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Residents accuse Cedar Park fire chief of withholding video in firefighter's civil‑service hearing; council says review ongoing
Summary
Two residents told the Cedar Park City Council that Fire Chief Mallinger withheld video evidence related to a firefighter's civil‑service hearing. The council said outside counsel is reviewing the complaint and that the Texas Attorney General is reviewing open‑records requests.
Two Cedar Park residents urged the City Council on July 10 to make public video they say was withheld from a 2024 civil‑service hearing involving firefighter Dean Doscher.
Karen Doscher and her husband, David Doscher, told the council they have subpoenas and records they say show the Cedar Park Fire Department turned footage over to the Texas A&M Forest Service the same day it was subpoenaed. "What Chief Mallinger did . . . is unconcealable and is not leadership," Karen Doscher said during the meeting's public‑comment period. "What the city council continues to do by hiding the truth is not only disgraceful, it is indefensible."
David Doscher said he delivered subpoenas to Chief Mallinger on Dec. 4, 2023, and later received an open‑records response from the Texas A&M Forest Service confirming receipt of the same videos. "This proves Chief Mallinger had the evidence and knowingly sent it elsewhere the same day he was legally required to turn it over," David Doscher said, and asked the council to place a vote on the next agenda to release the investigator's report into the chief's conduct.
Mayor [title used in meeting] responded that the city promptly engaged outside legal counsel with civil‑service expertise after receiving the Doschers' packet. The mayor said the city disagrees with the Doschers' legal interpretation and that multiple reviews — including a pending review by the Texas Attorney General's office of open‑records requests — must be completed before additional materials can be released. "We are eager to get to the bottom of this," the mayor said, adding that the hearing examiner's decision in firefighter Dean Doscher's appeal is a public record and available on request.
The council made no motion to place a vote on the agenda during the meeting. City officials told the Doschers the outside review cannot be completed until the Attorney General rules on outstanding open‑records requests.
Why it matters: The Doschers' statements concern the integrity of an internal investigation and a civil‑service hearing that resulted in discipline for a Cedar Park firefighter. The family asked for public transparency; city officials signaled they are pursuing legal review before releasing more documents.
What’s next: The Doscher family asked that the council put an item on the next agenda to release the investigation. City staff said the Attorney General's office is reviewing the open‑records requests and that the council cannot release additional materials until that review is complete.
