The former Los Angeles fire chief filed a legal claim against the city Wednesday, alleging that Mayor Karen Bass \u201corchestrated a campaign of misinformation, defamation, and retaliation\u201d to protect her political image after the most destructive wildfire in city history.<\/p>\n
Kristin Crowley and her lawyers accuse Bass of ousting her, and repeatedly defaming Crowley as Bass sought to shift blame for the way the city handled the catastrophic Palisades Fire \u201cwhile concealing the extent to which she undermined public safety\u201d with cuts to the fire department\u2019s budget. <\/p>\n
The legal claim alleges that Bass scapegoated Crowley amid mounting criticism of the mayor\u2019s decision to attend a ceremony in Ghana on Jan. 7, when the fire erupted. Bass left Los Angeles despite her knowing of the potential severe winds and deadly fire danger, the claim alleges.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs the Fire Chief, for nearly three years, I advocated for the proper funding, staffing and infrastructure upgrades to better support and protect our Firefighters, and by extension, our communities,\u201d Crowley said in a statement to The Times. \u201cThe lies, deceit, exaggerations and misrepresentations need to be addressed with the only thing that can refute them \u2014 the true facts.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bass and the city had yet to respond to a request for comment Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Crowley\u2019s lawyers say Bass \u201cinitially praised the department\u2019s preparedness\u201d and even portrayed the response positively. \u201cBut as criticism mounted over her absence, Bass reversed course,\u201d the legal claim said. \u201cShe sought to shift blame to Crowley, falsely stating that Bass was not aware of the nationally anticipated weather event, that Crowley sent 1,000 firefighters home who could have fought the blaze, and misrepresenting the department\u2019s budget…\u201d<\/p>\n
Bass removed Crowley on Feb. 21, six weeks after the firestorm that consumed Pacific Palisades, killing 12 people and destroying nearly 7,000 homes.<\/p>\n
The mayor said she was demoting <\/a> Crowley for failing to inform her<\/a> about the dangerous conditions or to activate hundreds of firefighters<\/a> ahead of the blaze. She also said Crowley rebuffed a request to prepare a report on the fires \u2014 a critical part of ongoing investigations into the cause of the fire and the city\u2019s response.<\/p>\n According to her lawyers, Crowley had \u201crepeatedly warned of the LAFD\u2019s worsening resource and staffing crisis,\u201d prior to the fire, and warned that \u201caging infrastructure, surging emergency calls, and shrinking staff left the city at risk.\u201d<\/p>\n In the 23-page claim, Crowley said Bass cut the department\u2019s operating budget by nearly $18 million that year and \u201celiminated positions critical to maintaining fire engines, trucks, and ambulances.\u201d<\/p>\n After Crowley complained publicly that the budget cuts had \u201cweakened the department\u2019s readiness, Bass retaliated,\u201d the lawyers allege. On Jan 10, after Crowley told FOX LA, \u201cwe are screaming to be properly funded,\u201d Bass called her to the mayor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know why you had to do that; normally we are on the same page, and I don\u2019t know why you had to say stuff to the media,\u201d the lawyers say Bass told the chief, but said she wasn\u2019t fired.<\/p>\n The next day, retired Chief Deputy Ronnie Villanueva began working at the Emergency Operations Center, donning a Mayor\u2019s office badge. Then Feb. 3, 2025, two weeks before Chief Crowley was removed from her position, Villanueva wrote a Report to the Board of Fire Commissioners identifying himself as Interim Fire Chief\u201d \u2014 a position he now holds.<\/p>\n Crowley was eventually ousted and put on leave. Her lawyers allege Bass\u2019s public accusation at the time that Crowley refused to participate in an after action report of the Palisades fire after being asked to by the Fire Commission President Genethia Hayes, a Bass appointee \u2014 was blatantly false and she was never asked.<\/p>\n A legal claim is a precursor to a civil lawsuit, and is required by California law when suing a government entity. In her claim, Crowley alleges Bass and her subordinates have conducted a \u201cpublic smear campaign aimed at discrediting Crowley\u2019s character and decades of service,\u201d following her dismissal. <\/p>\n Crowley\u2019s attorneys, Genie Harrison and Mia Munro, allege that Bass and others in her administration defamed Crowley, retaliated against her in violation of California\u2019s labor code and violated Crowley\u2019s First Amendment rights. Crowley is seeking unspecified damages above $25,000.<\/p>\n Harrison, who has represented numerous victims of Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, said Crowley\u2019s claim \u201cpresents her extensive advocacy efforts to obtain the funding and resources the LAFD needed to fulfill its public safety mission. It also shows Mayor Bass\u2019 repeated refusals to provide those resources.\u201d<\/p>\n