Tim Butler, who has been St. Paul’s fire chief for a decade, announced Saturday he will step down from the department’s helm.
Butler asked the mayor that he be allowed to continue working at the fire department by returning to a lesser role he used to have. Butler has faced controversy, particularly in recent weeks. The deputy mayor issued him a written reprimand Oct. 10, after an investigation concluded he retaliated against an employee.
The discipline came two days after the president of the rank-and-file firefighters’ union filed a different complaint against Butler, alleging he used a derogatory term in an email to a firefighter. Butler sent Mayor Chris Coleman a letter Saturday, saying Monday he would voluntarily end his appointment as fire chief. He requested to be reinstated to his previous title of fire emergency management and communications chief.