JACKSON, Wyo. — Effective Wednesday, Jan. 31, Jackson’s fire chief Stephen Jellie has officially resigned from the Jackson Hole Fire/EMS after a year of service.
Teton County has accepted the resignation of the former fire chief and has entered a separation agreement, which includes a $150,000 severance, according to Teton County.
After Jellie’s completion of 25 days of paid administrative leave, Teton County officials asked for his resignation. Jellie’s departure marks a year of contention over his leadership role. On Jan. 4, Teton County officials placed Jellie on leave after months of “public backlash over his leadership.”
Jellie took the helm of Fire/EMS in Nov. 2022, following the retirement of Brady Hansen. Public criticism of Jellie came to a head a year later when a retired fire chief called for Jellie to resign.
“It’s a pretty sad day for me and my family,” Jellie told KHOL in a interview. “I feel like I did all the really tough, hard, you know, sort of nasty work in the first year. It really seems unfortunate that we’re sort of switching gears after all that hard work has been done.”
Teton County announced that Jackson Hole Fire/EMS Assistant Fire Chief Mike Moyer has agreed to serve as the Interim Fire Chief while the County works to determine next steps.
“During this time, day-to-day operations will remain steadfast and Jackson Hole Fire/EMS remains committed to providing for the safety and well-being of our community,” Teton County said via press release.
