Former Ogdensburg city manager, Fort Drum deputy fire chief censured
Sep. 20—The International Association of Fire Fighters has censured the former city manager of Ogdensburg for actions that "jeopardized safety and well-being of fire fighters."
Last month at the union's biennial convention in Boston, delegates of the IAFF — which consists of about 350,000 members nationwide and in Canada — voted to censure Stephen P. Jellie "stemming from his actions in New York during which he repeatedly demonstrated a disregard of the law, fundamental lack of respect for professional firefighters and callous and careless actions that compromised the safety of the community and the firefighters serving it," according to a press release from IAFF.
Jellie was the city manager in Ogdensburg from 2020 until the fall of 2022. During that time he also served as city fire chief.
Jellie was paid $50,000 in a buyout agreement when he left city employment to become the fire chief/EMS chief in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He was paid another $150,000 upon his departure from Jackson Hole this past winter.
Prior to that, Jellie served as deputy fire chief at Fort Drum.
In August, Jellie was appointed city manager of Palmer, Alaska.
The IAFF stated that in Jackson Hole, Jellie "created unsafe work environment for responders by cutting minimum staffing ... to as few as two firefighters per station, reducing the qualifications needed for members of the fire service, and misrepresenting the resources and fiscal condition of Teton County."
The IAFF censure was advanced through a resolution brought forth by Sam Fresina, president of the New York State Professional Fire Fighters, and Kevin Reddy, president of the Federated Fire Fighters of Wyoming.
"Today, every IAFF affiliate learned that Stephen Jellie repeatedly put his political agenda first and compromised the safety of firefighters and the communities across the county. He creates a chaotic environment, jeopardizes public safety, and abruptly leaves because his actions simply cannot be tolerated. However, he continues to be placed in a position of trust, and it is my hope that by speaking out, others will be aware that from a public safety perspective the pattern of behavior and conduct are simply unacceptable," Fresina said in a statement.
Ogdensburg Professional Firefighters Local 1799 President Jason T. Bouchard added that "during Mr. Jellie's tenure, which lasted approximately 28 months, he attempted to dismantle, discredit and destroy a City Fire Department that stood for more than 150 years. He repeatedly put politics before the well-being of the people of Ogdensburg and its firefighters."
IAFF Local 105 President Kenneth Stout stated that Jellie was a "toxic individual who believes manipulation, deceit and intimidation are leadership qualities."
"He should never be placed in a position of authority or command, and I urged our international membership to censure him for his inappropriate action and conduct that placed fire fighters at risk," Stout said.
