Pictured above are City of Butler Fire engines. Shane Potter/Butler Eagle

A lieutenant in the Butler City Fire Department is suing the city and the department claiming he was improperly denied a promotion and suspended for reporting unspecified inappropriate behavior by a fire training instructor.

Lt. Donald Crawford and his wife Tammi, who live in Saxonburg, filed the civil suit Feb. 15 in Common Pleas Court, seeking a jury trial and a judgment in excess of $35,000

“We’ll defend the lawsuit,” said Tom Breth, city solicitor. “Unfortunately, this is a matter of inappropriate behavior the city has been dealing with for some time now. This is just a furtherance of this behavior.”