Judge Orders Injured Mo. Firefighter Reinstated -- Again

Nov. 27--ST. LOUIS COUNTY --A Franklin County judge has ordered the Community Fire Protection District to reinstate a firefighter-paramedic who was fired twice after being injured in a 2006 house fire.

Cindy Schuenke, of Franklin County, suffered severe burns March 29, 2006, when she fell through the floor of a burning Vinita Terrace home while trying to rescue the occupant -- the mother of a fellow firefighter.

Several fingertips and one of her little fingers had to be amputated, and one of her legs also was injured.

Schuenke was fired in July 2008 but reinstated two months later by the district board, which also voted to give her two months' back pay and benefits. The board notified Schuenke in July 2009 that she was going to be fired again.

Board attorney Neil Bruntrager said that the issue with Schuenke was never about discipline, but her "capability or ability to do the job."

Schuenke wanted to return to work as a firefighter-paramedic, but medical evaluations showed that she couldn't do the work, and there were no light-duty or administrative jobs that she could fill, he said. She disputes that.

Bruntrager said that the district employed Schuenke for three years after the fire, encouraging her to file for disability, which would have meant no loss in pay, but she refused. Again, Schuenke disputes his financial calculations.

Anyone who looked at the documents in the case would say the district "bent over backwards" to do everything possible for Schuenke, Bruntrager said.

But last week, Franklin County Circuit Judge I.I. Lamke ruled that the board failed to make the required findings of fact and conclusions of law regarding Schuenke's medical condition, her physical abilities or limitations, her rights or their obligations before firing Schuenke. Lamke said that without those facts and conclusions, he could not determine what the board's decision was based on and what they relied on.

He also said that a 37-page unsigned medical report should not have been considered by the board.

"The hearing itself was totally inadequate and on the verge of being a violation of due process," the judge wrote in a footnote, adding that the board had already decided to fire Schuenke before holding the hearing.

Lamke awarded Schuenke back pay, as well as legal fees and costs that the board will have to help determine.

Schuenke, now 49, says that she was crying with happiness when she heard about the decision.

"This has weighed a lot on me," she said Wednesday.

Schuenke has been struggling financially on a combination of Social Security disability, worker's compensation, benefits put on by supporters and a donation by BackStoppers. She said that at one point, she was living without a refrigerator, stove and dishwasher.

Schuenke said she is capable and eager to return to work, although she recognizes that the district has vowed to appeal.

"That's always been my ultimate goal ... it's what I love doing."