Firefighters have right to post signs, judge rules

By The Associated Press

12.03.02

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MALDEN, Mass. — A federal judge has ruled in favor of Malden firefighters, saying the First Amendment protects their right to display signs as part of a campaign to reverse reductions in staffing.

U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns last week issued a preliminary injunction preventing the city from prohibiting the signs on fire station property. He also ordered city officials to remove reprimands from the files of firefighters disciplined for their role in the campaign.

After the city's fire commissioner reduced minimum staffing from 22 to 18 firefighters citywide, effective this month, five firefighters put up signs Nov. 8 saying, "What if you had a fire and no one came," and, "It's 2 a.m., your house is on fire, do you know where your fire truck is? Ask your mayor."

Seven Malden firefighters filed a federal suit against the city, claiming several of them were wrongfully disciplined for displaying the signs and publicly making comments protesting staff cuts.

Mayor Richard Howard has dismissed the campaign as "scare tactics."

"It's exclusively a dispute over the amount of overtime spending involved," he said.

But firefighters union president Brian Parow says the dispute is about public safety. "This has nothing to do with overtime. This is what we need to run the department," he said.