The idea of a firefighter being involved in arson is so starkly counter-intuitive as to startle the sensibilities. It’s like a doctor intentionally harming a patient or a builder intentionally erecting an unsafe structure, yet it is hardly unheard of.

The recent criminal charges against three men who had been members of the Pike Road Volunteer Fire Department have raised anew the issue of background checks for would-be firefighters. As the Advertiser’s Crystal Bonvillian reported, there were no formal background checks conducted on the men, one of whom is serving time now on a theft charge in Henry County.

The three are entitled to the presumption of innocence in the Montgomery County cases, to be sure. However, the charges do argue for conducting background checks and, perhaps even more importantly, some form of psychological testing on those who wish to join a fire department.

Such tests are done routinely in larger-city fire departments. It’s simply a cost of doing business, an investment in the public safety. But for smaller departments, particularly the volunteer fire departments that serve many Alabama communities, cost is decidedly an issue.