out a pattern of dishonesty, scapegoating, and unlawful retaliation that destroyed the career of a 25-year public servant not because of any failure in her duties, but because she told the truth,” the statement said. “The tort claim makes clear that Fire Chief Crowley did her job. She told City leadership and the public that Mayor Bass’ budget cuts and the City’s decades of neglect had left the LAFD underfunded, understaffed, and ill-equipped to handle the rising demands of a growing city, especially one at risk of dangerous wildfires. Instead of addressing those concerns, Mayor Bass retaliated.”
The Los Angeles City Council voted to deny former Fire Chief Kristin Crowley’s appeal, supporting Mayor Karen Bass’ decision to terminate her as head of the LAFD.
A counsel to Bass says they will not comment on the claim, and that the mayor is focused on the current heat and potential fire danger.
Crowley failed to win back her job in early March, falling short with her argument that her dismissal was based on false accusations about her conduct and decision-making.
Crowley appealed to the City Council to reverse Bass’ decision, which followed finger-pointing between Crowley and City Hall over the wildfire devastation and the fire department’s funding.
Former Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley spoke out Tuesday morning before a City Council meeting where councilmembers considered her appeal to be reinstated as head of the LAFD.
On March 4, the council voted 13-2 to shelve the proposal in what amounted to a show of support for Bass, a first-term Democrat who has been criticized for being in Africa as part of a presidential delegation on the day the fires started, even though weather reports had warned of dangerous wind and wildfire conditions in the days before she left.
Bass fired Crowley on Feb. 21, six weeks after the fire started. She praised Crowley in the firefighting effort’s early going, but she said she later learned that an additional 1,000 firefighters could have been deployed on the day the blaze ignited. Furthermore, she said Crowley rebuffed a request to prepare a report on the fires that is a critical part of investigations into what happened and why.
The legal claim filed Wednesday by Crowley demands “immediate retraction of all false and defamatory statements,” a formal and public apology to Crowley, and “an end to all ongoing retaliation.”
Former Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley spoke out before a City Council meeting where councilmembers are expected to take up her appeal to be reinstated as head of the LAFD.
The Palisades Fire began Jan. 7 in heavy winds. It destroyed or damaged nearly 8,000 homes, businesses and other structures, and it killed at least 12 people in the Pacific Palisades. The Eaton Fire started that day in Altadena, killing at least 17 people and destroying or damaging more than 10,000 homes or other buildings.
Bass has said Crowley never notified her of the looming danger before she departed, even though that was standard practice since she took office in December 2022.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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