News Photo by Reagan Voetberg Douglas Smith and Attorney Christopher Parks are pictured seated in the 26th Circuit Court in Montmorency County on Monday.

ATLANTA — Douglas Smith, 68, was sentenced to two years probation for charges of impersonating firefighter/emergency medical service personnel and reckless driving in the 26th Circuit Court in Montmorency County on Monday.

According to MiCourt case search, Smith pleaded no contest to those two charges on March 19. He was originally charged with weapons-carrying concealed, weapons felony firearm, and unlawful use of fire emblem/logos, in addition to the other two charges. Those three charges were dismissed as part of the plea deal.

In February 2025, Smith was noticed by a Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) officer driving what appeared to be a fire department vehicle at a high rate of speed, passing vehicles, and passing through intersections in Montmorency County.

The vehicle Smith was driving included EMS verbiage on the side, a siren, and emergency lights.

Smith was stopped by police and told the officer he was responding to an emergency call, but the call was cancelled.

Police verified Smith was not affiliated with any emergency response agency in Michigan and found an uncased pistol in the front of his vehicle.

He was arrested in late March 2025.

At Monday’s sentencing, Smith’s attorney Christopher Parks argued for early release from probation.

“This is Mr. Smith’s first involvement with the criminal justice system,” Parks said. “Mr. Smith does have 25 years under his belt as a firefighter in the state of Ohio.”

The sentencing report would require Smith to no longer display equipment, insignia, or other items associated with emergency medical services.

“My only concern is with him being retired at this point, but taking away his ability to say that he is a retired firefighter would be the same as taking a retired officer’s,” Parks said.

Parks said that Smith is now certified through the state of Michigan for search and rescue operations.

“The only issue that happened on this date and time, your Honor, was that he wasn’t certified through the state at that point… he has already amended that,” Parks said. “If it wasn’t for an emblem that is no more than three inches big, I don’t think we would even be here today, your Honor.”

Montmorency County Prosecuting Attorney Vicki Kundinger had no objections to early release from probation, but did argue against Parks’s point that Smith should be able to display items associated with EMS

“Well your Honor, I would quarrel with the idea that the only reason we’re here is because of the emblem,” Kundinger said. “I mean the reason initially that he was stopped was that he was running people off the road with the emergency lights going and driving at a very high rate of speed, so that traffic on both roads had to separate. That’s the reason that we’re here. And that behavior is why I think that clause is in the probation terms.”

Parks said that Smith has since removed the lights on the vehicle.

Smith said he doesn’t plan to join the fire department at his age.

“I’m retired,” Smith said. “I’m too old to pull hoses around. The only thing that I wished to continue was the search and rescue…because I can still help in that way.”

26th Circuit Court Judge Ed Black asked whether there is any reason Smith would need insignia on his vehicles to do search and rescue. Smith responded that he would not.

“The court knows that you have no prior criminal history, that you are approaching an age that would indicate that having no prior criminal history means that you’ve kept your nose clean for almost seven decades,” Black said. “So the court does not believe that any additional incarceration is warranted.”

Smith received credit for one day served in jail. Judge Black said that Smith’s driver’s license will be suspended for a time due to the reckless driving charge. Smith will have two years of probation with the possibility of early termination, and he will not be able to use, possess, or display any items associated with EMS, fire, or search and rescue, unless he has the approval of a field agent.

Reagan Voetberg. News Staff Writer. rvoetberg@TheAlpenaNews.com.