Was paramedic in scandal the perfect prey?

I T SEEMS a darker story lurks beneath the salacious headlines about the sex scandal that's consuming the Philadelphia Fire Department.

The woman paramedic at the center of the controversy - which threatens to tarnish the careers of at least a dozen firefighters, paramedics and top brass - is a mentally troubled young woman who was preyed upon by those who should have protected her, according to numerous sources who asked not to be named because of an ongoing investigation.

"It was widely known within the department that she had attempted to take her life," one source familiar with the case told the Daily News yesterday, "yet they continued to take advantage of her."

The Inspector General's Office last week submitted a final report on the case to city officials, recommending the dismissal or discipline of numerous Fire Department employees who had sexual encounters with the paramedic - sometimes on-duty - in firehouses and vehicles around the city.

Several of the men targeted have retired rather than face discipline, sources said.

The Daily News is not naming the paramedic because of the nature of the allegations.

In at least one instance, the paramedic was filmed nude, barking as she was led around by a leash attached to a dog collar in a location that could've been a firehouse, another source who viewed the video told the Daily News.

The paramedic's colleagues shared that video, and others, with each other, without her permission, sources said.

The scandal broke last spring when an unknown Fire Department employee brought the ongoing sexual encounters to the attention of higher-ups.

Officials demanded that the paramedic reveal the identities of her sexual partners or face being fired, sources said. Scared of losing her job, she gave up names - and then got a lawyer, who filed harassment and retaliation complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, sources said.

That lawyer, Stephen Console, has declined to comment, saying he did not want to violate the confidentiality required in EEOC matters.

Former Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers told the Daily News on Wednesday that the Fire Department's Special Investigations Office got involved when it learned of the EEOC complaint, shortly before he retired in June.

The case was later taken over by the Inspector General's Office.

For months, gossip made its way through the Fire Department, in whispers and text messages, painting the paramedic as a woman who eagerly pursued trysts with countless colleagues.

But some who actually worked with the young woman said it was clear she was troubled and vulnerable.

"It's not like this was some sex party, and she was some willing, consensual call girl," said a source who knows the woman. "They were passing her around like a piece of meat. She was so scared."

Fire Commissioner Derrick Sawyer on Wednesday referred the Daily News' questions to the mayor's office.

"It's a significant personnel issue," Mayor Nutter said yesterday after delivering remarks at the Chamber of Commerce.

"It's significant, very complicated, a lot of details, and we are just going to go through it as we would any claim or series of allegations," he said.

"Obviously I'm very concerned about it but I can't talk about it at this point because it's a personnel issue."

Joe Schulle, president of the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 22, declined to comment yesterday, noting that he has not yet seen the Inspector General's report.

Inspector General Amy Kurland also has refused to comment on the case.

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