Former Montgomery County asst. fire chief drops bid to get job back
By: Alan Suderman
Examiner Staff Writer
October 27, 2009
Former Montgomery County Assistant Fire Chief Greg DeHaven has dropped his lawsuit against the county to get his job back after he was fired for causing a four-car pileup following a day of drinking, court records show.
DeHaven's legal challenge to the county lasted three weeks, and no motions or hearings were made in the case. But in suing the county, DeHaven made public a report by a county review board that paints an unflattering picture of the 28-year fire department veteran and suggests that other public safety officials may have tried to give him special treatment.
His lawyer could not be reached for comment.
DeHaven was fired after he crashed a county-owned sport utility vehicle into three other cars, including a police vehicle, on Interstate 270. DeHaven was coming home from a Washington Redskins game, where he led the fire department's honor guard.
The county Merit System Protection Board, which rejected DeHaven's initial bid to get his job back, found he "was not a credible witness" and had given differing accounts of the crash, including how much he drank, when he stopped drinking, and how he acted after the crash.
One of the drivers in the crash said DeHaven nearly fell over after he exited his vehicle after the crash, and asked the driver to "not get the police involved," the board's report said.
DeHaven said he "immediately hopped out and started checking on the welfare of everybody."
The board's findings also show that two firefighters accompanied DeHaven to a convenience store where he bought a bottle of water, instead of taking him directly to a medical facility to have his blood alcohol level tested.
DeHaven showed up at the facility three hours after the crash, and tests showed that his blood alcohol level was nearly double the legal limit.
The report also says DeHaven told an investigator that a police officer offered to skip a court appearance if DeHaven wanted to challenge the $130 ticket he received for failing to control his vehicle.
