"NORTH PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) – The hiring of a 52-year-old as a North Providence firefighter nine years ago has proved to be an expensive liability for taxpayers in the town and the state, Mayor Charles Lombardi told Target 12.

Stephen Campbell was sworn in as a frontline firefighter in 2003 under former Mayor Ralph Mollis, who is now Rhode Island's secretary of state. Under the terms of his union contract, Campbell would have had to fight fires until the age of 72 to be eligible for a pension.

But after less than 10 years of service, Campbell has been granted an accidental disability pension for getting hurt on the job.

“For me … the day you hired this individual you hired a liability,” Lombardi said. “I have a hard time believing that this individual was the best choice for this job.”

Records show Campbell was out of work due to injuries for nearly half the time he was employed by the fire department. He was placed on “injured on duty” status 10 times in his near-decade as a firefighter, missing a total of 56 months of work."

Campbell's Disability Pension