Law&Crime Sidebar - 'Violent' Firefighter Hazing Included Leg Lock, Waterboarding: Police

Episode Date: January 19, 2026

What seemingly started as rough-housing among co-workers quickly devolved into a nightmare at Marion County’s Fire Station 21. Ten members of the fire crew were fired and four were arrested after a young recruit reported serious hazing allegations, including being restrained, struck with a belt, and even waterboarded. Law&Crime’s Jesse Weber dives into hours of interrogation footage, internal reports, and incident logs to uncover the full story.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: Go to https://meetfabric.com/sidebar and apply today, risk-freeHOST:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokeVideo Editing - Michael Deininger, Christina O'Shea, Alex Ciccarone, & Jay CruzScript Writing & Producing - Savannah Williamson & Juliana BattagliaGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrimeTwitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What seemingly started is just lighthearted joking among coworkers quickly devolved into something else entirely in Marion County, Florida. Like, was he reacting when he was hit like that? Like, now he was just kind of laughing at it, like laughing at it off. Okay. Now at this point, was he still being held down when he was getting hit? Yeah, okay. And then it felt a little bit like relentless on him. But water morning thing, I'm sure what are you guys trying to get at?

10 members of a fire crew have been fired and four of them are facing criminal charges after a young recruit reported serious, amazing allegations. Because I know you're hesitating and I know it's difficult, but at this point, I hate this saying, but it is what it is. We combed through hours of interrogation footage to piece together what may have happened at Fire Station 21 that led to complete upheaval in that department. And we are going to break it down for you right now. Now, welcome to Sidebar. I'm presented by Law and Crime. I'm Jesse Weber. All right, before we jump any further into this, I know nobody wants to talk about it, but life insurance, not fun to talk about.

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parents who trust Fabric to protect their family. Apply today in minutes at meetfabric.com slash sidebar. M-E-E-T-Fabric.com slash sidebar. What occurred is absolutely unacceptable. It's disappointing. It makes me sick to my very stomach. The fallout within Marion County Fire Rescue is growing after a report uncovered apparent hazing within that department. We are talking allegations about co-workers allegedly pinning someone to the ground, taking property, pulling pants down in front of others, and even allegations of waterboarding. That's right, a torture technique reportedly happening at a fire station in the Ocala area. And now 10 people have been fired with four of them arrested. and facing serious charges.

But unfortunately we are here today because of these four firefighters who went a little bit too far with hazing. Disappointing, absolutely. As a son of a firefighter myself, it is disappointing. It's no different than myself when a deputy does something wrong and I have to arrest them as well. The four firefighters and the charges in which they are facing,

is kidnapping, robbery, battery, and accessory. So Marion County officials announced the terminations and arrests at a news conference in November. This was just before Thanksgiving. So I can give you their names and I can give you their years of service. So the first one would be Kaylee, K-A-Y-L-E-B-R-A-D-L-E-E-E-R-A-D-L-E-Y. She's a paramedic. She's 25 years old, and she's been with the department for two years and ten months. The second individual is Tate Trout Wine, T-R-A-U-T-H-W-E-I-N.

He's a firefighter EMT. He's 19 years old and he's been with the department for one year and three months. The third individual is Edward Kinney, K-E-N-N-N-Y. He's an EMT. He's been on the job for three years and five months and he's 22 years old. The fourth individual, its name is Seth Day, D-A-Y, firefighter EMT. He's been on the job two years and nine months, and he's 22 years old. And in sweeping consequences, some of that fire station's leadership were fired as well.

We have dug through hours of interrogation, footage, internal reports, incident logs, newly released photos to try to get to the bottom of what exactly happened here. And that's what we're going to do. Now, to be clear, before we start off, we have chosen not to identify the victim to protect privacy given these allegations. And I will also tell you in the interrogation footage that was released by Marion County Sheriff's Office, his name is muted as well. But here's what we do know. We know that he was 19 years old, that he had been with fire rescue for only a few months floating between different fire stations, going wherever he was needed. But here is what he claims happened on November 16th during a 24-hour shift. So we start detailing the ladder. And they're

like getting like a whole bunch like dirty grease like like a crazy amount and um Quentin the driver on the ladder. He comes up to me, asked me come here and he just like wipes it all over me. He took it off of his glove because he had a glove on and he went to go get it and then he just like spread all over my shirt. He's like, you don't look dirty enough. So okay. And one of the things that investigators told him was that grease was wiped on him as well and that he was told if he changed into a clean shirt, they would just dirty it up again. There was also allegedly an incident with a pizza. So the driver, Quentin Gaines, had apparently thought the victim had thrown away

leftover slices instead of saving them for another shift, allegedly got angry and reportedly took some of the victim's gear and snacks and just threw it into the woods. And then after that, Tate had like showed my Instagram to like the crew. and they like saw that like I had like a decent amount of followers. And, um, and then Tate had like told them how I'd like gone like popular off of like a TikTok. So they were like trying to find the TikTok to like see. And like I had taken it down on everything. It was like super crazy.

Tate had grabbed my phone and he was like trying to lock me out of it. And they were asking for my password. Okay. So when you say he grabbed your phone like, Explain to me like how he got your phone. So Tate had like lifted up my legs, or Seth had, and then Tate had like gone in in my pocket. And like I was trying to fight it and like turned on my side so he couldn't get access. But then he just like just Tate or Seth moved me over so he could just grab it real quick.

All his weight down to the ground. And Seth sprints over and grabs my legs. And like he kind of like has it under my knees and he like lifts me up. So I can't really move anywhere. and then after that tape takes my belt off my pants and he

he starts whipping me in my front and then after that Kenny like kind of rolls over to the side a little bit and Seth grabs and like kind of curls my legs so I'm over on my side more after that I tried to fight Kenny and just like fight away from his grip so I could pull out and then he like kind of just like held it tighter

and then kind of grab my arms and then every time I would try to fight Seth would like kind of like I don't know how to explain it he would like put weight on my on the front of my legs so he kind of had him like this and would push down so it would like hurt my back At this point I thought like they were just playing around

like I didn't think it was like but once he took the belt off and then I was like okay like we need to chill and stop and then once they unbutt my pants and pulled them down then I was like trying to actually like fight and get out Okay. Tate had grabbed my phone and he was like trying to lock me out of it and they were asking for my password. Okay. So when you say he grabbed your phone, like, explain to me like how he got your phone.

So Tate had like lifted up my legs or Seth had and then Tate had like gone in in my pocket and like I was trying to fight it so like and like turn on my side so he couldn't get access. But then he just like just Tate or Seth would be over so you could just grab it real quick. So then they undid my pants and then after that he kept whipping me. and then Kaylee started, I guess she'd like put my phone away for a second and started taking pictures off her phone. Okay. And then after that, they told Kaylee to look away. And, you know, she didn't. She was kind of like this.

And then he pulled my boxers down and slag me with the belt. Okay, so they completely removed your clothing? Yes, sir. Okay. So they completely removed your clothing and then who was still hitting you with the ball? Okay. And at that point, Kaylee still had your phone, at least as far as you knew? Okay. And it was still Seth and Kenny that holding you down.

Did Tweedy, Tyler, did anybody else come out? Nobody said anything. Okay. So it is at this point that the victim claims the group dragged them across the concrete to another area outside the fire station. And that is when he claims that he was waterboarded. And you're going to hear some names here. Seth, Kenny, Tate, take a listen. Are they saying anything else at this point?

Are they telling you anything? At this point, they're just laughing. Okay. Um, they're not like, I guess they're, they're not like, you know, still asking about the passcode or anything like that. Like, they had still been asking about the past code the time he was dragging me. Okay. I was like, ow, out, out. I was like, this really hurts.

And I was like, stop, stop, stop. And he was like, what's the past code? What's the past code? And so then he, that's when they pulled out the, um, the towel and the pitcher. Okay. All right. What happened after that? Um, after that, I couldn't breathe for a little bit.

and then they took it off after, it wasn't that long, but we ended up getting a call, so I had to go. I'd throw on a different shirt because it was covered in mud from the water. And then we ran that call, me and Tyler, and when we're on the way back from it, he asked me why I didn't just give him the pass code. He said, like, I didn't have to go through that if I'd give him the pass code. Now, from there, the victim claims that after he returned from the call out, everybody was asleep. And when they woke up the next morning, he said, no one talked about it, but that it was Tate and Seth, who told him a supervisor wanted to talk.

They pulled me to the side. They told me that Lieutenant Bowers wanted to speak with me. And they kind of just asked me not to, like, say anything to him because they didn't want to get in trouble. Okay, so tell me what you mean by that. Tell me more about that. They were like, they were like, Lieutenant Bowers wants to talk to you. He's like, we just want to make sure you're okay from what happened yesterday and that you're not like hurt or anything. You don't want to like snitch on us.

By the way, we also got our hands on a few photos of the victim's apparent injuries, so showing where he was allegedly hit with the belt, dragged across the ground. Investigators, they also released a short video clip, by the way, which seemingly shows the victim pinned down. It was great. It was so nice. I don't want my merch anymore. Yeah, in that four second video, the 19-year-old appears to yell, I don't want. my merch anymore referring to his official gear that references Station 21. So what happens? Well, soon detectives then questioned the suspects. Tate, Kenny, Seth, Kaylee, they're getting the stories about what exactly happened here, what went down. So one of the first people that

detectives spoke with was Kaylee Bradley, and she apparently provided her phone to investigators, you know, seemingly to extract photos and videos. She was read her rights at the beginning of the interview. The detectives told her she wasn't under arrest. And Kaylee, apparently revealed several key details in this case, including what she seemingly called kind of rough housing that was happening all the time. So in a way, she arguably thought nothing of it when her co-workers allegedly chased this rookie down, pinned him on the ground, although I will say it kind of seemed like later on she thought or she said she was uncomfortable, so it's a little confusing here, a little wishwashy. But she was chatty. She seemed to be chatty with investigators. I will tell you this.

The next time she comes in for an interview, her demeanor was seemingly very different. And after a few minutes, deputies moved Bradley into the interrogation room with the couch that she was in previously, making room for her coworker, Edward Eddie Kenny, the third, to wait for his own interview. And these four suspects spent what seemed to be hours alone in these interrogations. rooms, often seen with their heads in their hands, pacing around the room, waiting for someone to come to talk to them. And all four were read the Miranda rights. All four initially agreed to speak with the detectives. Now, we heard from the victim himself explaining to the police what he claims happened, but what I want to explore is how the different suspects responded to investigators'

questions about those parts of the story. So when asked about what kick started this, you know, rough housing. Kaylee brought up new information about how she came into contact with the victim's phone. There were like almost like the entire station earlier in the night was sitting at a table. Was like making a joke about like how he had this TikTok go viral. And it was like sort of like a 2016 like thirst trap. We tried for like a long time. show us the TikTok.

He ended up saying no, like he deleted his TikTok. Like, it's not there anymore. He doesn't have it. We started talking about something else. And then I want to say they'd probably like 30 or 45 minutes had gone by. We were still at the table. And it was like, dude, what the a-ha-as-this guy talking about? And I was like, what?

Like, what do you mean? because he just, like, sometimes randomly just says things. I'm like, about what? And then he gave me his phone, and he was showing me, like, these group messages about, like, another firefighter that was having sex with, like, a girl at the station or something like that. That was who, you know, how many said you that?

He gave me his phone to show me the text messages originally. And then I believe it was Seth who took the phone from my hands, and then that's kind of like where it all started. So like, and if I interrupt you and like you're losing your train of thought, just tell them to be quiet and I'll go back to listen. And I'm also like very panics, so I'm so sorry if I'm like. And if like you need to take a moment or whatever, you don't need to. And we brought in some waters for you too.

Yeah. Yeah. Like we don't want you to feel like pressure at all. Like we said, you're not under arrest. We're not going to be in. No, I don't know. I'm not being pressured. It's like a criminal or anything.

So he didn't want Seth to have the phone and is that you said that's where it's kind of like all started. That's kind of what I got from what you were saying. So like Seth took the phone and then Jane started running after him I believe and they were running around the station and then that's when

Kenny and Tate got involved like they started running around too I had walked around the building because Seth was running and then we heard Tate say we got him and then we came around the corner and Tate and Kenny

had him restrained but like I want to like preface it for me like this is something that happens like every day like they're just messing around and so like participated in like rough housing with Kenny and Tate

and stuff before so I didn't really think that anything was going on and here's what Tate Trot one had to to say. What was anything brought up about Instagram, TikTok, anything like that? Yes. Okay. Tell me more about that. It was, uh, we brought up. He was talking about some girl he was talking to, and then we saw us Instagram and he had like 45,000 followers. Like, what do you have the many followers for? Yeah. We're all just messing around, talking about it. Sure. Yeah. And he's like,

I know if it was TikTok, I blew up and when we wanted to see the TikTok, we asked about it. Okay. Did he share that with you? Did he know? Okay. How did you all react to that? We had to whatever we, I'm sure you guys been told, whatever we took his phone and we were like kind of playing keep away as a sense. Okay.

And despite what this alleged victim apparently told detectives, Kaylee insisted that the victim's phone didn't get taken away from him as he lay on the ground. We were under the impression that his phone was taken when he was being held down. Is that not what happened? That's not what happened. So his phone was already in somebody else's possession? So, yeah, he handed me the phone to show me a conversation about the firefighters having sex at station or something. Okay.

And then that's when Seth took the phone from my hands. And according to Tate, they may have gotten a little rowdy, a little rough, but according to him, everybody was having a good time. Now, what was doing at this point? Laughing. Well, that's why, like, I agree what we did got a hand. Yeah, 100%. Yeah. out of hand but the whole time he was laughing and me rough-housing all day like I just back and forth

wrestling earlier and got up and laughed about it and yeah like no issue yeah all day yeah okay so um tell me more by what you mean like you think it got out of hand like what do you like tell me more about that no probably mostly how long it went on okay and hitting with the bell was probably on on call for it, but, like, the thing I'd like to say to make me known, personally, is, like, that's the kind of behavior that, like, stuff like that's happened to me before. Okay. Like, specifically at that location? At, you know, like, how I work?

Yeah, like, Station 21. That's what I'm at, yeah. Yeah. Stuff, like, in that, similar or the same kind of things happening, having me before. So what is happening, kind of, I'm like, that's the culture I've been shown. I got you. Throughout when I started here, well, the past seven months of my 21. Okay.

So like that kind of stuff has happened to me before. Yeah, you heard Tate say it happened to me before. We're going to get to that in just a second. But something that all four suspects seem to agree upon was that the alleged victim's underwear was never removed. So here's Seth. So what happens after you take the belt off? I don't know right with it. Okay.

pants get pulled down at all? Not intentionally, to my knowledge. I do know there's a little bit of underwear show it. Does his underwear get pulled down at all? Not to my knowledge, no. And here's what Eddie Kenny had to say. Are you sure his underwear doesn't get pulled down or not? No, his underwear does not. Okay. And if you remember, and only because, you know, I can't remember right now, how did his pants come off? Were they pulled off or was it just because of the bell? How are they like... Yeah, like how they fall down, essentially. Because he said that the pants were slipping down,

but I'm not sure. Was it just like his movements that were causing the pants to fall down? Okay, so then he was squirping a little bit then while this was going on. Okay. And Kaylee and Tate, they were questioned about it too. Now, I know you had mentioned it got out of hand, but do you remember his pants coming down at any point?

Like I get that he's laughing the whole time and you guys are joking around with him. Like, did that ever occur, like, where his pants fell? I mean, I get his belt on there. Yeah, his belt wasn't on. I believe when it was holding his legs, maybe it came down to him. We never were, like, grabbed his pants and yank him down. But, like, I believe they probably fell. Okay.

So do you remember his underwear? Yeah, do you remember his underwear? No. Never. Okay. Do you know if they actually did pull his pants all the way down? I only ever remember them pulling it down to, like, expose his underwear region. I never saw like skin or anything like that. Because and you know,

obviously we've spoken with other people. We're under the impression that it did get pulled all the way down. But you didn't see that? I didn't see that. But I was also talking to Horton inside of the bay. Okay. This brings us to the most egregious accusation that this alleged victim was held down, that his face was covered in a towel, and that water was poured onto his head. Waterboarding. The alleged victim claims that water was poured over him three times. But the suspect seemed to say, if anything, no, there were just little droplets. I know you mentioned something about, you know, some sort of some water being brought out. What exactly happened with the water? Or do you know who even brought it out? I don't know who brought it out. I do remember they're not, they're not using it because I told them not to.

or there may have been a few drops like as a way over his head but nothing they had poured it um and besides that i pretty shortly after he caught his call okay do you know and who is they pouring the water even if i don't i don't remember it at all honestly i mean there's only so many of you at the station are you sure you don't remember i i don't remember okay do you remember what used to put the water over it say? I believe there was like we have a picture, plastic pitchers, but kind of used to meet coffee more. Does it have like a top? No. Okay. So how and if I'm you know kind of leading you in the wrong direction here to look you know but how would one you know dribble a little bit of water from something that

has an open top? That makes sense. So it's kind of come out and you know stay streamed with them. I, well sorry. I believe it was like moved over and then believe it was a fool. I don't know how it's the top of my head. Okay. If you don't have to top of your head. This picture, did you actually watch them pour it on them?

No, I did not. Okay. Would it be fair to say that that happened? I'm not sure after the fact, so I was not watching at this point because I thought that it had went too far. So what caused it to stop? I believe that I got a call.

So how does this all come doing that. I think we pulled a towel off, we're like, all right, it's enough. Like, get up. And then after that, I'd mean that me and off like, wrestling night, like, we were just, like, hanging out wrestling.

I'd never have been to fire school. Okay. Like, we're pretty, we were friends. We talked to our fire school and all that. So me and him talked to us on night, we wake up the next day. Me and Seth even were like, maybe you went too far last night.

It's going to talk to him. And me and Seth had asked him the next morning. We're like, hey, are you good? Like, for real, are you? You're like, you know, I heard nothing. No, no, I'm good. But here's a thing. Seemingly, according to the suspects that were interviewed, hazing, hazing behavior was just part of the culture at Station 21.

From a personal instance of something that's happened, I've been held down by four guys in the station. I've had my pants pull down in the same instance. Okay. And Todd Titan messed with. Gotcha. But in this particular instance, you don't remember his pants coming down? No. At what point, you know, did Tate and Seth ever seem like, you know, they were almost becoming, like, malicious with it,

like, where they were appearing, like, I guess, hateful? No, I don't think so. So, like, I was talking to my boyfriend, and I know, like, I'm not supposed to talk about this. I just am going insane over this. I just feel like Tate Even Kenny So like

Kenny just wants to fit in And Kenny has only been here for a month Kenny sees Tate get waterboarded a week ago And then I think that he thought that it would be funny To like bring it out And then Seth Actually like put the towel on his face

Um Like I think that they just thought that they were being funny because it's happened to them. So did you see the thing that happened with Tate about a week ago where he also got orderboarded or did you just hear about it? I did. You did see it? Everybody saw that at the station. Was it like, you know, as it happened to came, do they put the towel over his face and pour the water onto his head? Or was it just like, you know, spraying him down? I mean, how did that, what happened? I didn't really see the towel, like getting put over his head. Yeah. No, I mean, with Tate.

Okay, with, with Tate, yeah, like the towel got put over his head, and they poured like a whole jug of water on him. Okay. And I think everybody was there for that, and then I was told not to record it. Okay, who told you that? I think it was, it might have been Manny or Quentin, Quentin Gaines. Okay, okay. I mean, at this point, we talk to everybody. Yeah, we talked to everybody, and everyone's already gave us their involvement.

you know has been up front with us about what happens so we so what the waterboarding thing I'm sure is what you guys ready get at well so did something so I guess my question is is I know you're bringing up the waterboarding but did was this did somebody like mentioned this and say like waterboarding or like it's time to do waterboarding or anything like that not that well it'd been joke because like I said this kind of stuff has been happening to me okay so it did happen to me so it's kind of a joke it was like a joke You never actually got waterboarded. Okay.

We were sitting there playing around. Seth Haddon by his knees. We were just going to sit there. Kenny had walked in and came back out with a pitcher of water and a towel. Okay. And it was like, oh, I'm going to water board them. Okay. And all that happened was the towel got put up in his face, and that was it.

Okay. So nobody actually poured the water. I don't believe any water. Okay. Because we had heard different. We had heard of water what got deep out for. It didn't sound like it was very much. maybe, but like, did he come up with like a full picture?

Yeah. I mean, it's still full afterwards. So I don't. I wasn't really watching that. I wasn't a part of that. And according to Kaylee, she had previously been told to delete any photos or videos of the rough housing and pranks and was allegedly told by her supervisors not to talk about the incident with the 19 year old.

I was pulled in the next shift in the morning. And they said that they heard that there was. videos of it and that there needed to not be any videos or photos of it anymore. Is that relating to all rough housing or only the incident that happened on Sunday? They already had like established that they don't want any videos or photos of rough housing. Who's they? Like Quinn and Vic. Okay.

Okay. So Quentin Gaines and the captain said, make sure you delete everything regarding the incident that occurred on Sunday. Yes. Did he specify that it was Sunday or did he woke? What did he say? I don't want to put words in his mouth. You were there. You know what I mean? I think like he said something along the lines of like the incident. Okay. Okay. And that, when you heard that, that was Sunday. Sorry, was that the 16th? Yes. Yes. The 16th.

Eventually, both Kenny and Kaylee ask for lawyers. I'm sorry. I'm sorry to rather have a lawyer. Okay. That's okay. Before we step out or anything like that, is there anything else you want to tell us? No, I'm just too stressed. Okay. Is there anything you need water? Okay. All right.

If you need anything, just not hard. Yeah. Coffee or anything? It's entirely up to you, ma'am, you know? So after hours of being at the sheriff's office, it seems to be dawning on the suspects that they are in a lot of trouble right now. Hey, can ask them Carter one more time? Robbery, kidnapping, simple battery. It's a second-degree felony, first-degree felony, and I'm thinking it's second-degree misdemeanor.

So what happened? After their interviews on November 26th, all four suspects were put into handcuffs. They were taken to jail. They actually bonded out. Kenny bonded out seemingly earlier than the rest. But according to Marion County Court records, the defendants posted a percentage of their bond. They were released. Now, Kaylee was charged with robbery and principal to robbery for allegedly keeping the victim's phone away from him.

Seth, Kenny, Tate, they were all charged with robbery, battery, kidnapping. All four are expected in court for Raymond on January 27th. Now, in addition to those four being fired and facing charges, six other people who worked at Fire Station 21 either had their employment terminated or they quit before it could happen. And that included station leadership. Investigative reports by the Marion County Board of County Commissioners that was released in December gives us an idea of why they were let go. For example, here's what the report on Captain Victor Payett says. Quote, Captain Payett became aware of the incident on or about November 19, 2025. At that time, he possessed information indicating that a serious incident involving a firefighter had occurred and that conduct could be criminal in nature.

Despite this awareness, Captain Payett did not immediately initiate formal administrative reporting or notify human resources. Captain Payot discussed the matter with battalion chief Clint Ballack. During the period following the awareness of the incident, Captain Payett did not take steps to ensure formal escalation or preservation of evidence and engaged in informal handling of the matter at the station level. During this period, Captain Payett directed at least one member to delete photographs or video related to the incident, which resulted in permanent loss of evidence. Captain Payot subsequently communicated to Battalion Chief Ballack that the incident

could involve criminal conduct. However, when later interviewed by law enforcement, Captain Payett did not provide the same information he had shared with Battalion Chief Ballack, his law enforcement testimony omitted material information regarding the seriousness of the assault, his knowledge of the incident, his knowledge of picture and video, and his actions after becoming aware of it. And yes, Battalion Chief Ballack was also let go. During a December news conference, you had the Marion County Sheriff, a county commissioner, the fire rescue chief.

They all expressed their extreme disappointment. in this whole situation. Today I want to address the arrest and termination of four first responders from our department. Their actions, now the subject of serious felony charges, represent a disturbing violation of everything this profession stands for. What occurred was unacceptable, inexcusable, and fundamentally contrary to the core values of our fire department. Let me be absolutely clear.

These individuals involved in this incident forfeited their right to wear the uniform the moment they chose an act and manner that endangered, harmed, and betrayed a fellow firefighter. Their behavior does not reflect who we are and what we stand for. To our community, I know this news is upsetting. I know it may cause some to question their trust in the department, but I ask you to remember that we have more than 800, firefighters who come to work every day with one mission, saving lives, protecting property, and protecting this community. They respond at all hours in all conditions and in most dangerous situations in imaginable. The misconduct of a few should not overshadow the honor, commitment, and sacrifice of the many. Marion County has zero tolerance for employees who batter and

betray the trust of the people they serve. Zero tolerance for the those who put their own impulses above their responsibilities. Zero tolerance for behavior that demeans the good men and women who serve honorably every single day, every single call, every single shift. In my 30 years as a firefighter, this is the much egregious thing that I've seen been reported to me. And as fire chief, I was in shock and discussed it at the actions that I, that was reported to me. So where do we go from here? Well, we're going to continue to to monitor this case, see if there's any further fallout. But I got to end on this. Despite everything you've just heard, according to Fire Chief James Banta, the alleged victim in

this case has come back to work, wants to continue his career as a firefighter, saying that this 19-year-old told him, quote, I have a job to do and I need to do that job. That's all we have for you right now here on Sidebar. Everybody, thank you so much for joining us. And as always, please subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcast, Spotify, wherever you. you should get your podcast you follow me on x or instagram i'm jesse weber i'll speak to you next time