The respect that I once held towards our local government has been all but eliminated thanks to the unethical and illegal conduct exhibited by the Arlington County Fire Department (ACFD) and the Commonwealth Attorney’s office.   Earlier this year, an ambulance operated by the Arlington County Fire Department backed over the fence surrounding our property.  Since I was disabled by a serious back injury the same day as the incident, I did not discover the damage until a month later during a routine maintenance visit.  My neighbors witnessed the incident and told me that they had supplied ACFD with our address and telephone number.

Upon contact with the fire company in question I was treated with disrespect and what I can only describe as contempt, even being hung up on in one occasion.  I was then supplied with a litany of feeble excuses from ACFD, Risk Management, an insurance adjuster for Arlington County and a Deputy Commonwealth Attorney that included …

• “The fence was low!”  (If a four foot high fence is too low, then what constitutes “normal” height?  Eight feet topped by concertina wire maybe?  Not very neighborly.)
• “The fence was already damaged!”  (Funny how the eyewitnesses stated that the ambulance caused the damage.  Pesky eyewitnesses, always ruining a good lie.)
• “We have Sovereign Immunity!”  (That might hold except for the fact that ACFD failed to make any effort to contact me in violation of Code of Virginia 46.2-896. “Duties of driver in event of accident involving damage only to unattended property”.  In addition, according to eyewitnesses the damage occurred when the ambulance backed up to leave the scene.  The fact that I was not notified turned a simple act of negligence into felony hit and run, negating any Sovereign Immunity defense.)
• “The property was abandoned!”  (Really!  Grass mowed, new roof on the garage, taxes paid in full and an owner whose information you already had.  Not only does this description not conform to Webster’s dictionary, but more importantly does not conform in any way, shape or form to Code of Virginia 55-210 sections 1 through 30!  If you’re going to make an excuse, the least you can do is check the definition of a word before using it.)

All along there was talk of “reports” and “investigations”, yet to date, none have surfaced.  I attempted to file a police report, but that was overruled by the Deputy Commonwealth Attorney using the last excuse on the list.  The hope is that I would just go away and this little conspiracy would not see the light of day.

I do not have a phalanx of lawyers, or infinite resources, only a voice and the conviction to do what is right.  I do not hold the person that ran over my fence responsible, but I do hold those who tried to perpetrate this ridiculous conspiracy in order to avoid doing what is morally, ethically and legally right responsible.  Do we really want to tolerate public officials whose integrity is so low they could not land a position at your local McDonalds or Walmart?

Public officials do not have the right to commit crimes while in office, or to pick which laws they will or will not enforce when it comes to hit and run felonies.  You can help by signing this petition to send a message to the Virginia Commonwealth Attorney that the law must be enforced equally, regardless of who or what you are.  All I want is fair compensation for my loss.

Want to know more?

http://agawatchdog.myfreesites.net/americans%20for%20government%20accoutibility/how-an-act-of-negligence-grew-into-a-conspiracy-to-cover-up-felony-hit-and-run