Providence firefighter files lawsuit

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) – A Providence firefighter has filed a lawsuit against the fire department and against the firefighters union.

Lt. Lori Franchina, a veteran firefighter, claims that she has suffered years of harassment and discrimination that has jeopardized both her safety and patient safety while working for the Providence Fire Department .

Eyewitness News Legal Analyst Lou Pulner says that taxpayers in Providence may be responsible for a big legal bill.

"If the allegations set forth in the complaint are true, and they are horrific, then the already financially-strapped city of Providence is in for some trouble as well as the union coffers,” said Pulner.

According to court documents, on an emergency call in 2006, Lt. Franchina determined that a patient had a viable pulse and was a candidate for life-saving medicine and intervention. Several male firefighters refused to help her move the body. The patient reportedly never regained consciousness.

Lt. Franchina also claims that an incident that happened in 2009 was so bad that it caused her to suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome.

She claims that while she was working on a victim, who had a gunshot wound to the head, she instructed a male subordinate to remove his gloves to avoid spreading blood onto the equipment in the rescue. The man then reportedly placed his gloved hands in her face and removed the gloves. The snap launched blood, brain matter, and other fluids into her mouth, nostrils, eyes, and ears.

Over numerous years, Franchina reported that she filed dozens of verbal and written complaints regarding incidents of insubordination and harassment. She also has a restraining order against a fellow firefighter who allegedly assaulted her.

Franchina says that she has been targeted because she is a woman and a lesbian.