|
|
 |
 |
by Tony Sclafani
The Battle of the Badges has gone Hollywood.
An NYPD lieutenant called New York's Bravest "amateurs at work" during a rescue in Tuesday's episode of "NYPD 24/7," an ABC documentary series about city cops.
The comments left fire officials fuming yesterday at the wisecracking cop and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly for allowing firefighters to be slammed on a national program.
"It's outrageous," said Stephen Cassidy, president of the Uniformed Firefighters Association. "He [Kelly] absolutely needs to apologize to firefighters and tell us this will never happen again."
Cassidy said Kelly didn't return his phone call yesterday after the union got a slew of complaints from members concerned about their portrayal in the seven-part series.
In Tuesday night's episode, Venton (Vic) Hollifield drives up to a two-car crash and rips into the way firefighters handle a rescue along with Emergency Service Unit cops.
Hollifield accuses them of ignoring the more seriously injured person in one of the mangled cars.
"You see how the Fire Department wastes their time on a guy who doesn't need any assistance," he cracks to the camera. "This is the guy who needs help, and they walk away from him. Amateurs at work."
NYPD spokesman Paul Browne called the remarks "inappropriate."
Hollifield, 48, a 21-year veteran, stood by his remarks.
"They treated the guy, and then they walked away. They violated protocol," said Hollifield.Hollifield, who retired at the end of the show's filming in 2002, also is the subject of a pending lawsuit filed by a retired firefighter after a October 1999 scuffle.
Hollifield allegedly shoved Fire Lt. Vito Emanuele to the floor during an argument over which agency was going to make a midtown scaffold rescue. The serious back injury Emanuele suffered ended his 23-year career.
"I just happened to be an innocent bystander at the time, doing my job and he attacked me," said Emanuele, 51. "He just has a big head. That's his problem."
Hollifield was not reachable for comment.
 |
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
