After COVID-19 vaccination requirements caused the termination of an Orange County Fire Rescue (OCFR) battalion chief on Tuesday, Governor DeSantis released a statement slamming the county and backing Chief Stephen Davis.
DeSantis talked of Davis and first responders in general, then questioned why Orange County would turn its back on people that have given so much in the past year during the pandemic.
“I think the firing was totally inappropriate. I think it’s ridiculous … I don’t think you can put out a fire on Zoom … We are going to be very soon rolling out I think some additions to protections we already have in the law to hopefully put all of this to bed,” DeSantis said on Wednesday.
Davis, a father of two and who has been with OCFR since 2007, lost his job for not enforcing vaccine mandates that were permitted by Orange County. According to Fox 35 Orlando, Davis’ attorney said “he refused to reprimand employees who were not vaccinated after finding errors in the list of people to be written up.”
Discussing his termination, Davis shared in a press release by DeSantis’ office that he did what he did because – like DeSantis – he was concerned about the legality of the vaccine mandate and how it violates peoples’ civil rights.
“[For nearly] four years, I’ve been a Battalion Chief [at Orange County Fire Rescue]. Two days ago, I was terminated for what I believe to be an unlawful order… I already knew that [many of these fire rescue personnel] had medical exemptions. I had personal conversations with several who said they had the vaccination. And yet I was ordered to give them reprimands,” he said.
He added, “To me, this violated more than just a law – it violated their own civil rights. It violated the trust that these men and women [who] have served over the last year and a half in the front lines… Thank you, Governor. Thank you for everything you’ve done. I know in the end we will prevail.”
Additionally in the Fox 35 report, a colleague and friend of Davis, Lt. Jose Cotti, backed his decision and said, “He believes what he did was right.” Talking about how Davis’ termination has caused more stress at work, Cotti added, “A lot of the members are struggling right now. The stress is unbelievably high. Our job is already risky and stressful and it’s made things worse.”
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, who made it clear that he did not want further questions on the subject, addressed Davis’ termination at a meeting on Thursday.
Demings stated, “I want the public to know that we value, we respect, and we love our firefighters … Yes we asked them to get vaccinated during the present pandemic, in order to protect themselves and the public.”
He added, “I find nothing inconsistent in this directive with other directives that we have given them to ensure the quality of fire and EMS services we provide, before, during, and after the pandemic. Clearly, vaccinated firefighters are better prepared to serve than those who are not.”
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Casey Owens is a contributing writer for The Florida Capital Star. Follow him on Twitter at @cowensreports. Email tips to [email protected].
