The lead firefighter-paramedic who checked out a man who had been pepper-sprayed by Fort Lauderdale police minutes before he collapsed and died got a blistering job evaluation last year.
Keith Webster got middle-of-the-road marks six months later at the end of his first-year probationary period, but the family of the dead man is still questioning his abilities.
"Webster lacked the ability to make sound decisions, particularly when it came to medical calls," Lt. Richard M. Seabrook II wrote in Webster's April 14, 2002, review.
"He failed to recognize the need for pain medication, was unable to determine high index or trauma alert criteria, interpret ECG [electrocardiogram] strips, and direct the team while working a code quickly and efficiently in the patient's best interest," Seabrook wrote. "Webster's inability to recognize critical elements while on medical calls of substance jeopardizes patient care due to his overall lack of knowledge and inexperience. ... By [firefighter] Webster's own admission, he would not feel comfortable being the only medic on a crew that was working on his father or being on his own as a paramedic."
Toni Pompa said it was "preposterous" that Webster was the lead paramedic who responded to the jail when her 21-year-old nephew, Raymond Sterling Jr., was having trouble breathing on April 19.
"He was the lead medic, that's what Fire Chief Otis Latin said at the [community] meeting [two weeks ago]," Pompa said. "If he got one review that way and it pertained to saving lives, and it was recognized he should not be the lead medic, that should have been adhered to. ... I think he should have been reviewed a few times before allowing him to be the lead medic."
Sterling died outside the Fort Lauderdale jail about 2 a.m. His red blood cells "sickled" after physical exertion, preventing oxygen flow, according to Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Michael Bell. Breathing problems created by the pepper spray contributed to his death, Bell said.
Sterling ran from police after a traffic stop, fought with them when he was captured and was pepper-sprayed because he resisted getting into a police car, police spokesman Detective Mike Reed said.
Police called Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue when Sterling complained of feeling exhausted and being short of breath.
Webster, 33, and fellow firefighter-paramedic Michael Bucher, 27, responded to the call. They measured Sterling's pulse and respiration and left five minutes later, according the medical examiner's report.
Officers called them back four minutes later when Sterling collapsed. The police never started cardiopulmonary resuscitation. When Webster and Bucher got back to the jail, Sterling had no pulse and was not breathing. The medics never started CPR and pronounced Sterling dead seven minutes later.
Webster and Bucher, who were both hired in October 2001, are on paid leave until investigations are completed.
Webster learned firefighting during his 11 years in the Air Force and worked briefly for Sunrise Fire Rescue before joining Fort Lauderdale. Bucher worked at Publix and Home Depot after graduating from Coconut Creek High School. He signed on with Delray Beach Fire Rescue in June 2000 and applied to Fort Lauderdale a year later. His six-month and one-year reviews contained mostly "above average" ratings.
