SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White will not allow crews to wear a badge with a replica of the Lombardi Trophy during Super Bowl 50.
ABC7 News reported that area police officers sporting the new accessory after paying $124.99 out of their own pockets.
“For all the hard work our employees have put in for the Super Bowl, it’s a way to reward employees,” Santa Clara Police Department Ofc. Rob Paolinetti said.
Firefighters can’t buy the badges on their own, because the fire chief has opted out for the department, citing domestic violence on Super Bowl Sunday as one of the reasons to decline the badges.
“This badge when you take your oath, it means a lot and to have a sporting event, it doesn’t rise to that level for me and for a lot of others actually,” Chief Hayes-White said.
San Francisco Firefighters’ Association spokesman Tom O’Connor thinks differently.
“This is an important moment in San Francisco history and they really wanted that badge as a keepsake, and to be kept out of it against their will is a slap in the face,” he said.