The next time Scott Baio’s neighborhood is threatened with a wildfire, earthquake or even a terrorist attack, he and his wife Renee will be ready to jump in and help.
The actor — who is less known these days for his former “Happy Days” stint than for his Donald Trump support and controversial tweets on a range of subjects — has told The Blast that he and his wife recently completed community emergency response team (CERT) training through the Los Angeles Police Department.
The actor, 57, said he and Renee had been motivated to get the training after seeing their 10-year-old daughter Bailey’s school threatened by wildfires last fall, and following the destruction in Santa Barbara from fires and mudslides. The homeowners’ association in their Woodland Hills community decided that a dozen or so people should receive the training.
Scott and Renee, along with Bailey, underwent seven two-hour classes at the LAPD’s Topanga Division. The training consisted of learning how to triage after a disaster, and do light search and rescue and basic first aid. The training also covered how to respond to more human-made, contemporary emergencies like active school shooters and terrorist attacks.
Scott Baio, who is currently under investigation by LAPD detectives over allegations he sexually abused his former “Charles in Charge” co-star Nicole Eggert, nonetheless made friendly with LAPD officers at the graduation ceremony, where he and Renee became level 1 CERT members.
The couple also schmoozed with officers and other community members at a post-graduation potluck.
Baio told The Blast that he “loves and respects the police” and said he knows they have a job to do. He is certain they will do their job “properly” in his case.
Baio has been accused by Eggert and another former “Charles in Charge” co-star, Alexander Polinsky, of engaging in a range of sexually inappropriate and harassing and bullying behavior on the set of the 1980s sitcom.
Polinsky and Eggert played siblings on the show, and Baio played a college student who served as their nanny. The show ran from 1984 to 1990, when Polinsky and Eggert were minors, and Baio was in his 20s.
Eggert, 46, accused Baio of sexually abusing her during the show’s run. She also took her allegations to police. Polinsky said Baio subjected him to “mental abuse” and homophobic slurs, largely because he had witnessed Baio’s alleged mistreatment of Eggert.
Baio has acknowledged having a consensual sexual encounter with Eggert, after she turned 18, but vehemently denied the other allegations from her and Polinsky. In February at a news conference, his representatives said the actor was a victim of false allegations and “a media witch hunt.”
“Scott denies every single claim of inappropriate behavior and if you examine the claims made they can be refuted with evidence,” spokesman Brian Glicklich said at that time.
