Retired firefighter Wallace Houghton has successfully won three distinct Civil Service appeals regarding disciplinary actions taken against him by former acting fire chief Robert T. Capeless Jr.
The state Civil Service Commission formally reversed separate three-day and five-day suspensions imposed by Capeless in June 1978 after Houghton refused orders to return to work while on extended injury leave.
In decisions handed down last week, the commission ordered that full back pay and any lost benefits be restored to Houghton. The rulings concluded that Houghton, who had submitted multiple medical certificates detailing his disability, was under no obligation to return to light-duty work as a dispatcher since he was incapable of performing full firefighter duties.
The dispute escalated in late July 1978 when Chief Capeless notified Houghton that his continued absence constituted an unauthorized, “permanent and voluntary” separation from the department. However, the state Division of Personnel Administration—the formal name for Civil Service—disputed that finding. In a July 30 letter, attorney Laura Rasmussen, representing state Personnel Administrator David M. Marchand, stated that Houghton provided proper notice for his absence between June and October 14, 1978, when the veteran firefighter with more than 25 years of service officially retired.
Rasmussen noted that Houghton was never formally terminated by the town; rather, he remained in an unpaid status from the initial three-day suspension on June 3 until his retirement. While Rasmussen did not rule on the legal merits of whether injured firefighters can be compelled to accept limited-duty assignments, a third commission decision reaffirmed that Houghton was not under valid suspension after June 17.
Fire union lawyer William J. Lafferty championed the outcome, declaring, “I think he has a claim to back pay from June 3 onward,” and expressing hope that the town would voluntarily comply with the restoration of back wages.
Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger
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