Two Fond du Lac firefighter/paramedics involved in a night of drinking that led to a hit and run car crash last month have agreed to unpaid suspensions. The two met with Fire Chief Peter O’Leary and Human Resources Director Rodney Pasch Wednesday.
Michael Spencer agreed to a six-week suspension while Benjamin Stephany agreed to a four-week suspension with the option of using two weeks of vacation. O’Leary says he regrets the trust issues the incident has caused the community.
Chief O’Leary (:18)
The two firefighters also signed last chance agreements, which O’Leary says gives the city the chance to take them before the Police and Fire Commission for a hearing if there are any other misconduct infractions in the future. O’Leary says the two were honest about the April 21st incident where they accompanied former police officer Michael Domke on a ride that led to the one-vehicle crash. Domke and another officer Dennis Sabel both chose to resign from the police department in the wake of an internal investigation into the incident.
Spencer and Stephany must also go through an Employee Assistance Program as a condition of their continued employment with the city.
Contributed by Bob Nelson-KFIZ