Fire Chief David Downie originally faced six disciplinary charges. One of them was dropped last week.
FAIRFIELD TWP. — Residents angrily vowed to oust all three Fairfield Twp. trustees from office after the trustees fired longtime Fire Chief David Downie Tuesday.
After deliberating for slightly less than an hour on Tuesday — and for about three hours on Friday — the trustees ruled they had lost confidence in Downie, who had been on paid leave since January, when he had altercations with two township officials.
“We conclude that Chief Downie does not possess the leadership skills required to run the fire department based on numerous incidents of misbehavior. The Board of Township Trustees has lost its confidence in David Downie to serve as the fire chief,” their written ruling stated.
Downie, who was fire chief for 25 years, was not present for the hearing and could not be reached for comment. His mother, Kate Downie, said her son was attending an honor guard program in Washington, D.C.
“This is going to kill him when he hears this,” she said tearfully.
After the decision was announced, Downie’s supporters rose to their feet, raising voices and pointing at the three trustees, lambasting them for not telling Downie to his face that he was fired.
“This is a huge miscarriage of justice. This was a kangaroo court,” said township resident Shannon Hartkemeyer, who called the trustees “gutless.”
“The community is less safe today because Fire Chief Downie is not here. They’ve made a huge mistake,” she said.
Clutching a tissue, Kate Downie thanked residents for their support and said, “It’s horrible ... they’ve destroyed our name. I never in my life thought this would happen in Fairfield Township.”
Trustee President Mark Sutton said Downie has the right to appeal the decision to Butler County Common Pleas Court. Trustees will not take public comment on the matter until the appeals process is concluded, he said.
Downie was found at fault on each of five charges related to the comments made to Fiscal Officer Nancy Bock and Service Director Mike Bishop, as well as allegations he failed to attend a mandatory meeting and failed to properly supervise staff. The first altercation occurred in early January, when Bock said Downie acted unprofessionally and yelled at her about purchase orders.
The second altercation took place during an ice storm that same month, when Downie allegedly got into a heated phone conversation with Bishop regarding safety concerns for inadequate clearing of the roads.
Downie had faced six charges, but one of those charges relating to comments Downie made to trustees regarding purchase of equipment was dropped after last week’s testimony.
Attorneys for Downie and the township were not present and could not be reached for comment. The status of Downie’s pension was not immediately clear. Benjamin Bultman has been serving as the acting chief. Trustees made a motion to initiate a search to replace Downie.
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