By WAYNE QUESENBERRY/Staff
The arrest of a transport driver last month on abduction and rape charges has left the staff of Guardian Ambulance Service Inc. in shock. It also has prompted the local company to take additional safeguards to prevent any similar incidents.
Alton Kenney Davis, 56, of Ivanhoe successfully cleared a criminal background check before Guardian Ambulance Service Inc. hired him three years ago, according to administrator Tim Griffith. Davis even mentioned a prior charge of child molestation, which was reduced to assault and does not appear on Davis’ record, Griffith said.
“He had several good references,” Griffith noted. “He had even been in the Ivanhoe Fire Department. He was a very dependable employee. We never had any complaints about him.”
In operation since 1991, Guardian Ambulance Service provides medical taxi and wheelchair service as part of its business. The company is the premier provider for LogistiCare, contracted by the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services to provide transportation for Medicaid recipients.
Griffith reported his company employs over 70 full-time and part-time workers. As an employment requirement, he stated, a criminal history and sex offender check is made through the Virginia State Police, a driver’s transcript is obtained from the Department of Motor Vehicles and a drug screening is conducted.
“Employees are randomly drug tested,” added Griffith, “and random criminal history checks are performed by LogistiCare. All drivers must meet state requirements and be approved by the Department of Medicaid system.”
While Davis was a wheelchair van driver for Guardian Ambulance Service, he also drove the company’s other transport vehicles. His duties often required him to transport three Mt. Rogers Community Services Board clients to and from their jobs at the Industrial Development Center in Wytheville.
Based on the allegations of one of those female clients, Davis was charged last month with four counts of abduction and one count of rape. He also is charged with four counts of aggravated sexual battery and four additional counts of rape in connection to a 23-year-old handicapped woman Davis transported to and from an adult daycare center.
“We never suspected anything,” Griffith noted. “After Al was charged, we checked the time schedule of his transports and we did not find anything out of the way. He wasn’t always the driver that took the IDC clients to work and then went back after them. Sometimes the drivers switched if another one was another transport. We never heard anything negative about the way our drivers treated people.”
According to Griffith, Davis was enrolled in the Emergency Medical Training program at the time of his termination, which followed his arrest on Jan. 16. Guardian Ambulance Service and all other EMS agencies must pass a detailed and thorough inspection every two years by the Virginia Department of Health, Office of EMS, Griffith said.
With its main office in Wytheville, Guardian Ambulance Service has satellites in Galax and Pulaski. It provides both basic and advanced life support 24 hours a day seven days a week.
The operation also provides critical care transportation and carries specialized equipment such as portable ventilators and specialized medications.
Griffith pointed out Guardian Ambulance Service is the primary backup for the Lead Mines Volunteer Rescue Squad and the Rural Retreat Emergency Service. It also provides assistance to the Wythe County Rescue Squad, he said.
“The incident has been hard on our people here,” Griffith commented. “This is the only time something like this has happened since we organized in 1991. We have a great bunch of employees that are dedicated and committed to provide the highest level of medical care available.”
Since the charges were lodged against Davis, Griffith said, two employees accompany all female transports. He also noted the company is investigating installing video cameras on its vehicles.
“We’ve talked to LogistiCare about it,” Griffith said, “and we’re not sure about the legality of it. It might not be cost effective, either.”
According to Paul Callahan, regional manager for LifeCare Medical Transport, his organization also requires a criminal background check on all potential employees. His corporate office conducts the investigation.
“Most of the time a potential employee is not going to apply for a job if he has a criminal background,” Callahan remarked. “We’re not a licensed agent of LogistiCare. We don’t do a lot of wheelchair van transports.”
Davis is being held without bond at the New River Valley Regional Jail in Dublin. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing Thursday, Feb. 21, in Wythe County General District Court and will be represented by the public defender’s office.
Wayne Quesenberry can be reached at 228-6611 or .
What about the employee from Bastian who drove ambulance for years without a driver’s license and finally totaled one of Guardian’s vehicles? Or the EMT, who almost choked a patient by refusing to suction the patient?
Guardian Ambulance Service needs to wake up...It is a shame whats happen....They need people that are alert & not so lazy.....Guardian needed a wake up call… It is a shame what it took to get their attention.....Funny most everyone could see but them.....
I was shocked to read that Mr. Davis had told Mr. Griffith of Gaurdian Ambulance Company that he had a previous charge of child melestation and yet Mr Griffith ignored Davis’ confession and chose to go with what the background check revealed. If a person tells someone that he has been charged with child molestation why would you not take it seriously? Mr. Griffith had a responsibility to keep the people being transported on his ambulance safe and Mr Griffith chose to ignore the possible and probable safety issue right in front of his face. You would have thought that knowing what Mr. Griffith was told by Mr Davis that Mr Griffith, having hired him anyway, would have taken steps to make sure Mr Davis didn’t transported children or adults who were not capible of taking care of themselves when Mr Davis forced himself on them.
Before anyone else feels the need to comment on such a senstive subject to many local people I have a few things to say.
Guardian is not the only group responsible for taking his assault charge as what he reported it to be. This man was also a fireman not only on Ivanhoe but other agencies since the intial charge but because he was up front about the charges most probably did not investigate further due to the fact that we live in a rural area and tend to trust people. Yet on a much larger scale Guardian did not jsut drive around and say “Hey need a ride”, they were contracted out to do this service by other agencies who perform there own background checks prior to authorizing someone to drive for them.
On another note the people who have stated Guardian had this coming. What makes you so certain of the way things are there? Are you a former disgruntled employee? Do you honestly know what the owners of the company and majority of the employees are like? Obviously you don’t know them are you would know that they not only do this 24 hrs a day 7 days a week for there job but most of them are out here volunteering there time to your community in similar ways to there job. Most of them genuinly care about the patients they come in contact with and many patients are like family they transport them so often.
Guardian provides lots of services to people in this community to help them with there non-emergency health care needs. If you have any doubt of that call there office and ask how they would help someone with no other way to the doctor and with no insurance. The answer would probably suprise most of you all who are insulting these people who are just trying to make a living.
Finally before you bad mouth this business and its employees publically in the future, consider the fact that the employees are also shocked and possibly feeling victimized themselves to an extent, although not to the same degree as these girls and let there family’s have a break from the talk while they prepare for a very difficult trial and all that will follow.
If you really want to see what Guardian is really about get them to show you where they did background checks on each of their employees. I have nothing against their business, but know how the system works. They routinely cut corners, and now look what happened. I can also tell you that Logisticare is a bigger joke, and they cut corners much more than Guardian. That is why they have been bankrupted and changed names multiple times. Get Guardian to tell you how much they actually make on of these calls, and you decide whether they will start sending out 2 paid employees on wheelchair transports. I am not a disgruntled employee or anything like that, but I am very familiar with their operations, and how they cut corners. This is nothing against any of their employees, but how their company is run. They buy their ambulances off of E-bay (no joke) and lack much needed equipment. Their employees barely meet the minimum (if that). I know Tim Griffith is a nice guy, but there is a reason for the State EMS for setting minimums. Stuff like this happens. I really hope they take this serious, and I really hope they can afford to stay in business if they do all the upgrades they claim they will be doing. Just pray for the victims and their family, and shame on you Guardian administration for allowing this to happen. I personally blame you for this! You really should call and get them your questions answered from them before you ever use them. Ask for certifications and prove that their driver’s have a license. 276-228-9337.
Guardian is a less than standard company ...
I hope one day the truth about the real Guardian will come out. On the surface, it looks like a good service, ran by good people. Nothing could be more false. In my opionion, Guardian employees and the community should start asking where all the money goes. Just ask them how much the make on one trip to a Trauma Center. Then look at their ambulances, equipment etc. Where does all that money go ... Could it be to the owner’s new hummer, or camper? It surely wasn’t going to the employee’s insurance ... Money was coming out of employee’s checks to pay a portion of their insurance every pay period, and then they started getting cancellation notices .. so i ask again.. where does the money go??? The one person that questioned that got fired. The response from guardian - they needed that money to pay some bills. That is ridiculous. Guardian Ambulance needs to be fully investigated for more than just lacking background checks. If they were done like everything else in done there, then no wonder Mr. Davis’ conviction didn’t “SHOW UP.” Shame on you Guardian!
to gaurdian angel from wytheville, the owner got more than a new hummer and elaborate camper. don’t forget the new hot tub and vacations every time he turns around.
What I find interesting is how many of these comments have ellipses (...) throughout the sentences. If I didn’t know better, I’d say the same person made three of the negative comments.
There’s something else I find interesting that’s in the article. Tim is quoted many times verbatim throughout the article. However, the statement about the child molestation is not a direct quote, but a paraphrase. I wonder what Tim’s exact words were on that, and if he even used the word “child molester”. It just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me that when Davis applied at Guardian he would have said to Tim “Oh, by the way, I molested a child, but they reduced the charge to assaulting a minor.”
If he passed all the background checks, and the assault wasn’t even on his record, then you people ought to be complaining about the judge who reduced his charges to assault, or the legal system for not keeping proper records.
I hope someone from the Enterprise is reading this. I ask again for them to do a story on this issue. Tim says a lot of things are are very false. The comment above says it all. Look thouroughly into the company. Looks are deceiving. They are not close to what you may think they are. (Again, I am not a disgruntled employee, just someone who knows their system and lack of business ethics). I also ask people to call the Office of Emergency Medical Services and ask them to look into this company and their lack of compliance in many aspects. 800-523-6019.
What is the reason for Tim Griffith to go out and buy a church? (Does he think he is God?) Wonder if he ever asked the child molester to come to services. Well if not maybe he should have.
you understand that the people blamed for these comments will be former employees. When I left guardian I was blamed for several things that were not true. So we all know that Guardian will play the blame game. Its not our fault so lets blame logisticare. Well logisticare says its not our fault lets blame Alton. Alton blames Guardian because he was put in the situation. But what about the little girls who do they get to blame or who do they even know to blame. We all know that guardian has the employees needed to do what needs to be done. But the Als people cant get out of the office. Because they are important. I asked one time why can I not get paid the same call in’s as the ALS people when half of them had no drivers license. I was told its not that im a good driver and have a license its that I dont have that important piece of paper from the office of EMS its not as important as a drivers license issued by the state of VA. so with this mentality how could anybody possibly understand what goes on. Tim was good to me loaned me money when I was broke. You people have to understand that its not Tim behind most of this stuff. He leaves this in the hands of others so yes he probably was shocked when all of this happened. You will find no greater people than Tim and Angie Griffith make no bones about it. But they have no clue half of the stuff that goes on when they were gone, so do some soul searching from a former employee. My name was mud when I left and I had no love left for the company but it was not due to Tim and Angie it was due to the others there that rob them blind and “take care of business”. You dont need to understand the workings of Guardian or why it is the way it is. Just pray that they will fix it and not lie to cover up things. it was a ticking time bomb in more ways than one Im glad I got out.
IT SO SAD FOR THE GIRLS & THEIR FAMILY.... I DON’T KNOW HOW I WOULD FEEL IF IT WERE MY CHILD...HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN???I HAVE NEVER SEEM SO MANY LAZY PEOPLE CONGREGATE UNDER ONE ROOF AT GUARDIAN...ONE OR TWO WORKS THE REST SIT ON THE BEHINDS ALL DAY....AL DAVIS WAS ONE OF THE GOOD WORKERS BUT NOW WE KNOW WHY....SAD
I have been keeping up with all this mess that has happened concerning Guardian Ambulance. I have to admit, I have used the service before and have not forgotten that I was treated good. I am just a citizen of Wythe County & not a disgruntled employee, but I do know a lot of the employees, past and present. I also know from frequent visits to take food to some of the employees or just to say hello that there are a lot of lazy employees who do not or are not expected to follow the same rules as others. Like, no sitting around watching TV. Some can others cannot. I know for a fact that there have been numerous good employees who were either gotten rid of or piushed out by the administration and Tim never stood up for any of them. He allowed lies to be told and there was proof of the lies. But Tim never investigated which caused good people to be without jobs that they depended on. Before anyone comments on their job performances, they were always on time, did whatever they were told and were reliable. Something like a jealousley bug bit or something took over and that was the end of their jobs. This has been happening for a long time. I have always believed Tim is a good man and a good Christian but I have to question his loyality to his employees who have been faithful. Perhaps he wasn’t paying the amount of attention he needed to that would have maybe caused him to think twice before hiring a man like this Davis man. All in all in this, who got hurt, the Client? The innocent. That’s the shame in all of this.
Maybe this man was a fireman too but the point there is, firemen are never in a home that they would have time to rape or molest anyone. Nor do they have girls who cannot defend themselves in the fire vehicles. Usually when they are out on the job, there are numerous other firemen or women there with them. And No, Guardian did not just drive around and say “Hey need a ride”, but when they were contacted to drive these girls to and from their destinations, they were supposed to be in safe hands. I have no doubt there are good employees at Guardian, who are just as shocked as some of the public is. There is nothing personal against any of these people. The point is that the owners should have been more aware of what is going on within the office and with some employees like, “who is running the office?”. Let’s hope this is a lesson learned the hard way. It is a shame it was at the expense of someone who was afraid to tell and thought they were at fault as do most victims of molestations.
Enterprise needs to ask specific questions like Why was Alton suspended from driving for a 4 month period by logisticare in 2006. and the employees were told it was something from his past driving record from a long time ago ? and ask them how exact their dispatch times are. They all know they dont keep up with that and the times can be edited. CYA all the way babe! wouldnt you say. and why they are letting a 19 year old drive the ambulance in galax. when you have to be 21. hummm i guess logisticare doesnt know that one. or the employees filling up their diesel vehicles and turning in fuel reciepts for the amblances. wow wonder where their money goes. or the pop up drug tests they warn you about a week ahead so you can be clean. Well lets see we suspect a drug problem, I tell you what in a week I will test you! or they pick the ones that look clean. most people only have one the whole time they are there the first one when you are hired. wow I sound like a disgruntled employee. or how about lets see well you cant drive yet for logisticare why dont you get somebody else to sign the sheet until we get you approved! wow! and we wonder why things are they way they are. Welcome to Guardian.
I am an employee at Guardian Ambulance Service. I have worked for Tim for 4 years now, yes it is a stressfull job but you have to consider what we do,we are out doing our very best to save lives. And believe it or not we always have the equipment on the trucks that we need to do our jobs. Go ahead and call EMS we were just inspected in September and guess what, we got our license to practice another two years. We have new Zoll monitors, propacs, Iv pumps, and ventilator that are not even required to have, these are all extras. We did not need the stress of what Mr. Davis may have done. You have to understand all of us here are like a big family,and yes it hurts us all what happened, he was just like a brother to us, we never dreamed he was this type of person, we even let our own children around him. Most of all our hearts go out to the victims he victimized. And for the ones of you that want to know were the money is, well let me explain Tim is guilty of one thing and that is being too kind hearted. If an employee comes in and says they are having financial trouble, he loans them the money to take care of it, and trust me he gets took advantage of more than not because two thirds of them get the money and he never sees a dime of it back. So think about it would your employer do this for you? And as for the vehicle we bought off of E-bay, which I still do not see the problem with is still out there running the calls, and considering we put approximately 200,000 miles on a vehicle per year well it must have been a good one. If you are not an exemployee then maybe Tim should watch his back because you seem to know an awful lot of what he does. I just hope that one day you are not faced with what we have been, because it has not been easy. But since you seem to be so perfect then you should not have any worries.
So sad sounds like they are only sad because there no longer under that roof. If you all truly have concerns, handle them in the appropriate way and not by gossiping online about it.
not that I like making choices of ambulances if an emergency arises, but these comments sure help me make up my mind of who to stay away from. If I ever need an ambulance, will you all let me pick who comes out and comes in MY house, sees MY family, and MY belongings, or is it a coin toss to see if I get the good employees or the lazy ones. Every company’s reputation is based on their worst employees, and sad to say Guardian has one crappy reputation. As for employees who work there, is the pay so great that this would be the only place you would work for. There has got to be other ambulances to work for? Am i correct or misinformed of the ambulance industry? This sure makes me think twice about calling an ambulance and who comes into my house. Maybe this is why the ambulance regulations in Richmond are “suppose” to be strict. I really hope that some of these comments are over exagerated, because I am really scared of what I would do if I needed you folks.
Well, I’ve read enough “trash” about Tim Griffith. First of all, let me straighten you out, He is NOT God and He doesn’t think he is God!! Tim knows his God and apparently from all the comments, some of you need to get to know his God. Believe me, I know who God is and I know some who think they are God, but Tim Griffith is not one of these people.
I have been friends with Tim and Angie since I moved to Wytheville (8 year ago). They are the most kind, considerate people I know. After I lost my job, my vehicle was rejected for inspection. When Tim and Angie learned of this, they fixed it for me and would NOT let me pay them one penny for parts or labor. Many, many times, I have been in need and they are the ones that came to my rescue. This couple is so filled with love and always giving to others. One of you stated that he didn’t stand up for you, well, from the time I have spent with Tim, he is so kind that he doesn’t want to hurt anyone, so I’m sure this was very difficult for him. He wants all of us to love each other. No, I have not worked for Tim at Guardian, but I have done things for his family, for which I was always reimbursed, because with my financial situation, he knew how hard it was for me.
Yes, a mistake was made and I’m so sorry for the individuals that had to endure this, But, we all make mistakes and are known to make a bad judgement call. The last time I checked, there is only one person that is perfect and that is Jesus Christ. This famiy has gone through so much in the past year that it breaks my heart. Maybe he did take extra vacations, etc., but if you were diagnosed with cancer wouldn’t you want to spend an abundance of time with your family???
So wake up and smell the roses!!! Find another individual to “vent” about. And, if you were so unhappy working at Guardian, why didn’t you just leave or report your feelings/facts at that time to higher ups?? You don’t kick a person down when they are already down.
I don’t know all the facts by any means, but I do know that Tim and Angie Griffith are the most loving, caring people in the town of Wytheville. There is a lot of people that need to learn from them about giving love.
Thank you.
This really is all so sad & more so unbelievable. Humm, let’s see, What has happened here? A man, who admitted he had a previous molestation charge against him & he was still hired. Grant you, his confession was a step in the right direction. But my question is, “why was he allowed to drive these girls alone & not accompanied by another person? I have no doubt that Guardian people are like family or I used to think so, until this so called family allowed several of their good employees/family members to be without jobs because of other employees/family members. He said she said was allowed to take over and nothing was done to prove or correct. I agree, Tim & Angie are good people but Tim needs to get in there & question why so many of his employees are leaving, have been harrassed out or have been let go by people other than himself. Not being there, available or caring as he once did is the culprit behind this comotion. There is a lot of back stabbing in the office & within the administration that goes unnoticed or passes by blinded eyes. there’s alos the little matter of the using guardian funds to fill personal vehicles & not Guardian vehicles & that may be why there is no money at times. Tim needs to call a gathering of all these employees or have a family reunion with these people & take them in one at a time & allow them to give an account of why they are no longer under that roof.
I agree that guardian has a famiy. But which family are we talking about the middle office family or the end office family. there are only certain families allowed into these families. or could it be the copy room family. If you are in the back room tv family then you will be doing all the work im sure that is where Alton used to set he was one of the workers. I feel sorry for Tim and Angie. They are having a bad time and whoever wrote that about Tim being god will surely have front row tickets to hell. what if he did buy a church is that such a bad investment? Yes I was an employee a former employee and I can gossip or blog with the best of them but that was just mean. Those rumors and I say rumors have been going around for years. no I dont agree with the stuff that goes on at guardian but I dont want to listen to people bang Tim and Angie. I got to where I hated my job mainly because of these families! but I wasnt in what we used to call the click at guardian. to understand these well you have the Rural Retreat clicks and the Wythe County clicks. How silly. Well folks this is serious. so how silly does all that sound. What does it matter what Tim bought. I was irriated but I had to soul search to see if I was jealous or just angry because i wasnt making enough money and driving death trap ambulances. and yes most of the ambulances are trash. but the ebay thing is like buying gas would you go up the street alittle to get it cheaper if you would get the same gas? Once I left i realized how stupid all that stuff was and I read this stuff and realized that its just got worse. I read what lesa from wytheville wrote do some soul searching for the less fortunate employees or the tv room employees they dont enjoy coming to work as much as people who are not in the family or get to stay in the office all day . They dont even get to eat half the time or take elaborate lunch breaks. And when I was there guardian had propacs which were awesome but the rest was trash the vent had to be sent off all the time. and we all know that the ems guy that comes calls a certain person a week before he gets there so stock can be pulled off of the ambulances he wont be inspecting. so is it on there or are they just pulling from other trucks to make that one look stocked. so get real most of us know or have seen guardians equipment. I just had to comment on these (my 2 cents worth) if you will. I was there for years I know the deal. But the stuff they are saying about Tim and Angie just isnt true. Tim is sick leave him alone. or do you bashers even know that hes sick. you probably dont! Their daughter is old enough to read this trash. and im sure she hears it at school. I knew this day was coming but i thought it would be in the from one of the trucks having a accident due to the tires being bad or a malfunction I never dreamed that it would be something to this magnitude. so to Tim and Angie stay strong take care of the babys. Feel good Tim. I am praying for you.
To all of the above people that want to try and disgrace Guardian and their fine owners I have something to say to you. First of all you need to own up and be Man or Woman enough to sign your name. Now as far as the company goes, yes guardian has its problems but what successful company dosent? As Lesa mentioned above reguardless of whatever happenes we all are like a big family. We work together and do our best for the citizens of the county and the surrounding counties. All of us have a great passion for what we do, in this line of work that is so stressful you have too. I, myself have realized it is somthing in your blood. I have left guardian, stayed part time but that was not enough I missed the work, I missed my co-workers and most of all I missed helping people. NOW as far as Tim and Angie goes I have been a emplopyee for 9yrs. But not only this when I was a little girl I slept on Tim and Angies lap in church they are like family to me. You could not ask for better people no matter what, they will help you if you are in a bind and not think twice about it. As I have grown older I have had the pleasure of learning from and working with one of the best medics you could ask for and that is Tim himself. This community, past and present employees should be thankful they had the opportunity to know and work for such honorable people, I know I am. So to all of you with a problem it is a problem within yourself and not gurardian, their employees and least of all not Tim and Angie cause they have done nothing to hurt you but to help you. Amber Fox
First of all, I’ve read all these comments (Lesa you’re my hero) and personally, all of you bashing Guardian are acting(typing) like 2 year old children, Tim and Angie are wonderful people and would help anyone. Sure Mr. Davis’ situation is a bad one at this time, but Guardian had NO WAY of knowing. All employees at guardian are like one big family therefore yes, we are hurting at this time and these comments made by people aren’t making the situation any better. From what I’ve read Tim and Angie need to watch their backs because if you aren’t a SOUR ex employee you are a stalker, which if memory serves is a crime. How Guardian operates is not anyone’s business, it isn’t anyone’s business about calls we run or how we run them, as the first post states. No patient has ever been denied care in any shape or form during my employment, I AM a PROUD employee of 2 years.
Opionions are like (you know what) and mine is grow up, it’s none of your business how Tim conducts his or anyone else for that matter, PUT YOUR NAMES TO YOUR POSTS, BE AN ADULT DON’T HIDE. Before you trash Guardian and it’s employee’s think of how you would feel if I trashed you and your family. By the way, is it really any of your business what Tim and Angie buy? Let’s think......NO! What they have, what they buy is their business, not yours.
Lastly, Tim treated every employee like they were his own family, even those of you who aren’t with us any more, and for those of you who aren’t, you should be the one’s ashamed of yourselves for what you are saying about him after what he had done for you while you were employeed by Guardian Ambulance.
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