It started with a movie. The 32-year-old woman needed a topic for her documentary class at the University of Tampa.
Her first project about ocean pollution had fallen through in April, and she needed something quickly.
Documenting a firefighter’s life sounded intriguing, so she called the two largest departments in Hernando County and asked if she could spend a day with one of their crews.
No one called her back, she said, so she contacted Spring Hill Fire Commissioner Bob Kanner, who worked near her office in Spring Hill.
Kanner said he would help, and arranged for a day of filming at Station One off Spring Hill Drive.
Now, in August, the woman finds herself at the heart of a scandal, accusing three firefighters _ two of them top members of the union _ of raping her in an Altamonte Springs hotel.
On Wednesday, she talked with the Times about how her involvement came about. Her name is withheld because of the nature of the allegations, which remain under investigation.
She awakened one morning in April, put on khaki capri pants, a black T-shirt and Ann Klein loafers, and pulled into the station at 8:30 a.m. She carried a small video camera and several tapes, and left her tennis shoes in the car in case she needed to run along with the firefighters.
They gave her a tour of the trucks, and she listened as they talked in groups, smoking cigars.
When they made their daily run to the grocery store, she went along, helping them select tuna fish and Cordon Bleu.
She stayed for 14 hours, and the day was mostly quiet, giving her time to interview the firefighters. They called her “princess,” “college girl,” and “the documentarian,” she said.
She played the role of smart filmmaker, correcting them on how to pronounce “facetious,” and complimenting one firefighter for using the word “ironic” in proper context.
During the day, she learned their stories, how many children they had, what their days were like, why they loved firefighting.
Shortly before midnight, she said goodbye. She returned briefly the next day to pick up a tape case, and once again stopped by the station to get footage of their bunk rooms.
Sometime later, she and Edward Falk, 39, decided to have a beer. She thought he was cute, she said, but knew he was married, and did not intend for anything to happen. She only wanted to buy him a couple of “thank you” drinks for his help with the documentary.
They met at the Bennigan’s on North Dale Mabry Highway in Tampa. He walked in wearing jeans and a Tommy Hilfiger shirt, she said. She ordered a rum and Coke, and he had a couple of beers.
At one point, he reached over and stroked her hair. Then, he kissed her, she said. He told her early on that he was not getting a divorce, making his intent clear, she said.
They talked a while that evening, she said, and then several times on the telephone in the following days.
“We were just friends who shared a few kisses here and there,” she said.
Sometime later, she said, they decided they must only be friends. She said she had never dated a married man before. However, Falk called her later and they met again.
That was the last she heard from him, until Kanner came into her office.
He asked for copies of her tapes and wondered whether the firefighters said anything bad about him.
Kanner said she told him the firefighters were badmouthing, so he asked for the tape. She immediately called Falk to alert him of Kanner’s interest.
She said Falk was at a firefighter’s convention in Altamonte Springs.
He asked if she wanted to meet him and two other firefighters, Lt. John Ferriero and Thomas White, at the convention.
She was hesitant at first, she said, but agreed. They were nice guys, she said, and she was happy to leave Spring Hill for an evening.
She hopped into her car and headed east.
It was June 2, at about 7:30 p.m., when she walked into the lounge at the Hilton, wearing a sun dress and slip on sandals.
Ferriero walked to the bar and ordered her a rum and coke, she said.
The woman has declined to discuss what happened next, citing an ongoing criminal investigation into the incident.
“There’s a bunch of lies being spread out there and they’ll be cleared up at the proper time,” Falk said.
The filmmaker told the Altamonte Springs Police Department that she got “extremely intoxicated” and did not remember precisely what happened next.
She said, however, that the men raped her in the hotel room. She told authorities she woke the next morning, gathered her belongings and left.
She said she wanted to forget what happened and move on with her life, but could not.
She confided in friends, who encouraged her to confront the men.
About a week later, she called Falk and told him she needed to talk about what happened. He had Ferriero call her back, she said, and they talked for awhile.
She said she started having flashbacks about that night.
“I feared living with those for the rest of my life,” she said.
Friends encouraged her to go to the police, she said.
She and a girlfriend traveled to Altamonte Springs and filed a report.
“I was intimidated to say that three firefighters had done this to me,” she said.
She told her story, and left wondering whether the police officer believed her.
She and her friend went for dinner at a Mexican restaurant, but she could not eat.
“I’m a strong person,” she said. “It takes a lot to make me cry. I have broken down and cried a lot about this.”
She said Kanner tried to convince her not to move forward with the charges, reminding her that the firefighters had wives and children. Kanner denies making those statements.
The State Attorney’s Office in Seminole County could decide this week whether to press charges against the firefighters. On Monday, Spring Hill Chief J.J. Morrison suspended the firefighters.
Since the investigation was made public last week, the woman has been the focus of insults from firefighters and commissioners. They have called her a “liar,” a “groupie” and a member of the “lonely hearts club band.”
She said she has been surprised by the “archaic” attitudes those comments represent.
She still lives and works in Spring Hill, and is one class short of a communications degree. She received an incomplete in her documentary class, she said, because she could not bring herself to look at the footage. She plans on finding a new film project.
She moved to the area three years ago after her mother died. She lives with her father and her shih-tzu puppy. She hopes someday to have a career in marketing or public relations.
For now, she is leaning on friends.
“She is a very good person,” said her friend, Kym Carpenter, 32. “I think she is more scared to be herself, to talk to anybody, because she doesn’t know who she can and can’t trust.”
The filmmaker said she hopes prosecutors file charges against the firefighters. Ferriero has not return calls and White could not be reached for this article.
“I don’t want them to do this again,” she said.
And she continues coping with her memories of the evening.
“When everything gets quiet and I’m sitting by myself, that’s the worst time,” she said. “When it’s quiet.”
_ Jamie Jones covers law enforcement and courts in Hernando County and can be reached at 754-6114. Send e-mail to jjonessptimes.com.
