latest news The fire captain was demoted after a woman in a bikini was taken in a fire truck outside a strip club
A San Jose fire captain has been demoted after firefighters took a woman in a bikini in heels for a short ride in a fire truck last year in an incident that was recorded and posted on social networks social services, which triggered an internal investigation.
In the video, the fire truck is stopped in the street, blocking traffic with its hazard lights spinning overhead as a woman in a white bikini exits the vehicle and enters the Pink Poodle strip club. .
Eight months after the incident, officials have yet to release few details about what disciplinary action, if any, was taken, although the fire chief said in a memo that the incident violated many of the company’s policies. the city and the fire department.
The incident caused a public outcry, even as city officials refused to release details of the incident.
In a recent City Manager Discipline Report, the city noted that a fire captain was demoted for engaging in conduct that violated the city’s code of ethics and fire department rules and regulations.
A city spokesperson confirmed that the incident mentioned in the report referred to the video taken at the Pink Poodle.
The report says the decision was not appealed but does not explain when the punishment took place. The Mercury News first reported the demotion.
“The discipline was fair and the process was conducted in accordance with the rules of public service,” said Carolina Camarena, spokeswoman for the city manager’s office. “Now we can focus on keeping our city safe.”
In a memo from San Jose Fire Chief Robert Sapien, released in May but dated April 25, the chief noted that the crew assigned to the fire truck first drove an “unauthorized male passenger” from the fire station at work at the Pink Poodle on October 5.
The memo does not identify the man or explain why firefighters took him to the van.
After the fire engine arrived at the strip club, a woman then “persisted” in asking to be accompanied by the crew. Firefighters initially refused, according to the memo, but then circled the woman in the vehicle around the block.
The fire truck then drove into an industrial part of town, stopping near another adult establishment – AJ’s Restaurant & Bar, which describes itself on its Facebook page as “nighttime entertainment featuring beautiful dancers in bikinis”.
The memo says the fire truck was parked there for about two minutes before returning to the station, but it offers no explanation as to why firefighters attended the scene.
City officials have repeatedly refused to release any information or documents related to the incident or the internal investigation that followed.
The Bay Area News Group filed a lawsuit against the city, requesting records regarding the investigation and any disciplinary actions taken by the city in this regard.
