The Professional Firefighters Union of New Hampshire is upset with the Newport Police Department after officers disguised themselves as firefighters to make an arrest.
Police devised the plan to take 34-year-old Matthew Miller into custody. Police went to his apartment Tuesday night for a noise complaint. When Miller answered the door he was holding a baby, and allegedly pointed a shotgun at the officer's face.
The officer, who knew Miller had a violent past, left the scene to avoid a confrontation. So the next day the officers came back in a fire truck dressed as firemen. They told Miller he had to evacuate due to a carbon monoxide issue. He was then arrested without incident.
"We need to have the trust of the public when we respond. If we allow others to co-opt our image, trade on our good name, no matter the circumstances, we'd create a breach of trust with the public that will be impossible for us to repair," said David Lang, of the Professional Firefighters of New Hampshire.
"If we as police didn't handle it correctly it was going to be disastrous for innocent people. This was the best possible scenario. It worked and it was very quick. It was not harmful to anybody. It's not to degrade those professions, to make those professions unsafe in any way. It's to accomplish our mission safely, without causing harm to anybody," said Newport Police Chief David Hoyt.
Hoyt went on to say he'd rather have firefighters criticizing his decisions than others questioning why innocent people were injured and killed.
Newport Fire Chief Wayne Conroy was in on the plot, and says he does not think residents will lose trust in his department.
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http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090305-NEWS-90305055
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