Former chief alleges defamation, retaliation, and suppressed warning ahead of deadly blaze.
Former Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley filed a legal claim against the City of Los Angeles on Wednesday, alleging Mayor Karen Bass orchestrated a “campaign of misinformation, defamation, and retaliation” to save her political image after the catastrophic Palisades and Alta Dena Fires earlier this year.
Crowley’s 23-page filing contends Bass shifted blame for the city’s unpreparedness when criticism mounted over her absence from Los Angeles. The mayor was attending a ceremony in Ghana on Jan. 7–despite forecasts of severe winds and fire danger–when the blaze erupted. The fire killed 12 people and destroyed nearly 7,000 homes, making it the most destructive in city history.
“As the Fire Chief, for nearly three years, I advocated for the proper funding, staffing and infrastructure upgrades to better support and protect our firefighters, and by extension, our communities,” Crowley said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. “The lies, deceit, and exaggerations and misrepresentations need to be addressed with the only thing that can refute them — the true facts.”
The claim accuses Bass of cutting nearly $18 million from the fire department’s budget, eliminating positions vital for maintaining fire engines and ambulances. After Crowley publicly warned that budget cuts left LAFD “screaming to be properly funded,” Bass allegedly reprimanded her for speaking to the media.
Union officials have also pushed back against the mayor’s narrative. Freddy Escobar, president of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, said Crowley “is being made a scapegoat, and she is being terminated for telling the truth.”
Crowley’s attorneys, Genie Harrison and Mia Munro, argue that Bass’s actions violated California labor law and Crowley’s First Amendment rights. The claim seeks damages above $25,000 and sets the stage for a potential civil lawsuit.
Bass and her office have not yet responded to the allegations.
