The City of Muncie has initiated a new effort to terminate Captain Troy Dulaney, filing a second amended complaint of misconduct with the Muncie Fire Merit Commission that seeks his dismissal from the Muncie Fire Department.

According to a cover letter submitted by Assistant City Attorney Benjamin Freeman, the recommendation to pursue termination was made in consultation with Fire Chief Daniel Burford and is based upon the allegations contained in the new complaint together with a review of the Merit Commission’s rules and procedures. The actual complaint has not been released publicly.

The filing marks the latest development in a disciplinary matter that has spanned more than three years and has generated multiple administrative proceedings, lawsuits, and four prior Fire Law Blog posts.

• April 13, 2023 Indiana Fire Department Facing Three Investigations Into Exam Cheating
• September 29, 2024 ALJ Reverses Harsh Sanctions in Muncie Cheating Scandal Case
• February 12, 2025 Muncie Captain Sues Claiming He Was Improperly Denied Promotion
• March 23, 2026 Indiana Court Orders Reinstatement of Captain’s Fire Certifications After Finding State Board Acted Arbitrarily

The original disciplinary proceedings stemmed from allegations that Captain Dulaney orchestrated a scheme involving the sharing of questions and answers from state and national firefighter and EMS certification examinations. The Indiana Department of Homeland Security concluded that Captain Dulaney pressured recruits to provide information about certification examinations and coordinated the sharing of examination questions among firefighters and EMTs.

As previously reported, the Indiana Board of Firefighting Personnel Standards and Education revoked Captain Dulaney’s firefighter certifications, while the Indiana EMS Commission revoked his EMS certifications. Captain Dulaney challenged those actions through the administrative and judicial process.

An administrative law judge concluded that state regulators had failed to prove most of the cheating allegations. The judge recommended against revoking Captain Dulaney’s firefighter certifications and recommended that his EMS certifications not be permanently revoked. While the EMS Commission accepted that recommendation, the Board of Firefighting Personnel Standards rejected it and proceeded with revocation.

Captain Dulaney then sought judicial review. Earlier this year, a Marion County judge reversed the Board’s revocation order, finding that state regulators had failed to prove most of the alleged cheating misconduct and had acted arbitrarily in rejecting the administrative law judge’s findings. The court ordered Captain Dulaney’s firefighter certifications reinstated and directed that records of the revocation be expunged.

Following that ruling, the City of Muncie resumed its own disciplinary proceedings.

According to media reports, the city may rely upon more recent allegations of misconduct rather than the certification issues that formed the basis of the original disciplinary complaint.

One incident occurred while Captain Dulaney was employed by Heartland Ambulance Service after leaving the Muncie Fire Department. A co-worker alleged that Captain Dulaney became aggressive while helping her prepare for an EMT examination. According to the employee, he threatened to choke her after she answered a question incorrectly.

Dash camera video from the ambulance reportedly captured part of the exchange. According to the report, the video shows Captain Dulaney raising his hand toward the employee while stating, “I’m gonna choke you.” When the employee reportedly suggested returning to the station, Captain Dulaney allegedly responded, “You’ll be dead before you get there.”

Captain Dulaney and his attorney have maintained that the statements were intended as jokes and were not threats. Heartland Ambulance terminated his employment two days after the incident.

The incident also resulted in additional action by the Indiana Department of Homeland Security. State officials alleged that Captain Dulaney violated the terms of probation imposed as part of the earlier settlement resolving the certification proceedings. Under that agreement, Captain Dulaney was prohibited from training individuals seeking EMT licensure until completing the requirements for a state instructor certificate. Although the state initially imposed a six-month suspension of his EMS certification, the matter was later resolved through a settlement reducing the suspension to 62 days.

The city may also rely upon a separate incident that occurred on Thanksgiving Day 2025. According to a Yorktown Police Department report, Captain Dulaney became involved in an altercation inside a convenience store following a dispute over a parking space. Police alleged that surveillance video showed Captain Dulaney acting as the aggressor by grabbing another customer by the shirt and attempting to pull him outside. The Delaware County Prosecutor subsequently charged Captain Dulaney with misdemeanor battery.

In addition, although the administrative law judge rejected most of the cheating allegations, the judge concluded that Captain Dulaney had engaged in improper conduct by requesting actual examination questions and answers from individuals who had taken certification examinations. The administrative law judge wrote:

“By asking for specific questions and answers to actual examination questions, Dulaney crossed the line into conduct that is inconsistent with what is right and honest.”

Whether that finding is included among the charges in the city’s new complaint is not yet known.

The Muncie Fire Merit Commission voted unanimously to accept the new complaint and schedule a disciplinary hearing. According to Commission President Andrew Dale, the charges were presented to the commissioners during an executive session before the public meeting at which the complaint was formally received. Here is more on the story.

Also, here is a video from two months ago: