Drug Abuse Among Firefighters Alleged : Lawyer Claims Department Is Inconsistent in Handling Problem

A “significant number” of San Diego firefighters have abused drugs and caused serious performance problems, yet they have been referred to a special employee assistance program and kept on the job, an attorney representing a discharged fireman alleged Tuesday.

Joel Klevens made those assertions in a Civil Service Commission hearing in which he argued that the Fire Department often turns its head to serious drug abuse, yet fired his client for “one sole, single incident.”

“The issue is whether one instance of off-duty drug use is grounds for termination,” Klevens said.

“Yet other firefighters with serious drug offenses and who are addicted and whose addictions cause performance problems are treated as people with an illness. They are given an opportunity to resolve their drug problems,” he said.

But Deputy Fire Chief Gary Easton said after the daylong hearing that he sharply disagreed with the characterization drawn by Klevens. He said drug abuse among the city’s 880 uniformed firefighters is minimal.

“We think it’s just a small number of people who are involved out of the whole department,” he said. “I’d say it’s minor.”

Klevens did not identify to the commission exactly how many firefighters have been suspected of drug abuse, disciplined or fired, or placed in the city’s Employee Assistance Program to help them fight drug problems.

But he referred often to several firefighters with drug problems who have not been fired, and used that discrepancy to illustrate how he believed his client, seven-year firefighter Vincent Stevenson, was unfairly terminated for drug use.

During a recess in the hearing, Klevens reiterated that his client was being singled out for drug use. “There are a significant number of people with more serious drug problems than him,” he said.

Stevenson’s case is the first to go before the Civil Service Commission in which two firefighters and two fire captains were severely disciplined for drug abuse last year. They are now appealing their cases, and the hearings are scheduled to continue on Thursday and extend through July and August.

Last year, seven firefighters were suspended or terminated in the wake of a San Diego police undercover operation. Federal drug charges were filed against four of the firefighters, including two fire captains who allegedly distributed methamphetamine and cocaine.

In addition, the names of two other firefighters surfaced in the hearing Tuesday, when Klevens used the fact that they were allowed to undergo drug treatment and keep their jobs as an example of unfair treatment for Stevenson.

Easton estimated that there are 54 Fire Department employees now in the assistance program, which also deals with marriage and family, alcohol, financial and job-related problems.

Further, Fire Capt. David Smith indicated in testimony Tuesday that the drug problems of many firefighters were common knowledge within the department.

“I know of a couple of people who used drugs several times and who went through the program,” he said. “And they are on the job now. One was a cocaine addict.”

Charges Deferred a Year

Klevens said that federal charges against Stevenson have been deferred for a year, and that the charges will be dropped if he successfully remains drug-free during that time.

Nevertheless, the circumstances surrounding Stevenson’s March, 1988, arrest ultimately led to his termination in December.

San Diego Police Officer David Williams said he arrested Stevenson outside his home in the 300 block of North 43rd Street after Stevenson admitted smoking a marijuana cigarette laced with rock cocaine. Williams also said he found a small amount of rock cocaine in Stevenson’s pants pocket.

The officer identified Stevenson’s home as a location where police believe there is repeated drug activity.

Stevenson, who was assigned to Station 21 near Kemper Street and Midway Drive, admitted that he used the drugs, and regretted doing so. “It was offered to me,” he testified. “It was a bad decision on my part. . . . I made a mistake.”

Exemplary Employee

Three of Stevenson’s supervisors, including Assistant Fire Chief Donald Farney, testified that Stevenson was an exemplary employee. Farney said the department’s anti-drug policy is strict, and that proof of illegal drug use will lead to termination.

Under questioning by Klevens, however, Farney said other firefighters have benefited from more lenient discipline, including one firefighter who consistently had an absentee problem for more than four years.

But Farney said that the employee, identified as Jackie J. Braswell, was retained after he admitted his drug problem to his supervisors and volunteered to enter the assistance program. Braswell did not testify Tuesday.

Klevens sharply criticized this dual system of discipline for drug abuse by firefighters.

“That’s the difference,” he said. “It’s arbitrary. It’s unfair. And it’s illegal.”

But Grant Telfer, a deputy city attorney who represented the Fire Department, encouraged the Civil Service Commission to uphold the termination. He said the commission’s ruling will send a clear message to the entire firefighting force on whether drug abuse will be tolerated.

“I’m certain all of the employees of San Diego are waiting for your decision,” he said. “I’m certain all the firefighters are waiting. So what’s the decision going to be? ‘No’ on drugs? Or just ‘maybe’ on drugs?”