Fire merit commission schedules executive session after disputed 24‑hour suspension for Captain Dustin Flagg

On Monday, July 28, the Elkhart Fire Merit Commission voted to schedule an executive session to address Captain Dustin Flagg’s 24‑hour suspension after the commission split on whether to accept the Fire Chief’s discipline or require a full hearing. The commission met in the council chambers.

The matter arose after Fire Chief Rodney Dale notified the commission that a human‑resources investigation and a reenactment led him to conclude that “I firmly believe that Dustin Flagg tampered with the camera,” and that he issued a 24‑hour suspension. Dale said he declined calls from superiors to seek removal of rank or termination and that suspensions of 40 hours and below fall to him under the department’s rules.

The commission heard that the rig‑floor camera briefly went offline and that IT reported the device was physically unplugged. Dale said the department’s evidence included a video showing Flagg on a lift near the camera at the time it went offline and a reenactment by a division chief. Dale told commissioners that Flagg had been placed on paid administrative leave for about “2 to 3 months” while the city’s investigation proceeded and that the 24‑hour suspension was applied more recently.

A representative for Local 338, speaking for the employee, said the union filed a hearing request within the 48‑hour window required by the rules and filed a motion arguing the investigation failed multiple criteria used by arbitrators to establish just cause. The union representative said the probe was targeted and that the evidence does not establish intentional tampering, noting that the camera connection can be partially seated and dislodge accidentally.

Commission discussion touched on several factual points in the record: whether the junction box named in interviews was reachable from where Flagg stood, whether witnesses saw him disconnect the camera, how quickly IT responded, and how the city classified the alleged conduct in its personnel handbook. A commissioner observed that if every contested discipline required a hearing the commission would hold many more hearings; another commissioner said a firefighter’s right to request a hearing is protected.

A motion to reverse the discipline was made but received no second and therefore failed. A later motion to accept the chief’s recommended discipline received a second but resulted in a split vote and did not carry. The commission then approved a motion to set an executive session to consider Captain Flagg’s disciplinary action further and said staff would coordinate timing based on commissioners’ availability.

The commission’s next procedural steps will include the executive session or a formal hearing; commissioners and staff said legal counsel and scheduling will determine the earliest practicable date. The commission did not reverse the discipline at the July 28 meeting.

Details preserved in the record: the chief’s suspension decision was 24 hours; IT reported a single rig‑floor camera went offline because it was unplugged; the employee was placed on paid administrative leave for roughly two to three months during the investigation; a hearing request was filed within 48 hours. The commission approved an executive session motion on the record to discuss Captain Flagg’s discipline.