Douglas Martin is accused of making reference to Connecticut workplace shootings and making comment toward deputy chief that was interpreted as being a death threat.
Douglas Martin appears in Onondaga County Court today. Martin has been fired as a Syracuse firefighter after he was accused of making a terrorist threat.Syracuse, NY - A Syracuse firefighter accused of making a terrorist threat at the fire department credit union office last month has been formally fired.
Defense lawyer Edward Klein said Douglas Martin was notified about 10 days ago that he had been terminated by the city. Prior to that, Martin had been suspended for 44 days without pay due to a departmental disciplinary action.
Martin claims his problems resulted from a racially charged dispute with another firefighter dating back to last September.
Martin, 47, of 706 S. Beech St., was back in Syracuse City Court this morning for a status report on his pending criminal case.
He's facing a felony charge of making a terrorist threat based on allegations he alarmed employees at the credit union office Aug. 8 when he made reference to a disgruntled worker who killed eight co-workers and then himself in a shooting in Connecticut the previous week. He also was accused of making a comment the previous day that was interpreted as being a death threat against Deputy Fire Chief Charles Duffy.
Martin also is facing a misdemeanor charge accusing him of stalking a local schoolteacher who dated him for several months before breaking up with him in May.
Supervising City Judge Jeffrey Merrill today adjourned the felony threat case to Feb. 11. He adjourned the misdemeanor stalking case to Nov. 22.
Klein said the court is awaiting the results of an informal mental examination Merrill had ordered Martin to undergo last month following his arrest.
Martin left court today without comment, accompanied by Barrie Gewanter, the director of the Central New York Chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union.
Klein said Gewanter and Martin had gotten to know each other as a result of the earlier incident involving the racial allegations. Klein said Gewanter was not in court representing the NYCLU but only "informally" to show her personal support for Martin.
Klein said Martin's firing was not directly related to the criminal charges. But he declined further comment on Martin's employment status, referring questions to another lawyer he said was handling the employment matter for Martin. That lawyer, however, referred questions to another lawyer who was unavailable for comment.