Sleeping 911 dispatcher gets his job back in Peabody

PEABODY – A Peabody 911 dispatcher who fell asleep as a 6-month-old baby suffered breathing difficulties on the other end of the line is getting his job back.Mayor Michael Bonfanti fired firefighter John Brophy Jr., 45, after he slept through the emergency call in March 2005.After the call went unanswered, the police department attempted to call Brophy 15 times to wake him. He finally woke up after officers sounded their sirens and pounded on the fire department’s locked door.According to reports, the state Appeals Court ruled in Brophy’s favor on March 19, calling his termination harsh.”The court rendered their opinion the firing was too harsh,” a disappointed Bonfanti said after Tuesday’s school committee meeting. “He will get his job back.”Brophy has reportedly been in trouble with the fire department before, after getting into a physical altercation with a fire captain and failing a drug test.His actions helped spawn mandatory drug testing for Peabody firefighters, which is something Bonfanti believes is the bigger issue at hand.”We may have lost the battle but we won the war,” Bonfanti said Tuesday.Brophy’s drug test results were thrown out because the union had not agreed on the testing method.Bonfanti says Brophy will likely receive back pay and the city is in the process of figuring out how to compensate him.Attorney Paul T. Hynes represented Brophy and declined to comment Tuesday. Hynes’ secretary said he refuses to speak to the press about any of his clients.