By Chuck Williams
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Ga.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — Mishandling of three personnel matters drew Columbus Fire and Emergency Medical Services Chief Jeff Meyer a reprimand Friday from his boss, Mayor and Public Safety Director Jim Wetherington.
Wetherington and City Manager Isaiah Hugley met with Meyer Friday morning before announcing the disciplinary action at a news conference.
Wetherington said he still has confidence in Meyer’s ability to lead the department.
“I hope Chief Meyer will learn from this,” Wetherington said. “I believe he’s salvageable.”
Meyer, who has been chief since November 2005, did not attend the news conference and did not return messages left at his office and on his cell phone Friday.
Wetherington said he considered firing or suspending Meyer because of a rash of issues in the department, but ultimately decided on the reprimand. In it Wetherington stated, if “these lapses in judgment by you or your staff continue, I will be forced to take more severe action.”
The reprimand came at the same time results were released of a Columbus Police Office of Professional Standards investigation into former firefighter Zachary Allen’s wreck of a city emergency vehicle while responding to a call. The report found no evidence of a cover-up of Allen’s wreck. Allen tested positive for cocaine in a post-accident drug test. Facing termination, he resigned the day after the wreck.
The chief’s reprimand stated there were several incidents of poor judgment by Meyer in the aftermath of the wreck.
“While I do not personally believe you violated any policy of the department, there were violations by certain persons under your direction that you should have known about and handled on an administrative basis,” the reprimand stated.
Deputy Chief David Starling and former Capt. Glenn Bahde were cited in the reprimand.
Bahde was a captain in charge of Allen’s station at the time of the wreck. The report stated that Allen, who had been with the department for about a year, was not trained to operate the vehicle he crashed.
Three months after leaving the Columbus department, Allen applied for a firefighter job in LaGrange, Ga. He received a letter of recommendation from Starling on Fire and EMS letterhead. Starling later denied “knowledge of the letter” during the investigation. He was given a polygraph test last month and it determined he was “deceptive in his answers.”
“You should look further into the findings of the Professional Standards Investigation concerning the untruthfulness of Chief David Starling regarding the recommendation for Allen...” the reprimand stated. “Also, look into the reason Captain Glenn Bahde permitted Allen to drive the vehicle on the day in question...”
Since Allen’s wreck, Bahde has been promoted to battalion chief.
Other issues
Meyer’s reprimand dealt with two issues that have come up since the Allen investigation began.
Firefighter John Thomas, now a sergeant, was passed over for a fire inspector/lieutenant promotion despite having the highest score in the interview process. When Thomas threatened to file a grievance because he had been told by one of the interviewers the job would go to the highest scoring of the five applicants, Meyer offered Thomas a newly created fire recruiter job.
The problem was that the recruiting job, though it had been previously discussed by Meyer and Wetherington, had not been authorized by Columbus Council.
Shortly after completing paperwork for the promotion in October, the Fire and EMS was notified by the city’s Human Resources Department that the slot didn’t exist.
Thomas continued to work in the recruiting position without a pay increase or the sergeant’s rank. The firefighter filed a grievance in March. Two weeks later, Hugley temporarily approved the new recruiting position until council can incorporate it in the 2009 fiscal budget next month. Thomas was also granted more than $1,600 in back pay.
“Your infractions were those of poor management and caused the city of Columbus to have to expend funds to make Sergeant Thomas whole,” the letter stated.
Wetherington has instructed Meyer to hold a promotion ceremony for Thomas “in the same manner that you do for other employees who are promoted to Sergeant.”
Thomas has filed a complaint to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that alleges discrimination.
Capt. Mary Simonton filed a complaint late last year about the promotional process. She was one of five candidates to apply for a deputy chief’s job that went to Greg Lang, who was promoted from fire marshal.
The city’s Human Resources Department found her complaint had no merit but did express concerns about the manner in which the interview was conducted.
Simonton was interviewed by Meyer and Assistant Chief Jerry Fountain after a leadership class at the department’s training center. The interview was conducted outside while Fountain and Meyer smoked cigarettes and the smoke blew in her face, Simonton wrote in her complaint.
“These actions show a disregard for Captain Simonton and her candidacy for the position,” the reprimand started. “If you have not already done so, you are to write a letter of apology to Captain Simonton for your lapse in judgment.”
Like Thomas, Simonton has since filed an EEOC complaint.
Meyer’s reprimand comes six weeks after a firefighter was terminated for looking at objectionable images on a city computer while on duty, which is a violation of city policy.
Joshua Alford was originally disciplined by his supervisors and put on probation but was later fired by the chief. That termination was appealed to the city’s Personnel Review Board. A hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday.
The reprimand closed with Wetherington stating he expects “to see a marked improvement” in Meyer’s job performance.
“You are capable of being a good manager, and I look forward to working with you to make that happen,” the reprimand stated.
Wetherington said at the news conference that his longtime relationship with Meyer did not impact his decision. The mayor’s son and Meyer have been friends for many years.
“I’ve known Jeff Meyer ever since he was a kid,” Wetherington said. “It didn’t alter the decision I made. I hold Jeff to the same standard I hold anybody else to.”
Copyright 2008 Columbus Ledger-Enquirer