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Board upholds demotions of two firefighters

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David Gambino
The Decatur Daily, Ala.
(TNS)

Oct. 17—Decatur’s Personnel Board agreed with the mayor’s June decision to double demote Decatur Fire & Rescue lieutenants Kevin Jackson and Curtis Butler, according to a Wednesday statement.

“After carefully reviewing the evidence which included witness testimony and exhibits submitted by Mr. Butler and the City, giving the evidence the weight it is due, the Personnel Board is satisfied that the demotion of Mr. Butler … was lawful and that such disciplinary action was not too severe,” the statement said.

The board released an identical statement about its decision on Jackson. The board heard Butler’s appeal on Aug. 15 and Aug. 21, while it heard Jackson’s appeal on Aug. 16, Oct. 2 — in an executive session — and Oct. 9.

Butler was accused of bringing firearms to the fire station, having a late-night female visitor at the station, and inappropriately touching a wreck victim, among other allegations.

Jackson was accused of making a crass comment and prematurely leaving the scene of a cardiac arrest in November, having a history of poor behavior and attitude, and undermining city leadership with his social media use. He was also initially accused of having unauthorized female visitors at the fire station, but city officials later said they found no evidence to support it.

Both Jackson and Butler were demoted by Mayor Tab Bowling to bottom rank.

“While the Personnel Board appreciates the continued media and public interest in this Appeal Hearing and outcome, it would be improper for any Personnel Board member to make comments on this matter, therefore, interviews will not be granted and this is the only statement that will be made at this time,” the board’s statement said.

Prior to the statement’s release on Wednesday, board Chairman Harold Gilmore said members voted in an open-to-the-public general session. The last Personnel Board meeting notice was issued by the city’s Human Resources director on Oct. 9 announcing an Oct. 11 closed-to-the-public executive session to discuss the appeals of Butler and Jackson.

“The Board did not vote in an executive session,” Gilmore said. “We voted in a general session, yes. We cannot vote in an executive session and did not vote in an executive session. When we came back, we deliberated, then we came to a conclusion. And that’s open meeting.”

If the board voted in a general session, it would have been required to issue a meeting notice pursuant to the Alabama Open Meetings Act.

“I have no firsthand knowledge but I have no reason to doubt Dr. Gilmore’s statement if he in fact made the statement,” said Assistant City Attorney Chip Alexander, in an email, about the general session.

Richard Lehr, an attorney for the board, said later Wednesday that the board voted in an executive session in compliance with the Open Meetings Act.

J. Evans Bailey, an attorney with the Alabama Press Association, explained how the vote may have taken place in an executive session while still complying with state law.

“If the body is acting in a contested case or in a quasi-judicial capacity it can convene an executive session in order to deliberate,” Bailey said in an email. “It does not have to follow the normal rules for going into an executive session in this instance. However, it would have to either vote in an open meeting or issue publicly a written decision that can be appealed to a body that conducts its business in public (like a court).”

Councilman Billy Jackson has been critical of the decision to demote Kevin Jackson and the subsequent appeal process. Alexander brought several new witnesses to Kevin Jackson’s Oct. 2 hearing, and the board heard all testimony that day in an executive session upon Alexander’s request.

“Based on the evidence presented, I am both surprised and disappointed in the decision,” Billy Jackson said Wednesday.

Many of Kevin Jackson’s alleged offenses were discussed informally and not documented, according to hearing testimony from DFR command staff, who said they will adjust their approach to discipline moving forward. Supervisors testified that firefighter morale improved after Butler and Jackson were demoted.

Billy Jackson has been critical of the seemingly “disparate treatment,” as he describes it, of Kevin Jackson.

On June 4, a citizen complained to DFR’s deputy chief of operations that a lieutenant at the scene of a fire smelled like liquor and was “acting drunk,” according to a performance report obtained by The Decatur Daily. The lieutenant was screened and tested positive for alcohol. His only apparent punishment was a written warning and instructions to submit to random drug screenings.

The same lieutenant was disciplined via a “discussion” with a supervisor for failing to complete mandatory training activities, according to a performance report.

Former Decatur police officers Joe Renshaw and Jack Brown were accused of mistreating residents seeking justice for the Sept. 29, 2023, Decatur police killing of Steve Perkins. Renshaw retired without receiving any apparent disciplinary action, while Brown — accused of punching a woman in the face and gloating about it — received “appropriate action,” according to City Attorney Herman Marks, who would not elaborate further.

— david.gambino@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2438.

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