LOS ANGELES, CA – A Los Angeles firefighter who serves as treasurer of the city’s firefighters union has accused the group’s former president of punching him in the groin after a board meeting Friday, an allegation the former president denies and one the Los Angeles Fire Department has referred for internal investigation.
Jason Powell, treasurer of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, said former union president Freddy Escobar struck him Friday, Oct. 16, after a special meeting of the union’s board. Los Angeles Police Department officers received a radio call about 11 a.m. about a battery in the 1500 block of Beverly Boulevard, according to Officer Alondra Garcia.
Powell said he reported the incident to police and planned to seek medical care. Garcia said she had no further details about the call.
Escobar denied punching Powell. He said there was “no fight, nothing other than voices,” and replied “Not my style” in a text message when asked about the punch.
Powell describes exchange after the meeting
Powell said the union’s board met Friday morning to discuss spending an additional $3 million on the campaign for Measure FD. He said the board approved that spending.
According to Powell, he and Escobar exchanged words once the meeting was over. He said Escobar told him to stop working overtime, an apparent reference to the practice of union officers picking up overtime shifts for extra pay on top of their union stipends.
Powell said he responded by telling Escobar to shave his mustache and leave the building. He said he then asked Escobar whether he had come to write the union a check.
“He turned around and punched me,” Powell said of the moment that followed. He said the blow caused him to keel over and that three or four other people witnessed it.
Powell says Escobar arrived on duty
Powell also said Escobar came to the meeting while on duty, accompanied by his crew on a fire engine. He said Escobar called some board members incompetent during the meeting.
Escobar did not describe his own version of the exchange beyond saying he did not throw a punch. The details of what was said before and after the meeting come from Powell’s account.
Escobar’s attorney demands complaint be withdrawn
Escobar’s attorney, Delia Ibarra, sent Powell a letter Friday demanding that he stop repeating the accusation and withdraw his complaint. In the letter, Ibarra wrote that Escobar would not tolerate allegations she called fabricated and said were designed to damage his reputation and jeopardize his employment.
Ibarra also wrote that the allegations could provide a pretext for expelling Escobar from the union he has served for years. Powell had not publicly responded to the letter in the information available Friday.
Union president declines to comment
Union president Doug Coates declined to comment, citing the active investigation. Coates said he did not see what happened.
Police had not released a news release about the battery report as of Friday, and the department has not announced any arrest, citation or finding in connection with it. An accusation of battery is not a conviction, and the allegation remains unproven.
LAFD refers matter to Professional Standards Division
LAFD spokesperson Stephanie Bishop said the matter was referred to the department’s Professional Standards Division for an internal investigation. “LAFD takes these matters seriously and will follow the established investigative and review processes,” she said.
The Professional Standards Division is the unit within the department that handles complaints about the conduct of department members. The division’s page invites anyone with a complaint or concern to submit it through an online portal or contact the division directly.
The department did not say which member or members are the subject of the review. It also did not say whether either firefighter’s duty status had changed.
Measure FD and the special board meeting
The meeting that preceded the confrontation concerned Measure FD, a half-cent sales tax on the Nov. 3 ballot in the city of Los Angeles. According to the City Clerk’s measure document, the tax would raise the city’s sales tax from 10.25% to 10.75%.
The document states that the revenue would fund LAFD hiring, vehicles and equipment, stations and wildfire readiness. It adds that the spending would be monitored by a citizens’ oversight committee and audited annually.
The full text of the measure appears in the City Clerk’s Voter Information Pamphlet for the Nov. 3 general municipal election.
Earlier dispute over union spending
Powell and Escobar have clashed before. According to initial reports, the International Association of Fire Fighters, the local union’s parent organization, suspended Escobar and two other union leaders from their positions in 2025 after Powell raised concerns about board members’ financial record keeping and use of funds.
The parent organization’s investigation found that about $800,000 in credit card purchases were not properly documented. After an internal trial, the IAFF retained some charges against Escobar, including failure to provide full and accurate accounting, conduct detrimental to the IAFF and unbecoming conduct. The most serious charges, which included incompetence, negligence and failure of duty, were dismissed.
Internal investigation and police report remain open
The Los Angeles Police Department had not released further information about the battery report. Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Los Angeles Police Department.
The LAFD’s internal investigation is pending, and neither agency has announced findings. Voters in Los Angeles will decide Measure FD on Nov. 3.
