Pulaski Street fire in Flint kills Zaire and Lamar Mitchell and sparks scandal for Democrat Sheldon Neely

In late May, 12-year-old Secretary Mitchell and 9-year-old Lamar Mitchell died after briefly surviving a fire in their home in Flint, Michigan. The two black boys were eventually discovered inside a second-floor room – in a house just three minutes’ walk from the local fire station.

“The last message he sent me was, ‘You’re the best mom ever,'” their mother, Crystal Cooper, remembers in an interview, talking about Lamar. “He was just so caring and loving, and if I was having a bad day, he’d make me smile. He was always smiling.”

Weeks later, the city’s fire chief decided that two white firefighters were initially tasked with scanning the room where the children were mortally wounded in order to properly search for victims.

“Given the nature of the incident involved, and the actions or inactions likely to contribute to the loss of two victims, I have decided to terminate the employment of Sergeants Daniel Snijoki and Michael Zlotek at the Flint City Fire Department,” read a report dated July 22 and obtained by The Daily Beast.

But while Commander Raymond Barton made the determination to dismiss the firefighters, neither was ultimately turned down. Instead, Snegoki quit – and allowed Zlotek to return to work after completing a course in search and rescue.

The move “divided the department,” Barton said at an October City Council meeting. Now, the boys’ family is publicly calling for a criminal investigation into the firefighters’ actions — as well as an investigation into what some city council members in the volatile Michigan city have serially said was a cover-up by the mayor, Democrat Sheldon Neely.

“I would just like to do a thorough investigation of the firefighters,” Cooper told the Daily Beast. “Everyone who participated. I would like answers. I want to know what happened.”

In a written statement, Flint spokeswoman Katie O’Neill said the fire was a “tragedy” and that the discipline given to officers was issued according to “normal procedures.”

“No undue influence by Mayor Neely or any other elected official at any time affected the outcome of the investigation or the discipline imposed,” she wrote.

Neither Snejoki nor Zlotek could be reached for comment for this story. Spokespeople for Flint Police and the Genesee County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

There was no way they [Sniegocki and Zlotek] I entered the bedroom where the victims were found and died.

Lieutenant Fred Presswood

When the fire broke out that Saturday morning in May, ordinary firefighters were the first to call 911. They were alerted to the fire by a passerby, who said they saw smoke rising from the house near the fire station. Itself.

With emergency personnel rushing to the scene, Snejoki and Zlotek were the two-person team that conducted the first sweep of the second floor of the two-story home, according to Barton’s report.

“Upon completion of its first sweep of the second floor, the team canceled a second sweep,” the statement read.

It wasn’t until seven minutes later – precious moments when the child faced smoke inhalation – that another crew of firefighters moved to vent the room and discovered a boy lying on the floor.

“There was no way [Sniegocki and Zlotek] Lt. Presswood, the firefighter whose team eventually found the boys, told Barton, according to the report: Presswood did not respond to requests for comment.

After the investigation, the chief found that “Sergeant Snegoki and firefighter Michael Zlotek had knowingly provided false reports in their writing about the accident” and that they had “negligently performed the tasks of completing a survey of the second floor.”

Firefighters are trained to save lives. They are trained to look out for people who may have fainted from smoke inhalation or are trapped in a fire. This did not happen with my sons.

Crystal Cooper

The fire chief did not respond to requests for comment. According to an MLive report, a firefighters union representative previously said the men were scapegoats in a situation where they faced high heat and poor visibility.

“State fire investigators have determined that the home’s electrical wiring caused this devastating fire,” Chief Barton said in a statement in August.

But after months of feeling ignored by the authorities, even a former attorney, Cooper – a nurse – decided to take to the podium at Flint City Council earlier this month to issue a plea for justice.

“Firefighters are trained to save lives. They are trained to look for people who may have fainted from smoke inhalation or are trapped in a fire. This has not happened with my sons.”

Zayer Mitchell, left, and Lamar Mitchell, right.

Courtesy of Crystal Cooper

While questioning some council members the same night, President Barton said he initially suspended the officers without pay. Then he said the severity of the consequences was starting to slip — not always in his direction.

Barton said that while in Arkansas for a family funeral, he “received a call from the director [of] HR Eddie Smith” who reported that the unpaid suspension had been changed to paid suspension. Smith later told the council that this was due to a verbal directive from the city’s attorney general, William Kim.

Kim’s office has directed requests for comment to the mayor. Smith did not respond to a request for comment.

Then the discipline slipped further: The president’s decision to terminate — which he referred to as a “recommendation” at a council meeting — was changed to a suspension “under investigation,” he said, “through advice” from Kim and Smith and City Manager Clyde Edwards. Edwards did not respond to a request for comment.

“So the decision was made on top of your salary to let the chips fall where they are now, is that what you’re saying?” asked Councilman Dennis Pfeiffer later.

“Comment, yes,” Barton replied.

In the end, Nijoki was allowed to resign without any further consequences. Zlotek – who inspected the side of the room without the boys – was allowed to return to work after a two-week suspension and a search and rescue training course.

In an August news release by the city publicly announcing the decision to allow Zlotek’s return to board the ship, Mayor Neely and Chief Barton appeared to be united.

“I have complete confidence in the thorough investigation that has been conducted and ultimately President Barton’s decision,” a statement from Mayor Neely read, which also emphasized that the safety and security of Flint residents “must not be compromised.”

We demand that our firefighters protect and serve our citizens. Therefore, we must have the highest standards for their performance and have no tolerance for those who do not meet expectations. I stand with the fire department and our community in continuing to raise the family in prayer.”

But by the time the city council meets this month, the united front is beginning to fall apart.

“By overtaking you and eliminating you, what has that done to the morale of other officers or other firefighters who want accountability, and that does a good job?” Pfeiffer asked.

“Let’s say it for what he is–he took the oath,” Barton replied.

Nick Renato, senior vice president of the Flint Firefighters’ Union, told the Daily Beast they could not comment on the events of the fire or its aftermath, due to pending arbitration between the city and the union over Zlotek’s suspension. The city of Flint gave the same reason for not answering more questions.

At the end of the council meeting, all five members present voted for an independent investigation into the fire.

But in interviews with The Daily Beast, council members Eric Mays and Tonya Burns wasted little time directly blaming Mayor Neely — who they claimed must have been the one who beat the fire chief.

“He chose to keep it quiet. When you have two black kids – and of course, the race card will be played in anything – when two white firefighters first came in, and they didn’t come in. And then you have two black firefighters who came in,” Burns said. The Daily Beast on Thursday. “Then…they lied about the reports and then they were covered up…you should be at the Department of Justice.”

She later added, “There is only one person who can say I don’t want to terminate their service.”

On November 8, Neely will face former mayor Karen Weaver for re-election in a race he is not certain to win.

Neeley was recently revealed to have long claimed to have a non-existent college degree — and refused to join Weaver in a debate, which his team had Tell MLive It would “give a platform to criticize disinformation” from Weaver’s campaign.

In the initial race for mayor, there was very little margin separating the two—a difference of just 205 votes.

Burns urged the city to release documents she said the law department had rejected — including the city’s original recommendation on the matter to the mayor. She believes that these documents may confirm that Mayor Neely opposed even his attorney’s recommendation.

She claimed: “He is worried that it is a political suicide, unlike two young children who lost their lives.”

In an interview, Cooper remembered her son Zyaire as an avid athlete and clarinetist who was considering switching to the drum. Lamar was a happy kid with a TikTok addiction who loved constantly calling and texting his mom when she didn’t respond to him right away during her days as a nurse.

“Nothing will make me feel better,” Cooper said. “But at least achieving justice for my children could be the beginning.”

[ad_2]

Related posts

Leave a Comment