Former Nassau County Fire Chief Matthew Graves’ abrupt retirement is, in part, linked to the firing of a firefighter under his command last month.
Assistant County Manager Justin Stankiewicz confirmed the connection to Action News Jax on Tuesday.
Former firefighter Joe Patterson was fired March 10 after an investigation showed he failed to file dozens of patient care reports.
It’s an oversight that cost the county money.
Patterson’s firing came weeks before the county gave Graves the option to retire, resign or be fired. Graves retired on March 31.
Assistant Fire Chief Scott Hemmingway’s investigation found Patterson had failed to file 36 patient-care reports in 2016.
The county needs those reports to bill patients.
Handwritten notes from a pre-disciplinary meeting between Patterson and County Manager Shanea Jones said Patterson told her he doesn’t “know why he wouldn’t have done the reports” and there was “no malicious reason not to.”
Jones fired Patterson the next day.
In an exclusive interview, Patterson told Action News Jax he’s going to file a wrongful termination lawsuit against the county.
He said he felt he should have been reprimanded instead of fired.
Patterson is now looking for a firefighting job elsewhere.
Patterson said he and Graves “did not have a good working relationship together.”
Stankiewicz confirmed Patterson’s firing was one of the issues that led up to Graves’ ousting.
Stankiewicz said it identified a “loophole” in the chain of command that allowed Patterson’s actions to go unnoticed for a year.
Stankiewicz reiterated the county’s desire to replace the chief was because of an accumulation of issues, not just one.
Last week, Stankiewicz denied the firing was related to March’s Bryceville wildfire.
Action News Jax reported Monday that there are no complaints in Graves’ personnel record.
All of Graves’ recent performance reviews rate him as “outstanding.”
Cox Media Group
