Judge Rules Against Volunteer Firefighters

Rich Heine Will Stay as Paid Chief

by Joan R. Simon

(June 21, 2007) On June 21, Westchester Supreme Court Justice Orazio Bellantoni denied a preliminary injunction to overturn the Larchmont Village Board’s decision to hire a career firefighter, Richard Heine, as paid chief of the fire department. A group of volunteer firefighters had filed suit on May 16 asking for a reversal of the two resolutions passed by the board that established a paid position in place of the traditional volunteer post. (See: Decision on Temporary Injunction.)

The plaintiffs had argued that the board’s action constituted a partial abolishment of the fire department, an act subject to permissive referendum. They had gathered signatures from over 850 residents on petitions requesting a vote. (See: Petitions Filed Requesting Referendum on VOL Paid Fire Chief.)

But the judge’s ruling was unequivocal: “Clearly, the Village Board was statutorily authorized to enact the legislation that it did without submitting it to a permissive referendum.” He further said that “the plaintiffs [volunteer firefighters who filed the suit] have failed to meet their burden of demonstrating that the appointment of Chief Heine has or will cause the plaintiffs to suffer irreparable harm and that there is a likelihood that they will succeed on the merits.”

Mayor Liz Feld responded to the decision saying, “Now is the time to heal and move forward, working together.” She also praised the new chief: “We think Rich Heine is going to be an excellent chief of the department.”

He will certainly have his work cut out for him. At this point, he is in command of 14 other paid firefighters and an undetermined number of volunteers. There are approximately 30 active, fully-trained volunteers, but most of them indicated in May they would resign by mid-June. One of the deputy chiefs has already left, but the rest were waiting for the judge’s ruling. (See: Larchmont Appoints Paid Fire Chief; Many Volunteers Resign.)

In the meantime, relations between the career and volunteer members of the department appear to be deteriorating.

At the June 18 th Larchmont Village Board meeting, Brian Doherty, president of the firefighters’union, read an “open letter” countering what he characterized as “vicious attacks” and “derogatory statements” made against the career staff by the volunteers in recent weeks. (See: Larchmont Professional Firefighters Association) While Mr. Doherty and union secretary Steve Forrest challenged claims made about department costs and training requirements, it was clear that the underlying issue fueling the debate was not so much the specific details but rather the long-standing feud between the paid and volunteer firemen.

Hiring Rich Heine as a paid fire chief was intended to bring the two wings of the department together, and the new chief responded to the judge’s decision saying he would “continue training together and working together” with the volunteer and paid staff. However, what Mayor Feld called “his vision for one team” will be put to the test in the coming weeks.

What Happens Next?

That depends, in large measure, on what the volunteer firefighters decide to do. When reached on Thursday evening, Ned Benton, a volunteer firefighter and former Village trustee, said that he and the other plaintiffs in the lawsuit were still "trying to understand the order and their legal options." He added, "We are very disappointed for the residents who signed the petition.”

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