Seven Cobb County firefighters have been disciplined after an internal investigation revealed they cheated by working together on a state certification exam in May, county officials said Wednesday.
Four lieutenants were demoted to engineers, and two engineers and one firefighter were suspended without pay after violating the department’s code of conduct.
The firefighters participated in a training course and exam to become certified instructors on specific fire apparatus. While in the exam room, the lead instructor and the test-takers discussed the answers to the questions, officials found. One firefighter immediately left the room and informed department leadership and therefore did not face any discipline.
The firefighters were cooperative in the investigation and expressed their remorse, said Deputy Fire Chief Carl Crumbley. Nothing like this has ever happened in the fire department before, he added.
“All of these employees were very tenured employees with upwards of 26 years in the organization,” Crumbley said. “We believe that the discipline that was issued was very swift and justifiable to ensure that nothing like this happens again.”
Six of the seven firefighters were also in the department’s training staff. They have been removed from training duties, Crumbley said.
“We are extremely disappointed by the poor judgment of these firefighters,” Fire Chief William Johnson said in a statement. “We launched an investigation as soon as we learned of the accusation. Those involved cooperated with us and realized they had made a huge mistake. The punishment is severe but should send a message that this department will not tolerate any breach of ethical behavior.”
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