A bill authored by an Evansville area legislator would protect the privacy of firefighters. As WNIN’s John Gibson reports, the measure passed a House committee Tuesday:
State Rep. Tim O'Brien's proposal would define paid and volunteer firefighters as "covered persons" under Indiana law.
That would prevent their names and addresses from being disclosed to the general public.
O’Brien says the men and women in the firefighting community should be able to do their job and protect the public “without fear of reprisal from criminals and wrongdoers."
The legislation was inspired by Evansville Firefighter Jonathan Wright who was attacked while on a medic run in 2021.
O'Brien said Wright feared a follow-up attack and attempted to have his home address withheld from public records, but the request was denied due to current statute.
Firefighters would join law enforcement officers, judges, and victims of domestic violence as “covered persons” under Indiana law.
The House Local Government Committee advanced O’Brien’s measure to the full House.