Elected officials in the Florida Keys last week decided to delve deeper into the actions and inaction, both careless and criminal, that allowed more than 600 vials of Fentanyl, dilaudid, ketamine and other narcotics to be lost or stolen in 2022 from the Monroe County Fire Rescue department, which also oversees the Trauma Star air ambulance service.
At an Aug. 21 county commission meeting, commissioner Crag Cates proposed, and his colleagues agreed to hire an outside firm to conduct an independent, in-depth investigation into MCFR and other county departments.
The decision closely mirrors one of 14 recommendations that a grand jury included in its report detailing the evidence that led to the indictments earlier this month of three county officials.
County attorney Bob Shillinger at next month’s meeting will recommend a firm and proposed contract for the investigation.
The grand jury that handed down the indictments charged former top county administrator Roman Gastesi with felony official misconduct.
“Gastesi is accused of knowingly and intentionally obstructing, delaying, or preventing the communication of information relating to the commission of a felony that directly affected the government entity he served,” states a press release from the Monroe County State Attorney’s Office following his indictment.
In addition, Andrea Thompson, former division chief of Trauma Star/EMS, faces at least 11 felony charges, including official misconduct, evidence tampering, making false statements to law enforcement, and falsifying patient records. Dr. Sandra Schwemmer, former medical director of Trauma Star and MCFR, faces one count each of official misconduct, providing false information to law enforcement and altering patient records.
The official grand jury report, which will be made public at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 29 at the Clerk of Court’s website at monroe-clerk.com, details a culture of corruption, intimidation and favoritism at the county level, involving Gastesi and Thompson.
‘Our leadership has failed’
“Supposedly, we’ve made improvements so this can never happen again,” Cates said at the Aug. 21 county commission meeting. “But we’re also trying to restore the public’s trust, and having an independent investigation that answers only to us as the board of county commissioners, I believe, is necessary to start restoring that trust.”
An internal audit last year by the county clerk’s office revealed an alarming lack of oversight for MCFR’s controlled substance protocols.
The scandal started two years ago when Trauma Star’s former chief flight nurse, Lynda Rusinowski, was investigated and later arrested for stealing narcotics to feed her own addiction. But the county clerk’s audit soon found the problems went much deeper than a single addicted nurse.
“This is not about the work of our first responders; it’s about leadership, and our leadership has failed,” commissioner Michelle Lincoln said at the meeting. She suggested the outside investigation cover not just the MCFR, but other county departments and contracts, which is also recommended in the grand jury report.
Commissioners David Rice, Jim Scholl and Holly Raschein agreed, with Raschein emphasizing the importance of transparency and accountability, and of the commission “owning this.”
During the public comment period, Key West resident and political candidate Chris Massicotte, who is challenging commissioner Jim Scholl, commended the additional investigation, adding, “I’m sure we all know someone who has been affected by addiction, and it breaks my heart to think about how many vials of those drugs got into our community.”
County firefighter Oliver Hodek, president of the firefighters union in Monroe County, commended the county’s firefighters who continue to be on the front lines every day despite the burden of this scandal.
“If trust needs to be restored, it must begin with our own leadership,” he said. “Like any chain, we’re only as strong as our weakest link, and when that was tested, our weakest links faltered and failed. But you know which link didn’t break or falter? Your firefighters.”
