Local fire chief charged after dispute with ambulance employee
Voluntown — The chief of this town’s volunteer fire company and of the Mohegan Tribal Fire Department was arrested last week after he allegedly started a verbal altercation with an American Ambulance employee, officials said.
State police on June 8 charged Joseph “Jody” Grenier, 57, of Voluntown with second-degree breach of peace, a Class B misdemeanor. Grenier is a career, or paid, chief with the tribal department; he's a volunteer chief in Voluntown.
According to Travis Irons, operations manager at Quinebaug Valley Emergency Communications, members of American Ambulance and the volunteer fire company responded to a Campbells Mill Road residence for a reported overdose in the early morning hours of June 8.
The call was as reported, Irons said, and crews took the person who overdosed to the hospital.
At some point, Grenier began the verbal altercation with the ambulance employee. State police were called to the scene at 3:05 a.m., according to a summary of the arrest.
Police, who would not describe the altercation in any detail, called it merely “a disturbance.”
The statute Grenier was charged under says a person can be charged with breach of peace if he or she, “in a public place, uses abusive or obscene language or makes an obscene gesture.”
Greg Allard, vice president of American Ambulance, confirmed one of the company’s employees was the victim of the incident. He said that employee is OK. Allard declined to comment any further, citing the ongoing court case.
Reached by phone Thursday, Grenier said “this is silly” and declined to comment.
Charles Bunnell, chief of staff for the Mohegan Tribe, said the tribe is “looking into the matter” and understands more information may be released in the coming week. Grenier, Bunnell said, has not been placed on leave from the Mohegan Tribal Fire Department.
A representative of the Voluntown Volunteer Fire Co. on Thursday afternoon said Grenier was not there. He said he had no further information regarding the matter. It’s not clear whether Grenier has been placed on leave from the company.
First Selectman Robert Sirpenski did not return email and voice messages seeking comment.
Grenier, released on a promise to appear in Norwich Superior Court, is scheduled to appear there June 22.
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