Firefighter handcuffed by deputy as he helped crash victim

Jacob Gregoire was helping crash victims when a deputy told him to move his truck out of the roadway where the accident happened. Two other firefighters were told the same thing, and both complied.

Gregoire said he had to check with his captain first and went back to assisting the injured.

That’s when he was handcuffed and put in the back of a patrol car.

CBS8 in Chula Vista, California was there and filmed the incident as it happened.

Gregoire was in the car for 30 minutes before police, and fire officials got involved. He was then released with no charges being filed.

All this while one passenger in a car that had jumped a guard rail was taken to the hospital.

Dave Hanneman is the Fire Chief in Chula Vista, he supports Gregoire’s actions. Hanneman points out his men are told to use their trucks to block traffic in order to create a safe zone for both victims and emergency workers.

"I know clearing the freeway is a priority for the CHP," Hanneman told the San Diego Union. But he continued by saying, "our No. 1 priority is the safety of our firefighters and patients."

The combined agencies released the following statement after the situation had been resolved.

"Last night there was an unfortunate incident at the scene of a traffic collision on I-805, where both our agencies had responded. Both the CHP and the Chula Vista Fire Department share a common goal of protecting the public and providing the highest level of safety to responding emergency personnel, involved parties and other drivers at collision scenes.

Both of our agencies have the utmost respect for each other and our respective missions. This was an isolated incident and not representative of the manner in which our agencies normally work together toward our common goal. 

This morning representatives from both agencies met to discuss the incident to improve communication and ensure the highest level of service is provided to the public. This incident will be a topic of future joint training sessions, in an ongoing effort to work more efficiently together."