Fort Worth Fire Chief Jim Davis resigned after being placed on administrative leave for a month, the city announced Friday.
The resignation takes effect Oct. 31, according to a city press release. Raymond Hill, an assistant chief, will continue in the role of interim chief.
Davis was placed on leave for personnel reasons Sept. 17. He could not be reached for comment late Friday.
City officials have declined to comment on the reasons Davis was placed on leave. Last month, the Fort Worth Report requested Davis’ personnel file and official communications with the city. Those public records requests were sent to the Texas Attorney General’s office for review.
In the city’s letter seeking to withhold the documents, a city attorney argued Fort Worth did not need to provide the requested information because it “pertains to anticipated litigation.” The city stated it received a notice of “claim letter” from an attorney on behalf of Davis about his continued employment with the Fort Worth Fire Department.
Texas law requires governing bodies to release most documents they have in response to requests, including emails between staff and personnel grievances. Some exemptions apply, such as if their release could interfere with a legal dispute.
Davis has served as chief since 2018, leading a department of about 1,600 employees and 45 fire stations, according to the city’s website. He earned an annual salary of about $250,000, according to city records.
Davis recently led the department into the launch of its in-house ambulance services. The July launch saw the city take over emergency medical services, or EMS, operations from MedStar, its third-party providers since the 1980s.
The EMS launch went smoothly, city officials have touted, attributing much of the success to Davis’ intentionality in making former MedStar employees feel welcomed in the fire department.
“I received word today that Chief Davis has tendered his resignation as fire chief and the City has accepted his resignation,” Mayor Mattie Parker said in the press release. She added, “We appreciate Chief Davis’ years of dedicated service to the City and wish him well in his future endeavors.”
The Fort Worth City Council will consider a resolution to appoint Hill as interim chief on Oct. 28. Hill declined to comment on Davis’ resignation Friday evening.
Drew Shaw is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org or @shawlings601.
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