By Matt Breslow
Staff Writer
November 20, 2006
NORWALK -- A termination hearing scheduled for today for a fireman who reported for work under the influence of alcohol was postponed amid controversy about a video recording he recently showed the media.
The excerpted video, reportedly shot last year at the Broad River fire station on New Canaan Avenue, shows a man Firefighter Scot Wilson identified as a fellow fireman using two racial slurs during an informal conversation.
Wilson, who is black, was assigned to the station when the video reportedly was made but wasn't present during the conversation. He eventually became aware of the tape and describes it in a complaint - stating that he was the target of racism, among other allegations - he filed against the Norwalk Fire Department in July with the state Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities.
The videotape's existence became the subject of news accounts late last week.
Wilson, who has been suspended from work without pay, was scheduled to face a termination hearing today at a Board of Fire Commissioners meeting.
"Given the heat of the moment and so many charges being thrown back and forth, we decided we wanted time to discuss issues and go from there," Mayor Richard Moccia said yesterday. Moccia is a member of the fire commissioners board.
Additionally, he said one of the three commissioners will be away and he didn't want to hold a hearing without the full board present. Moccia said he hasn't seen the video.
"We wanted to be fair and evaluate where we are," he said.
The hearing stems from a Sept. 21 incident in which Wilson reported for duty under the influence of alcohol, according to a letter Fire Chief Denis McCarthy sent the firefighter.
The letter, which Wilson shared with The Advocate, states the firefighter had committed the same offense in July 2005 but was allowed to address the problem through the city's employee assistance program. Wilson was told he would be fired if he again reported for duty under the influence of alcohol, the letter states.
Wilson has indicated he relapsed in September after being treated poorly at work.
Jeffry Spahr, an attorney in the city's law department, yesterday said it was decided to reschedule today's hearing on Wilson's case. Spahr said he contacted Wilson's attorney, who had no problem with the postponement.
Wilson yesterday said he showed the video to the media after its existence was revealed in a packet of documents he released, wanting to expose injustices at the fire department after deciding not to accept a city offer by dropping his complaint. He said the documents show he asked the fire department last year for help staying sober and to be transferred from a hostile work environment.
Wilson said he faced a Friday deadline for deciding whether to accept a city deal and drop his complaint in exchange for receiving early retirement with lifetime medical benefits. He said he decided to pursue the complaint instead.
Spahr said he was unaware of a Friday deadline but acknowledged the city offered to allow Wilson to resign and receive a retirement package, including severance pay, while avoiding a disciplinary hearing over the September incident.
The CHRO has a no-fault conciliation process in which it asks whether parties to a complaint are willing to sit down and work out a resolution, Spahr said. He said the fire commission hearing was scheduled because Wilson never decided whether to accept or reject the city's offer.
Copyright © 2006, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.