Fire marshal’s rule changes target trainee test cheating

Nevada’s state fire marshal is scrutinizing the way local fire department officials conduct written exams for trainees in the wake of cheating allegations that derailed the careers of 14 Las Vegas firefighter trainees.

In a letter to every fire agency in the state, Fire Marshal Peter Mulvihill laid out four new oversight measures for trainee testing, along with a harsh warning.

“Obtaining a certificate from the State Fire Marshal through fraud or misrepresentation, such as by cheating, is illegal, unprofessional and unacceptable conduct no matter who you are, where you are or why you may attempt to justify it,” Mulvihill wrote.

While Mulvihill said the investigation into what happened in Las Vegas is continuing, he defended the state-issued certification tests and seemed to blame the cheating allegations on the way the examination was conducted.

“One central issue that has arisen revolves around the proctoring of the written examination of the certification process,” Mulvihill wrote.

He laid out four interim measures regarding exam proctors, or supervisors, that would go into effect immediately. Among them:

■ Proctors involved in exams with suspicious results will be barred from conducting exams while under investigation.

■ Proctors who act improperly will be forever barred from conducting future exams.

■ Agencies conducting cheating investigations of proctors will be required to obtain an approved, outside test proctor until the investigation is complete.

■ Individuals suspected of cheating will have test results withheld until their investigation is complete.

“It is time to revisit the policies and procedures with all proctors and evaluators,” Mulvihill wrote.

The firefighter trainees had been on pace to graduate Feb. 14 when, a day before, city officials postponed the graduation pending an investigation after the fire marshal identified suspicious results for written exams on handling hazardous materials.

A little more than a month later, the city announced members of the class wouldn’t graduate and that the matter was still under investigation.

The entire episode has so far cost taxpayers $718,984, or $51,356 per recruit, the amount the city invested in the academy.

Mulvihill also responded to a question about the conduct of fire safety training officer Michael Jackson, whom the fire marshal’s office lists among Las Vegas city employees authorized to proctor the exam.

“If he were found to have not proctored the test in an acceptable manner through inattention or something else, then no, he would not be allowed to proctor an exam,” Mulvihill said. “I don’t want to accuse him of anything at this point in time.”

City spokesman David Riggleman said the exam proctor’s conduct was still “the subject of an investigation.”

Jackson didn’t respond to multiple attempts to contact him through International Association of Firefighters Local 1285, of which he is a member.

While the city didn’t identify by name the recruits whose graduations were derailed, city records show 14 firefighter trainees who were separated from city employment on March 19, the day it was announced the class wouldn’t be completed.

The list includes four former trainees with family connections in the city and a fifth who is related to a former high-ranking firefighter. A sixth former trainee left a job as a Las Vegas police officer to train with the Fire Department.

Among those with family connections to the city were Cal Henrie Jr., whose father, Cal Henrie, is listed as a fire captain; Kyle Hurley, whose brother, John Hurley, is listed as a fire captain and whose sister-in-law, Beth Hurley, is listed as a senior buyer in the city purchasing department; Michael McFate, whose mother, Kathleen Fauerbach, is listed as an enterprise project manager, and Brian White, whose uncle, Eric Fleischmann, is listed as a firefighter.

Elliott Kleven, another former trainee, is the son of Cherina Kleven, a retired assistant fire chief and former Democratic candidate for state Assembly.

Recruit David Nettles was a Las Vegas police officer from 2008 until Sept. 30, 2012.

Others on the list of former firefighter trainees include Jarod Barto, Jonathan Christensen, Alexander Cortez-DeBonar, Sadie Helm, Brady Kiesel, Trevor Madrid, Bryson Prisbrey and Cynthia Reveles.

Riggleman said the recruits who went through the latest academy will be allowed to reapply with the city’s Fire Department.

But those recruits will have to compete against other applicants and won’t be allowed to immediately return to the academy.

The city is considering holding a “lateral academy” in which people with past firefighting experience or paramedics could apply, Riggleman said.

Recruits contacted by the Review-Journal either did not respond to messages or refused to discuss the class.

The man who answered a call at the number McFate listed on his job application denied it was McFate’s number.

Christensen, one of the few who discussed the matter at all, said the recruits would address the matter at some undetermined point in the future.

“We’re waiting for the right time,” he said. “We’re getting direction.”

Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at bspillman@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0285 .