Interim Gilroy Fire Chief Nabbed In Underage Alcohol Sting
GILROY (CBS SF) -- Gilroy's interim fire chief resigned Monday morning after being caught selling alcohol to an underage decoy in Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz police and county sheriff's deputies were conducting a sting operation at Pleasure Point Liquors on Friday when interim Fire Chief Roger Bloom, 52, was cited for a misdemeanor offense after he agreed to buy a 20-year-old law enforcement decoy alcohol, according to Santa Cruz County sheriff's Deputy April Skalland.
Gilroy's Human Resources Director, Leeann McPhillips, said that she believes Bloom's decision to resign was the right one and that she had been shocked by the news.
"It was the correct decision for him to make, it is just not consistent with the city of Gilroy's core values or what we expect from a chief," McPhillips said.
McPhillips said that the fire department had expected to have Bloom working as their fire chief until the end of the year.
"We're taking today to digest what happened," McPhillips said, adding that the city will likely appoint another interim chief in the coming days before hiring someone on a more permanent basis.
Before serving as interim chief in Gilroy, Bloom worked at the Palo Alto fire department for 21 years before retiring as the department's deputy fire chief earlier this year.
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