This post was updated March 7 at 1:25 a.m.

The Los Angeles City Council denied former Los Angeles Fire Department chief Kristen Crowley’s appeal to be reinstated after her Feb. 21 removal by Mayor Karen Bass.

The council voted 13-2 Tuesday afternoon in support of the mayor’s decision after Crowley pleaded her case to be reinstated as chief of LAFD. Bass fired Crowley, claiming her removal was in the best interest of LA public safety and LAFD operations.

The council’s decision came after an hour-long public comment period where supporters on both sides, including many LAFD firefighters, pleaded with the council to reinstate – or keep out – Crowley.

Chuong Ho, director of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City Local 112, said he supported Crowley’s reinstatement, adding that she stood up for LAFD firefighters over their concerns of understaffing and lack of funding.

“The men and women of our great fire department supports Chief Crowley because she stood up, she spoke out and she had our backs,” Ho said. “The reality is, Chief Crowley was fired for telling the truth and for exposing the budgetary deficiencies of our fire department.”

In January, Crowley said in an interview with Fox 11 that she had been advocating for better pay and more staffing since she rose to the role in 2022. Public scrutiny for the LAFD budget rose in January during the wildfires when community members saw that funding for LAFD in Bass’ budget was $17.6 million lower than the previous year.

However, there were disputes about whether the total money available to the department was actually lower, given that funding increased in other areas, according to the Los Angeles Times.

However, not all public commenters believed Bass was in the wrong.

Eric Aguiar, chief of staff for the Brotherhood Crusade – an organization supporting low-income communities in LA – said Bass’ decision will restore public trust and confidence in emergency leadership.

He added that he believes leadership changes are necessary when those in charge do not meet the standard for public safety.

“Emergency response leadership requires proven experience,” Aguiar said. “In this case, the missteps during the Palisades fire showed inexperience.”

In her remarks to the council, Crowley refuted the accusations made against her.

She said she did not refuse to conduct an after-action report in the aftermath of the fires, a claim Bass had alleged. Instead, Crowley said she felt LAFD lacked the resources to conduct a report due to the magnitude and complexity of the Palisades fire, so she recommended collaborating with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Fire Safety Research Institute.

Crowley also refuted claims that she sent home 1,000 firefighters who could have fought the Palisades fire and left 40 available fire engines unstaffed. She added that the department did not have the means to deploy the 1,000 firefighters in question.

Crowley ended by saying that LAFD used notifications and media interviews to notify city officials about an increased fire risk, despite accusations saying that the mayor was ill informed of the danger for fire. She added that she feels her termination was related to her speaking out about LAFD’s departmental needs.

“The truth is that the fire chief should not be prevented from or punished for speaking openly and honestly about the needs and capabilities of the LAFD or for doing our best to protect our firefighters and our communities,” Crowley said.

After Crowley’s address, Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, who represents the 7th District, said she felt the blame for the wildfires has landed solely on Crowley.

“Where there is injustice in any neighborhood, or among any individual, we should have the confidence and the strength to be able to stand up and say, ‘We see something that is wrong,’” Rodriguez said.

In the end, only Councilmember Rodriguez and Councilmember Traci Park voted to reinstate Crowley, meaning LAFD will now have to search for a new fire chief.

Bass appointed Ronnie Villanueva, a 41-year LAFD veteran, as interim fire chief March 1.

“At the basic core of our job is to ensure public safety,” said Councilmember Tim McOsker. “The mission of providing public safety and ensuring that going forward we can provide for a safe and effective and functional city will require a tough choice.”