Former Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley filed a legal claim Wednesday against the city and Mayor Karen Bass for defamation, retaliation and negligence, alleging she was the victim of a pattern of “dishonesty, scapegoating and unlawful retaliation” that resulted in her firing in the wake of the January wildfires.
The claim alleges that the 25-year career of a public servant was destroyed not because of any failure in Crowley’s duties, but because she told the truth.
“The citizens of Los Angeles deserve to know the truth about how under-resourced the LAFD has become and how that came to be,” said Crowley’s attorney, Genie Harrison. “Kristin Crowley has put herself on the line yet again, this time to give the citizens of Los Angeles and its firefighters the truth — and the power to create change.”
The claim alleges Crowley was the victim of “dishonesty, scapegoating, and unlawful retaliation” and demands the immediate retraction of all allegedly false and defamatory statements, a public apology to Crowley and an end to all alleged ongoing reprisals.
David Michaelson, attorney for Bass, issued a statement saying, “We will not comment on an ongoing personnel claim. Mayor Bass is focused on the city’s preparations for the hottest temperatures of the year and the potential for regional fire danger.”
A claim is a possible forerunner of a lawsuit. According to the claim, Crowley did her job by telling city leadership and the public that Bass’ budget cuts and the city’s alleged 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.
When Crowley confirmed to the public that Bass cut the LAFD’s operating budget by $17.6 million, she was targeted and removed from her position, and the mayor and her office simultaneously launched a smear campaign built on falsehoods, including that Crowley failed to notify Bass of upcoming wind conditions, that Crowley sent home 1,000 firefighters and that Crowley refused to conduct an after-action report, the claim alleges.
“These were not simple mistakes,” Crowley’s attorneys allege. “These were falsehoods that were repeated publicly to deflect blame from the mayor’s absence (in Ghana) during a predicted emergency and the consequences of her own decisions.”
Harrison represented Tennie Pierce, a Black firefighter at Fire Station 5 in Westchester who was unwittingly fed dog food against his will and forced off the job when he reported the 2004 incident. His lawsuit against the city later settled.