Former Waukesha Fire Chief Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Woman

WAUKESHA, WI — Former Waukesha Fire Chief Jesse Alba says he intends to clear his name.

According to a FOX 6 report, Alba and his spouse are filing a defamation lawsuit against the woman he had an affair in 2013 when he was fire chief. "Her claim of sexual harassment was not true, and she should be held accountable," said attorney Douglas Rose in the report. Alba was initially demoted and later lost his job. Rose said Alba has found it tough to get a job in his field after the incident.

According to a 2013 Patch report, a formal complaint was filed against Alba in July 2013 with the Waukesha Police and Fire Commission after he declined requests to resign following an investigation into policy violations, City Administrator Ed Henschel said. Alba was demoted to the rank of firefighter after the Police and Fire Commission found he violated city policies after he had an affair with a subordinate.

In a subsequent 2013 Patch report, the Waukesha PFC determined Alba violated several policies relating to the ethics and integrity. The commission determined that the fire chief, however, did not violate sexual harassment policies as his relationship with the part-time instructor was consensual.

In the report, investigators said because the fire chief asked the woman, who stepped down in May 2013 shortly after Alba became chief, to resign on several occasions because of that relationship and because he was not entirely truthful about their relationship during the investigation, he had violated several city policies.

Image Via Waukesha Fire Department