The former chief of the Los Angeles Fire Department has filed a lawsuit against the city over her termination last year. Mayor Karen Bass fired Kristin Crowley nearly two months after the Palisades Fire killed 12 people and burned more than 6,000 structures.
Bass’ office responded to the suit in a statement to Straight Arrow News.
“There is nothing new here,” senior adviser Yusef Robb said. “Ms. Crowley was removed from her post for her failure to predeploy and her decision to send 1,000 firefighters home instead of keeping them on duty on the morning the fires broke out. This lawsuit has no merit.”
Attempts to contact Crowley were unsuccessful.
Crowley lawsuit
Crowley’s lawsuit alleges the mayor “orchestrated a campaign of retaliation to conceal the extent to which Bass undermined public safety and transparency,” the suit reads in part.
The 37-page suit is extremely critical of Bass and her handling of the fires, with Bass’ name mentioned more than 200 times.
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“In early January 2025, when the National Weather Service warned of severe wind and fire weather conditions in Los Angeles, Bass chose to leave the country and did not tell Chief Crowley that she was doing so,” the suit reads.
Bass was criticized for being in Africa when the fire began.
Crowley is seeking compensatory damages for lost income, benefits and opportunities after her removal as fire chief and other damages.
Bass’ office claim of Crowley failing to deploy firefighters was also mentioned in the suit.
“The LAFD’s deployment decisions followed its established protocols and policies but were limited by an ongoing resource crisis facing the LAFD,” the suit reads.
Yearlong rift
Large parts of the lawsuit also allege the firing was Bass’ way of retaliating against Crowley, who became openly critical of the city shortly after the fires. Initially, the two appeared to get along, but a division quickly formed.
Crowley publicly criticized Bass and the city for underfunding and understaffing the department ahead of the fires.
“Despite facing pressure from Mayor Bass to go along with the lies, Crowley nevertheless chose the truth,” the suit reads.
Following the termination, Crowley remained with the department in a different capacity, which the suit alleges Bass and others have impeded the former fire chief.
“Since then, Bass and the City have continued to engage in an ongoing retaliation campaign against Crowley, intentionally interfering with Crowley’s ability to serve the LAFD and the City to her maximum abilities,” the suit reads.
After-action report
When Bass fired Crowley, the mayor also criticized her for allegedly refusing to put together the after-action report on the fires to show what went wrong in the response.
The suit mentions a meeting on Feb. 18, 2025, between Crowley, LAFD staff, Board of Fire commissioners, members of Bass’ staff and more.
“At no time during or after the meeting did anyone instruct Crowley to conduct an After-Action Report,” the suit reads. “Nor did Crowley ever refuse to conduct or participate in an After-Action Report.”
An after-action report was eventually released, but Bass came under fire for allegedly altering it to avoid certain liability for the city.
