Driving costs firefighter [Hernando Today, Brooksville, Fla.]
By Tony Holt, Hernando Today, Brooksville, Fla. |
Neither is having felony charges dropped, according to court records.
His perceived tendency to drive with disregard to traffic laws has cost him the privilege of driving ambulances for the
He is a firefighter-paramedic employed with the city, but the ambulances are off-limits because they are owned by the county.
Freda, however, is allowed to drive city-owned vehicles, including the brush truck.
Furthermore, he has been prohibited from driving
The former chief there wrote emails to county attorneys last summer telling them Freda, who has been a volunteer there for the past few years, should be allowed to drive.
The former chief was overruled.
Freda's driving record is littered with infractions, but he's avoided his fair share of penalties.
In
Eight months earlier, prosecutors dropped burglary and theft charges against him, according to the court's website.
"The sooner we get him off the road, the better," wrote
He said the firefighter has maintained a clean driving record recently and has been a "model employee" since he was hired last December.
"I have had no issues with him," said the chief.
Since 2004, the 25-year-old Freda has received scads of traffic infractions, mostly in
He received tickets for unlawful speed twice in 2004 and four times in 2005.
Freda was nabbed for careless driving and operating a vehicle with no proof of insurance in 2007 and was ticketed once more that year for unlawful speed in
He completed driving school in 2005 and 2007.
Another speeding ticket came in 2008 in
Ten months ago, he was ticketed for a seatbelt infraction.
In
His license was suspended almost three years later as a result of that failed payment.
Nonetheless, enough red flags were raised.
"My opinion is that we deny him to drive county vehicles at this time," Charlow wrote in June. "In
Charlow also stated in the same email that
A subsequent email by Nickerson stated the county's insurance provider wouldn't insure Freda, but the city's provider did.
Freda's employment evaluation earlier this year was favorable. Aside from a suggestion to show more initiative, his superiors listed no criticisms, according to his personnel file at city hall.
"I'm the type of person that will not forget the struggle I've had to get hired," Freda wrote in his application.
Former
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Source: | McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Wordcount: | 604 |
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