Former LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley will appear publicly for 1st time at appeal to be reinstated

By Jaysha Patel

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    LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Former Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Kristin Crowley spoke out Tuesday morning before a City Council meeting where councilmembers are expected to consider her appeal to be reinstated as head of the LAFD.

Addressing the councilmembers, Crowley said “multiple false accusations” had been made against her when she was fired two weeks ago by Mayor Karen Bass over her handling of the Palisades Fire.

“Now I will set the record straight. First, I did not refuse to conduct an after-action report…This is a false accusation. Second, on the morning of the fire, I did not send home 1,000 firefighters…Nor did I leave 40 available fire engines on staff,” Crowley said, adding that “we did not have enough apparatus to put them on.”

“It is never the wrong time to do the right thing and to speak the truth, and the truth is that the fire chief should not be prevented from or punished for speaking openly and honestly about the needs and the capabilities of the LAFD,” the former fire chief said.

She blamed the shortfall on a lack of funding for maintenance that left more than 100 fire trucks and other vehicles inoperable in a maintenance yard. She also denied that Mayor Karen Bass was not informed about severe winds that were forecast on Jan. 7, noting that the mayor’s office itself issued “multiple messages” to the public warning about the wind conditions.

Crowley’s remarks were followed by a standing ovation from her supporters in the audience in the council chambers.

Earlier Tuesday, Crowley gave brief remarks to reporters at City Hall, marking her first public appearance since she was dismissed.

Crowley said she was grateful “to exercise the opportunity to appeal, very grateful for our labor organization that is here, supporting our efforts,” she added, gesturing toward some of the approximately 50 firefighters union members who showed up in solidarity with her.

“In the end, we’ll see where the votes are, but I’m so grateful for the love and support,” she said.

Asked if she could work with Bass if reinstated as fire chief, Crowley replied: “I have every expectation that as a professional, in the end, we want the same thing — and that’s to support the community, that’s to provide the optimal public safety, that’s to take care of the boots on the ground so that they can do their jobs — every expectation. I know that’s where I’m coming from.

“If I get the votes — and I hope and pray that we do — for the totality of what we need to do for the LAFD,” she said. “And, in the end, that’s why I’m here.”

Bass fired Crowley on Feb. 21, and last week she appealed to be reinstated.

The council is expected to vote on her appeal, but that could change. She needs 10 votes in order to be reinstated as fire chief.

Bass fired Crowley because she said she was acting in the best interests of public safety and that 1,000 firefighters that could have been on duty the morning the fires broke out were instead sent home on Crowley’s watch.

Another reason was because Crowley was asked to put together an after-action report on the fires by the president of the fire commission and refused.

Another after-action report ordered by the City Council is already underway.

City Councilwoman Traci Park, who represents Pacific Palisades, believes it’s unfortunate the council is being forced to make what she calls a political decision.

“I don’t know what to expect out of tomorrow. There isn’t a lot of precedent for hearings like this in the city of Los Angeles. I have not had an opportunity to hear from her on these issues, but I don’t think that a City Council meeting is necessarily the appropriate venue to fully vet these issues. We are not making findings effect. There is no burden of proof. This is not a court of law. It will be nothing but political theatre, and I do have real serious concerns about that,” said Park.

Park says major questions remain about the chaotic evacuations that took place in the Palisades on Jan. 7, such as problematic communications, fire hydrants that ran dry and an empty reservoir.

She doesn’t know whether any of that will be covered at Tuesday’s hearing.

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