The son of the mayor of Garden Grove, who was hired last year as a city firefighter despite a criminal record and still on the job after scathing reviews, is being transferred to a new job. But that job may come with a pay raise.
Jeremy Broadwater was removed from his job on a fire engine and reassigned to a desk role earlier this month, according to an Oct. 7 memo obtained by the Orange County Register.
A memo signed by the city and the firefighter’s union stipulates that an employee making such a switch can get a raise of up to 10 percent.
Talk about falling upwards.
“Broadwater, son of current mayor and longtime Councilman Bruce Broadwater, was hired last year from a field of about 500 applicants despite a list of 10 arrests and misdemeanor convictions of assault, resisting arrest, public intoxication and theft,” the Register reports. “Though the last of the convictions came several years ago and none would automatically disqualify Broadwater from working as a firefighter, officials familiar with the competitive hiring process said they would make it highly unlikely.”
Garden Grove City Manager Matt Fertal would not comment on details about Broadwater’s situation, but confirmed the firefighter’s switch in an email to the Register: “This is a Management decision to allocate resources that best serve the department.”