In wake of boxing death, city mulls restrictions

Three weeks after a charity boxing bout between a Chandler firefighter and Phoenix police officer ended fatally, Chandler is reviewing whether to allow its public-safety employees to continue to take part in similar events.

The city will discuss various options, including putting restrictions on the kinds of events that off-duty officers and firefighters can participate in, said Assistant City Manager Rich Dlugas.

The meeting, expected to be first in a series, will take place within the next 10 days and involve representatives from the fire and police departments, the risk management office, the legal department and the City Manager's Office, officials said.

"Sometimes it takes a tragedy to occur to get you to sit down and talk about things," Dlugas said. "And this was definitely a tragedy that occurred out of an admirable event, and it does warrant bringing some people together to talk through this."

Phoenix Police Officer Barry Scott died Sept. 16, four days after his match with Chandler firefighter Donaldo Lopez in a charity event at the Fort McDowell Casino that was advertised as "Guns and Hoses." The 22-year-old Scott had joined the force in 2007 after returning from an 18-month deployment in Iraq.

An autopsy report concluded that Scott died of blunt-force trauma to the head and the Maricopa County Medical Examiner ruled the death an accident.

Chandler Fire Chief Jeff Clark said Wednesday that Lopez has been with the department for about two years and works out of Station 282, near the intersection of Alma School and Warner roads. The chief described Lopez as a model firefighter with a clean record.

Lopez is, coincidentally, also an Iraq War veteran.

He has not responded to several Republic requests for an interview.

Lopez was one of several Chandler firefighters and at least one police department employee, a jailer, who participated in the Sept. 12 charity boxing event, according to officials in each department.

The event and its competitors were not sanctioned by Valley police and fire agencies, but that the boxers were participating as firefighters and police personnel makes it difficult to determine the extent of the city's accountability, Dlugas said.

"They're off-duty. They're signing waivers. If we do try to develop some type of policy or something, what would it include? I just don't know," he said.

If the city does draft a policy, it's unclear where to draw the line. Hockey games? Football games? Does it extend to non-organized or non-charity events?

"Events like this have been going on for quite a while, where they have these fundraisers for police and fire funds to assist fallen officers," Dlugas said. "It is something that is a little gray, and we, as a city, will take a look at it."

The Phoenix Police Department has asked the state Attorney General's office to look into Scott's death. On Wednesday, Phoenix police officials said the department would not begin discussions about possibly changing city or department regulations until that investigation is complete. Anne Hilby, a spokeswoman for the Attorney General's Office, said the investigation is strictly a fact-finding inquiry and not a criminal one. She couldn't comment on when the inquiry might be completed.