St. Pete fire chief reinstated after allegations of bullying, discrimination
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - St. Petersburg Fire Chief James Large has been reinstated after being placed on administrative leave earlier this month amid allegations of bullying and discrimination.
On Wednesday, St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch announced that Large’s reinstatement would take effect on Thursday.
"We're overwhelmed, but we're extremely satisfied that we were able to get the truth out," Large’s attorney, Jay Hebert, said.
Mayor Welch said he and his team reviewed the allegations and conducted multiple interviews with department personnel, the community, and human resources. He said the interviewees came from diverse backgrounds.
In a video statement, Mayor Welch said during the investigation he found nobody with first-hand experience of racial, homophobic, or sexist comments from the chief.
"Given the lack of evidence that he violated city policy and insufficient proof or documentation of inappropriate statements being made, I have concluded my review of this matter, and I am reinstating Chief Large," Mayor Welch said.
Mayor Welch went on to say that even those who supported a leadership change had no direct knowledge or evidence of such statements by the chief.
"Firefighters from diverse backgrounds have come forward to testify as to the professionalism of Chief Large’s management conduct, notably the reported case of a firefighter showing a Black firefighter a meme with a racial slur resulted in that employee being terminated by Chief Large," shared Welch.
The mayor added that Chief Large refuted the statements and delivered a formal response to Welch through his attorney.
"When somebody calls you a racist, and you don't have a racist bone in your body, your first reaction is to stand up and snap. But Jim Large is a great leader. And as a leader, he sat down with me, and we developed a strategy," Hebert said. "We talked about what he saw for the future of this department and for the city. And the bottom line is, he wants to get back to work: Work on diversity, work on inclusion."
Mayor Welch said that only one human resources complaint had been filed against Chief Large during his 17-year tenure as chief and his 49 years with the department. He added that the complaint was determined to be unsubstantiated.
"But he takes all of these issues so seriously. He was emotionally hurt by this process. But he's also a proud man, and he's a great leader. And we need people like Jim Large leading our community. And so he's willing to say, I'm not perfect. This isn't a perfect system, but let's work together in making it as close to perfect as we can get," Hebert said.
Large has said he wants to create a diversity, equity and inclusion committee to get concerns addressed moving forward.
"That's why he's taking steps with the cadet program. That's why he wants to talk about continuing education with regard to the leadership roles within the department. All these things, I think, are positive steps, and it takes us into the next decade and beyond," Hebert said.
However, Mayor Welch went on to state that while there are no formal complaints against Chief Large, there are allegations of bullying and intimidation in recent media coverage. The mayor said those allegations will be investigated if and when a formal complaint is filed with the human resources department.
"While the past few weeks have presented some uncertainty for our dedicated team of firefighters, paramedics, EMTs, and support personnel, they have continued to deliver the exceptional service and high-quality care St. Pete residents have come to expect and rely on," said Mayor Welch. "This period of review has not diminished their unwavering commitment to duty."