As the dust settled on months of infighting throughout the Harvard Fire Protection District, Harvard Fire Chief Steve Harter and Deputy Fire Chief Don Davidson were slapped with suspensions.
The punishment stemmed from a letter sent in June that called the recent conduct of trustee and board secretary Joe Clarke “unprofessional” and “hostile.”
After talking in closed session at the Harvard Fire Protection District Board’s regularly scheduled November meeting, trustees voted without opposition to suspend Harter and Davidson for 36 hours, with the suspensions to be served in December at times approved by the board. Trustee Josh Kelnhofer did not attend the meeting.
Harter’s stipend of $2,000 a year was also reduced by $375.
“I strongly disagree with the decision,” Davidson told the Northwest Herald on Friday.