The DC Fire Department lieutenant accused of ignoring a dying man outside her fire station retired yesterday before she could face any disciplinary action.
Lt. Kellene Davis, a 28-year veteran of the department, was in charge of a fire station on Rhode Island Ave., NE, on January 25 when 77-year-old Medric Mills Jr. collapsed on the sidewalk across the street after suffering a heart attack and later died after none of the fire fighters under Davis’s command responded to pleas for help. Davis’s conduct that day was under review by the Fire Department’s trial board, but with her retirement approved, she is entitled to her full pension and benefits without ever being disciplined in the case of Mills’s death.
Davis originally asked to retire days after Mills died, but Fire Chief Kenneth Ellerbetold the Washington Post he denied her request to give the department time to review the incident. However, Ellerbe said he had no legal authority to stop Davis from retiring before the trial board could reach a verdict on her. As a result, whatever decision the trial board may have reached is moot now that Davis is out.
Davis and four other fire fighters were on duty when Mills suffered his heart attack. Despite please from Mills’s daughter and other witnesses, no one from Engine 26 came to his aid. Davis was charged with six violations of duty, including an unreasonable failure to assist a member of the public. Her disciplinary hearing last month was also carried out in secret, with the trial board kicking out reporters and members of Mills’s family.
Mills’s family is understandably angry with Davis retiring.
“We are angry and frustrated that the trial board has allowed the lieutenant who did not do her job and whose inaction prevented a life from being saved is allowed to retire with no adverse action being taken,” a statement from the Mills family reads. “The public should be shocked that its public servants who have a duty to protect them are not held accountable when they neglect their duties. We are infuriated. Justice was not served. The system did not work. This is disgraceful.”
DC Fire Lieutenant in Charge of Station That Failed to Help Dying Man Allowed to Retire
A 28-year veteran of the DC Fire Department won’t face any discipline for the January 25 death of Medric Mills Jr.
The DC Fire Department lieutenant accused of ignoring a dying man outside her fire station retired yesterday before she could face any disciplinary action.
Lt. Kellene Davis, a 28-year veteran of the department, was in charge of a fire station on Rhode Island Ave., NE, on January 25 when 77-year-old Medric Mills Jr. collapsed on the sidewalk across the street after suffering a heart attack and later died after none of the fire fighters under Davis’s command responded to pleas for help. Davis’s conduct that day was under review by the Fire Department’s trial board, but with her retirement approved, she is entitled to her full pension and benefits without ever being disciplined in the case of Mills’s death.
Davis originally asked to retire days after Mills died, but Fire Chief Kenneth Ellerbe told the Washington Post he denied her request to give the department time to review the incident. However, Ellerbe said he had no legal authority to stop Davis from retiring before the trial board could reach a verdict on her. As a result, whatever decision the trial board may have reached is moot now that Davis is out.
Davis and four other fire fighters were on duty when Mills suffered his heart attack. Despite please from Mills’s daughter and other witnesses, no one from Engine 26 came to his aid. Davis was charged with six violations of duty, including an unreasonable failure to assist a member of the public. Her disciplinary hearing last month was also carried out in secret, with the trial board kicking out reporters and members of Mills’s family.
Mills’s family is understandably angry with Davis retiring.
“We are angry and frustrated that the trial board has allowed the lieutenant who did not do her job and whose inaction prevented a life from being saved is allowed to retire with no adverse action being taken,” a statement from the Mills family reads. “The public should be shocked that its public servants who have a duty to protect them are not held accountable when they neglect their duties. We are infuriated. Justice was not served. The system did not work. This is disgraceful.”
Most Popular in News & Politics
See a Spotted Lanternfly? Here’s What to Do.
Meet DC’s 2025 Tech Titans
Patel Dined at Rao’s After Kirk Shooting, Nonviolent Offenses Led to Most Arrests During Trump’s DC Crackdown, and You Should Try These Gougères
The “MAGA Former Dancer” Named to a Top Job at the Kennedy Center Inherits a Troubled Program
Trump Travels One Block From White House, Declares DC Crime-Free; Barron Trump Moves to Town; and GOP Begins Siege of Home Rule
Washingtonian Magazine
September Issue: Style Setters
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
Why a Lost DC Novel Is Getting New Attention
These Confusing Bands Aren’t Actually From DC
Fiona Apple Wrote a Song About This Maryland Court-Watching Effort
The Confusing Dispute Over the Future of the Anacostia Playhouse
More from News & Politics
Administration Steps Up War on Comedians, Car Exhibition on the Mall Canceled After Tragedy, and Ted Leonsis Wants to Buy D.C. United
What Happens After We Die? These UVA Researchers Are Investigating It.
Why a Lost DC Novel Is Getting New Attention
Bondi Irks Conservatives With Plan to Limit “Hate Speech,” DC Council Returns to Office, and Chipotle Wants Some Money Back
GOP Candidate Quits Virginia Race After Losing Federal Contracting Job, Trump Plans Crackdown on Left Following Kirk’s Death, and Theatre Week Starts Thursday
5 Things to Know About “Severance” Star Tramell Tillman
See a Spotted Lanternfly? Here’s What to Do.
Patel Dined at Rao’s After Kirk Shooting, Nonviolent Offenses Led to Most Arrests During Trump’s DC Crackdown, and You Should Try These Gougères