Los Angeles City Council declines to reinstate Fire Chief Kristin Crowley after heated hearing

Kristin Crowley, the former fire chief of the Los Angeles Fire Department, appealed Mayor Karen Bass’s decision to remove her, but the City Council voted 13-2 to receive and file the appeal rather than reinstate her.

Crowley spoke to the council and to firefighters in chambers, saying she had acted to protect the department and that several accusations against her were false. “I did not refuse to conduct an after action report,” Crowley told the council, arguing that an independent, state-funded review was the appropriate path because the department lacks the staffing and resources to conduct a full, independent analysis alone.

The debate focused on three issues cited by the mayor: whether Crowley declined to keep extra firefighters on duty the morning of Jan. 7; whether she failed to notify the mayor’s office about dangerous weather conditions; and whether she refused to participate in an after-action review. Crowley and multiple union speakers said the department had pre-deployed personnel and that apparatus shortages—engines, trucks and ambulances sitting in maintenance yards—limited how many additional firefighters could be deployed.

Councilmember Marqueece Harris‑Dawson opened the hearing and invited legal and administrative briefings. Chief Deputy City Attorney Denise Mills told the council that, under the city charter, the mayor has the authority to remove the fire chief and that the council may reinstate a chief by a two‑thirds vote. City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo testified about budget and staffing decisions, saying the CAO’s office had recommended eliminating vacant positions during prior budget cycles and that the council later restored a small number of mechanic and related positions in subsequent budget actions.

Union leaders and rank‑and‑file firefighters gave lengthy testimony in support of Crowley. Chung Ho of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City (Local 112) told the council the chief “stood up, she spoke out and she had our backs,” and disputed media accounts that a thousand firefighters could have been held over on the morning of the Palisades fire. Several other union speakers described apparatus and maintenance shortfalls in the department’s fleet.

Speakers representing community organizations and other unions asked the council instead to support the mayor’s decision, calling it necessary to preserve public safety and urging the city to move quickly to strengthen emergency response systems.

Councilmember Nithya Raman and Councilmember Eunice Park were among those who moved and seconded a motion earlier in the hearing to reinstate Crowley; that motion did not advance to a successful vote. Councilmember Kevin de León (Lee moved the successful procedural motion; the clerk recorded the final procedural motion to receive and file as moved by Councilmember Kevin de León, seconded by Hugo Soto‑Martínez and Councilmember Curren Price). After a call of the question that required a 10‑vote threshold, the roll call on the motion to receive and file showed 13 ayes and 2 noes, and the council clerk announced, “This matter is received and filed.”

During the hearing the City Administrative Officer and Council staff discussed funding an independent after‑action review; the CAO’s office had a budget line under consideration for roughly $150,000 to contract an independent review. Crowley told the council she supported the independent state review already under way through the Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI), which she said had the capacity for a full analysis.

The council’s action to receive and file means the appeal did not result in reinstatement. The decision leaves the mayor’s removal intact while several investigations and an independent review proceed. Council members who voted against the procedural motion said they wanted a fuller factual record before accepting a decision that would overturn a mayoral removal; those who voted for it cited the mayor’s executive authority and concerns about an executive‑department relationship needed for effective emergency response.

The hearing included repeated public comment from firefighters, union leaders and community groups on both sides of the question. Speakers urged further investment in fleet maintenance, mechanics and long‑term staffing for the department. Council members noted that funding and staffing choices made by the city in recent years have contributed to the challenges the department described in the hearing.

The council also directed staff to continue and accelerate independent investigation and budgeting steps, including the committee discussion of an independent after‑action review and continued examination of apparatus maintenance and fleet staffing needs. No immediate personnel reinstatements followed the vote.

Ending: The council’s receipt and filing of the appeal leaves the mayor’s removal of Kristin Crowley in place while the city proceeds with independent reviews and further budget and staffing work on the Los Angeles Fire Department. The hearing highlighted sharp divisions between union leaders, who supported the chief, and city leaders who emphasized mayoral authority and the need for comprehensive investigations.