The LA County Fire Department is fighting a decision to revive the former Santa Clarita fire chief who was fired for attacking his neighbor almost four years ago, and has awarded a backpay for more than two years, the Los Angeles Times reported.
It is unknown that LA County fire chief Adam Clint, now 51, and his then-neighbor Robert Pope, were rebutting, but on July 3, 2021, the situation escalated to violence.
The Pope reportedly stopped at Clint’s house after his wife heard from his wife that firefighters had made her a cul-de-de-dead speed in the Santa Clarita neighborhood.
The argument then continued, where Clint allegedly pointed his gun at the Pope, who was black, called him an n-word and told him to “get the f*** out of my property,” the Times reported.
The Pope, whose two teenage daughters were waiting, said he turned and walked towards his car when he received a blow in the back of his head, knocking him unconscious. Later he also said he suffered from a bruise with footprints on his back.
Santa Clarita’s LA County Fire Department, captained by Adam Clint. (Google Maps)
The captain initially denied his agent that he had hit the Pope, but eventually admitted that he punched him into his head.
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According to The Times, the judge later reduced the felony to a misdemeanor, and was subsequently removed from his records.
In January 2023, Assistant Fire Chief Thomas Ewald sent a notice of dismissal to Clint that his actions meant “being embarrassed and trusting the department” and that his felony conviction meant “engaged in conduct that had no fire chief.”
However, this February, the decision to end Clint was unanimously overturned by the LA County Public Servant Committee. He said there was no sufficient evidence that Clint had wielding a firearm and used a racial slur during the incident.
The committee’s report suggested that the 51-year-old’s actions on that day were characterized as “isolated” and “non-characteristic,” and that the punishment was a simple 30-day suspension and a award of backpay for more than two years.
In April, the fire department filed a petition in LA County Superior Court, sueing the decision, saying it had all rights to end the age of 51.
In 2022, Clint sued his wife and the Pope of La County, claiming that fire department and representative officials were more favorable than the Pope because of his “African-American ancestors,” the Times reported.
Ultimately, the case was dismissed, but a year later, the Pope sued Clint with a battery, and the case remains ongoing.
In response to comment, the Pope told The Times that Clint would return his work.
It is unclear where he will be assigned if Clint is resurrected at the fire department.
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