Union leader: firefighters 'stumbled'
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Six city of Pittsburgh firefighters face alcohol-related court dates, and the leader of their union said yesterday that behavior must change -- both within the bureau, and in an administration and media that are too quick to throw stones.
"We need to do better. Our behavior has to be better. We realize that," said International Union of Firefighters Local 1 President Joe King of his 630-plus members that have been doused with allegations of misdeeds in recent months. "I'll apologize for these incidents and the behavior of these young men. ... They stumbled."
Now an entire bureau is being tarred, he said, and the city should wait until courts do their work before passing judgment.
"I have never witnessed such a devastation to an entire professional group as we have here," he said. "Firefighters are no different from everyone else in society: They have their privileges and rights to due process."
December saw fire Capt. Frank R. Becker Jr. charged with drunken driving and drug possession, and firefighter William M. White, 50, charged in connection with an incident police said included the drunken appropriation of a Rivers Casino vehicle. On Saturday night, firefighter Timothy P. Coyne, 23, was charged with assault and public drunkenness when police accused him of joining others in storming a house in the South Side Flats.
All are in various stages of the criminal process. The Post-Gazette found several other pending cases.
Thomas C. Dailey, 53, a master firefighter and 30-year veteran, faces a Tuesday formal arraignment for a September arrest for drunken driving. The city police report said he was involved in a one-vehicle accident in East Allegheny, admitted to drinking, and was found to have a blood-alcohol content of more than three times the legal limit for driving.
That followed a Dec. 31, 2008, incident in which Shaler police arrested Mr. Dailey and charged him with driving while intoxicated and careless driving. He went through an accelerated court process that resulted in 12 months probation, a 60-day license suspension and requirements to pay costs and attend safe driving classes.
First Published January 15, 2010 12:00 am
