PLEASANT VALLEY – A 20-year member of the Pleasant Valley Fire District is suing the district, the Board of Fire Commissioners, and Fire Chief Michael Cosenza over a suspension that occurred in 2022. Barbara Oakes, a volunteer EMT with the department, claims her suspension violated several laws and has destroyed her reputation.
Oakes, according to the petition, is seeking to have the determinations of the chief and the board which suspended her and prohibits her from serving as Rescue Squad Lieutenant which she was elected to by members of the department. The prohibition also prevents Oakes from holding “any line or house office for three years” because she was suspended.
Oakes claims that she was informed that she was being suspended on January 1, 2023, for actions she took on November 14, 2022, when she participated in a meeting with fire company treasurer Pam Moustakas and Town Supervisor John DelVecchio regarding fund transfers between the rescue squad and fire department.
According to Oakes, the three also discussed the proposed contract between the town and Mobile Life Support Services for ambulance service.
That same day, Oakes also spoke at a town board meeting although the official minutes do not contain her comments. The suspended EMT claims that the suspension is the result of “bullying” from department officials. When asked for the specifics on the suspension, Oakes said it wasn’t spelled out for her but indicated that it might be the result of her speaking at the November town board meeting. “We live in a dictatorship,” Oakes told Mid-Hudson News.
Although not mentioned in the lawsuit, Oakes says that she is the victim of sexual discrimination from district officials, despite having served the district for two decades. “I’ve been there for 20 years to help people,” she said, adding “Not everyone in the department does the same. There are members that only show up for big calls so they can be heroes.”
When asked about the suspension and the lawsuit, District Commissioner Melissa Lawlor told Mid-Hudson News, “It is our policy not to discuss personnel matters in a public forum and the district is not going to speak to ongoing litigation.”
