THE NEW YORK TIMES IS REPORTING THIS MORNING that Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta is setting up a defense for his hasty personnel actions in demoting 3 uniformed fire officers.  On Monday the commissioner and the millionairemayor announced, very publicly, that they were reassigning Capt. Peter Bosco, Batt. Chief John McDonald and Dep. Chief Richard Fuerch from the field to headquarters.

Immediately, the rank-and-file, through their unions, and the public began calling them “scapegoats” for the administration.  The commissioner has been on the defense all week saying thing like:   “It’s prudent to remove them from operations until the investigation is done. It doesn’t make it any easier on them, but it’s the prudent thing to do.”

But there are signs that he is wavering in his determination to hold blame at the lower ranks.  Yesterday he said, in response to the many claims that the “cease inspections” order came from upper management,  “If that turns out to be the case, that would certainly change my view of the captain or any subordinate’s actions.”

Firegeezer thinks that this public statement is a sign that Scoppetta is beginning to distance himself from whoever in HQ set the policy.  Capt. Bosco’s lawyer (who happens to be his brother, also) has been doing an effective job in turning the spotlight back onto the commissioner’s office. 

Mayor Bloomberg is showing second thoughts as well.  He is now saying that he wants to know what the fire officials knew before the fire and what was being done about it.  He also said that more people may be disciplined.

It was pointed out that the Batt. Chief who wrote the original memo calling for more inspections has been promoted twice in a short span of time and is now working in the Commissioner’s office.  That is an indication that the administration knew, or should have known, that the inspections had been stopped.

Read the New York Times article HERE.
CBS News has a story and video REPORT.

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