Snohomish, WA 98296
Advanced Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service
This intensive two-day program is designed for fire service leaders, HR professionals, attorneys, and labor representatives who already possess a working knowledge of firefighter discipline and workplace investigations. Building upon the foundation established in Managing Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service, this advanced program focuses on the complex legal, procedural, and human factors that make disciplinary investigations difficult.
Participants will examine credibility determinations, deception detection, evidence collection and preservation, advanced interviewing strategies, employee rights, and the constitutional issues that arise during administrative investigations. Particular attention is given to Garrity, Weingarten, firefighter bills of rights, search and seizure concerns, drug testing, and the challenges associated with managing toxic employees and workplace misconduct.
The program combines legal principles, behavioral science, and practical investigative techniques to help attendees conduct fair, objective, and defensible investigations while reducing the risk of grievances, appeals, and litigation. Through case studies and real-world examples drawn from the fire service, participants will learn how to navigate some of the most difficult disciplinary situations confronting today’s departments.
Instructor: Curt Varone, JD, MS, EFO
Course Location: Snohomish, Washington
Hosted by: Snohomish Regional Fire & Rescue
Willis Tucker Activity Center
6705 Puget Park Dr.
Snohomish, WA 98296
Price: $375.00 per person.
To register offline, email curtvarone@gmail.com.
INSTRUCTOR
Curt Varone has over 50 years of experience in the fire service. He served twenty-nine years with the Providence, Rhode Island, Fire Department, retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief (shift-commander). He has been a practicing attorney for forty years, licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. Besides his Juris Doctorate, he has a Master's in Forensic Psychology. He previously served as the Director of the Public Fire Protection Division at the National Fire Protection Association. Curt has written two books, Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook. He is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column and remains active as a deputy chief with the Exeter (RI) Fire Department.
Course objectives: Attendees will be able to:
- Analyze complex disciplinary investigations and identify legal, procedural, and organizational risks.
- Develop investigative strategies for allegations involving credibility disputes, conflicting witness accounts, and limited physical evidence.
- Conduct advanced witness and subject interviews using techniques designed to maximize information gathering and assess reliability.
- Evaluate witness credibility using legally recognized credibility assessment factors.
- Distinguish between credibility assessment and deception detection, and explain the proper role of each in administrative investigations.
- Identify empirically supported indicators of deception and explain their limitations.
- Recognize and mitigate the effects of bias, implicit bias, confirmation bias, and attribution errors during investigations.
- Develop legally defensible findings in cases where facts are disputed and direct evidence is lacking.
- Apply advanced evidence collection, preservation, documentation, and chain-of-custody principles in administrative investigations.
- Evaluate when expert assistance is necessary and identify the appropriate expert resources for a particular investigation.
- Analyze search and seizure issues arising from workplace investigations involving electronic devices, social media, department property, and employee privacy interests.
- Evaluate the constitutional and legal requirements governing employee drug and alcohol testing.
- Conduct photo and live lineups in a manner consistent with accepted investigative standards.
- Distinguish between Garrity, Gardner, Weingarten, and Miranda, and identify the circumstances under which each applies.
- Analyze complex Garrity issues, including off-duty misconduct, parallel criminal investigations, compelled statements, and jurisdictions following the minority Garrity rule.
- Select and apply the appropriate investigative admonishment based upon the legal status of the employee and the nature of the investigation.
- Develop strategies to address the Code of Silence and other cultural barriers to effective investigations.
- Evaluate the impact of civil service systems, collective bargaining agreements, firefighter bills of rights, and state-specific employment protections on disciplinary investigations.
- Identify personality types and behavioral patterns commonly associated with difficult and toxic employees.
- Develop legally defensible management and disciplinary strategies for employees whose conduct repeatedly disrupts the workplace.
- Assess disciplinary cases from an appellate perspective and identify vulnerabilities likely to be challenged in grievances, arbitration, civil service proceedings, EEOC actions, or litigation.
Attendees will receive a comprehensive e-manual and course certificate from Fire Service Legal Training Institute, Inc.
Advanced Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service
Outline
Day 1
Intro to Advanced Concepts – 8:30am to 10:00am
- The problem
- Professional standards
- Due process
- Disciplinary time lines
- Outliers and bell curve problems
Evidence Use and Control 10:00am to 12:00pm
- Introduction
- Chain of custody
- Still Photographic Evidence
- Use of Video
- Duty to preserve exculpatory evidence
- Spoliation
- Medical evidence
- Scene Diagram
- Searches and the 4th Amendment
- Use of polygraph or voice stress detection
- Chemical testing
- Photo & physical lineups
Advanced Interviewing 1:00pm to 4:30pm
- Review of basic interviewing
- Order of the interviews
- Memory, working memory and memory decay
- Recording interviews
- Representation during interviews
- General interview techniques
- Rapport building, rapport harming, and establishing a baseline
- Narrative based interview
- Cognitive interview
- Advanced cognitive interview
- PEACE Method
- Complainant interviews
- Interviews with non-accused employees
- Remote interviews
- Handling interview problems
Day 2
Advanced Garrity - 8:30am to 10:30am
- Overview of Garrity
- Overview of Gardner
- Strategic considerations
- Sealing the Record
- Garrity exceptions: perjury & obstruction
- Garrity & duty to report
Credibility determinations 10:30-12:00pm and 1:00pm to 1:30pm
- Overview of credibility determinations
- Where credibility determinations need to be made
- How to make a credibility determination
- Factors to evaluate
- EEOC
- CDFEH
- FMS Hill Factors
- FRE
- ICC
- APA
- Model Jury instructions
- Common Pitfalls
- Factors to evaluate
Toxic employees & HR issues 1:30-4:30 pm
- Identifying toxic employees
- Fire service challenges with toxic employees
- Toxic behaviors
- Legal challenges with toxic employees
- FMLA
- ADA
- Title VII
- Hostile Work Environment
- Retaliation
- Common mistakes FDs make
- Solutions
Price: $375.00 per person.
To register offline, email curtvarone@gmail.com.
HOTELS
Hotel Indigo
1028 13th St.
Everett, WA 98201
425-217-2772
Inn at Port Gardner
1700 W. Marine View Dr.
Everett, WA 98201
425-252-6779
AIRPORT INFORMATION
The closest airport to the training site is: Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac) is 40 miles away.
For additional information please contact:
Curt Varone: curtvarone@gmail.com
Cancellation and Refund Policy
We all know that sometimes plans must change. If you find you can no longer attend a program, please contact me at curtvarone@gmail.com. Among the options are:
- transferring your registration to a colleague
- setting up a credit for a future program
- providing a full or partial refund
If you are seeking a refund, provided you notify me at least 30 days prior to a scheduled event, a full refund will be provided. If notice is provided less than 30 days prior to the event, you will receive a refund of 50%, unless notice is provided less than 10 days prior to an event, in which case a refund will not be provided. However, in the event that a class is sold out and your seat has been re-filled, a full refund will be provided.
Remember - if you cannot attend you can always transfer your registration to a colleague or set up a credit for a future class. Just notify me before hand. No show = no refund or credit.
Please note that any training program may be cancelled due to insufficient enrollment at least 20 calendar days in advance of the scheduled course date. In the event of a cancellation, notice will be provided with the option to reschedule for a future course date or to receive a full refund of registration fees. I am not responsible for any expenses incurred by the registrant if a training course is cancelled. If you are considering booking non-refundable flights feel free to email me at curtvarone@gmail.com to confirm that enrollment is sufficient.
If a training class is cancelled due to any unforeseen circumstances such as weather or natural disaster, the customer is entitled to reschedule for a future training course.
Curt Varone has over 50 years of experience in the fire service. He served twenty-nine years with the Providence, Rhode Island, Fire Department, retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief (shift-commander). He has been a practicing attorney for over forty years, licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. Besides his Juris Doctorate, he has a Master's in Forensic Psychology. He previously served as the Director of the Public Fire Protection Division at the National Fire Protection Association. Curt has written four books, Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, Fire Officer's Legal Handbook, Managing Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service, and The Judgment Line. He is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column and remains active as a deputy chief with the Exeter (RI) Fire Department.
Advanced Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service
This intensive two-day program is designed for fire service leaders, HR professionals, attorneys, and labor representatives who already possess a working knowledge of firefighter discipline and workplace investigations. Building upon the foundation established in Managing Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service, this advanced program focuses on the complex legal, procedural, and human factors that make disciplinary investigations difficult.
Participants will examine credibility determinations, deception detection, evidence collection and preservation, advanced interviewing strategies, employee rights, and the constitutional issues that arise during administrative investigations. Particular attention is given to Garrity, Weingarten, firefighter bills of rights, search and seizure concerns, drug testing, and the challenges associated with managing toxic employees and workplace misconduct.
The program combines legal principles, behavioral science, and practical investigative techniques to help attendees conduct fair, objective, and defensible investigations while reducing the risk of grievances, appeals, and litigation. Through case studies and real-world examples drawn from the fire service, participants will learn how to navigate some of the most difficult disciplinary situations confronting today’s departments.
Instructor: Curt Varone, JD, MS, EFO
Course Location: Snohomish, Washington
Hosted by: Snohomish Regional Fire & Rescue
Willis Tucker Activity Center
6705 Puget Park Dr.
Snohomish, WA 98296
Price: $375.00 per person.
To register offline, email curtvarone@gmail.com.
INSTRUCTOR
Curt Varone has over 50 years of experience in the fire service. He served twenty-nine years with the Providence, Rhode Island, Fire Department, retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief (shift-commander). He has been a practicing attorney for forty years, licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. Besides his Juris Doctorate, he has a Master's in Forensic Psychology. He previously served as the Director of the Public Fire Protection Division at the National Fire Protection Association. Curt has written two books, Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook. He is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column and remains active as a deputy chief with the Exeter (RI) Fire Department.
Course objectives: Attendees will be able to:
- Analyze complex disciplinary investigations and identify legal, procedural, and organizational risks.
- Develop investigative strategies for allegations involving credibility disputes, conflicting witness accounts, and limited physical evidence.
- Conduct advanced witness and subject interviews using techniques designed to maximize information gathering and assess reliability.
- Evaluate witness credibility using legally recognized credibility assessment factors.
- Distinguish between credibility assessment and deception detection, and explain the proper role of each in administrative investigations.
- Identify empirically supported indicators of deception and explain their limitations.
- Recognize and mitigate the effects of bias, implicit bias, confirmation bias, and attribution errors during investigations.
- Develop legally defensible findings in cases where facts are disputed and direct evidence is lacking.
- Apply advanced evidence collection, preservation, documentation, and chain-of-custody principles in administrative investigations.
- Evaluate when expert assistance is necessary and identify the appropriate expert resources for a particular investigation.
- Analyze search and seizure issues arising from workplace investigations involving electronic devices, social media, department property, and employee privacy interests.
- Evaluate the constitutional and legal requirements governing employee drug and alcohol testing.
- Conduct photo and live lineups in a manner consistent with accepted investigative standards.
- Distinguish between Garrity, Gardner, Weingarten, and Miranda, and identify the circumstances under which each applies.
- Analyze complex Garrity issues, including off-duty misconduct, parallel criminal investigations, compelled statements, and jurisdictions following the minority Garrity rule.
- Select and apply the appropriate investigative admonishment based upon the legal status of the employee and the nature of the investigation.
- Develop strategies to address the Code of Silence and other cultural barriers to effective investigations.
- Evaluate the impact of civil service systems, collective bargaining agreements, firefighter bills of rights, and state-specific employment protections on disciplinary investigations.
- Identify personality types and behavioral patterns commonly associated with difficult and toxic employees.
- Develop legally defensible management and disciplinary strategies for employees whose conduct repeatedly disrupts the workplace.
- Assess disciplinary cases from an appellate perspective and identify vulnerabilities likely to be challenged in grievances, arbitration, civil service proceedings, EEOC actions, or litigation.
Attendees will receive a comprehensive e-manual and course certificate from Fire Service Legal Training Institute, Inc.
Advanced Disciplinary Challenges in the Fire Service
Outline
Day 1
Intro to Advanced Concepts – 8:30am to 10:00am
- The problem
- Professional standards
- Due process
- Disciplinary time lines
- Outliers and bell curve problems
Evidence Use and Control 10:00am to 12:00pm
- Introduction
- Chain of custody
- Still Photographic Evidence
- Use of Video
- Duty to preserve exculpatory evidence
- Spoliation
- Medical evidence
- Scene Diagram
- Searches and the 4th Amendment
- Use of polygraph or voice stress detection
- Chemical testing
- Photo & physical lineups
Advanced Interviewing 1:00pm to 4:30pm
- Review of basic interviewing
- Order of the interviews
- Memory, working memory and memory decay
- Recording interviews
- Representation during interviews
- General interview techniques
- Rapport building, rapport harming, and establishing a baseline
- Narrative based interview
- Cognitive interview
- Advanced cognitive interview
- PEACE Method
- Complainant interviews
- Interviews with non-accused employees
- Remote interviews
- Handling interview problems
Day 2
Advanced Garrity - 8:30am to 10:30am
- Overview of Garrity
- Overview of Gardner
- Strategic considerations
- Sealing the Record
- Garrity exceptions: perjury & obstruction
- Garrity & duty to report
Credibility determinations 10:30-12:00pm and 1:00pm to 1:30pm
- Overview of credibility determinations
- Where credibility determinations need to be made
- How to make a credibility determination
- Factors to evaluate
- EEOC
- CDFEH
- FMS Hill Factors
- FRE
- ICC
- APA
- Model Jury instructions
- Common Pitfalls
- Factors to evaluate
Toxic employees & HR issues 1:30-4:30 pm
- Identifying toxic employees
- Fire service challenges with toxic employees
- Toxic behaviors
- Legal challenges with toxic employees
- FMLA
- ADA
- Title VII
- Hostile Work Environment
- Retaliation
- Common mistakes FDs make
- Solutions
Price: $375.00 per person.
To register offline, email curtvarone@gmail.com.
HOTELS
Hotel Indigo
1028 13th St.
Everett, WA 98201
425-217-2772
Inn at Port Gardner
1700 W. Marine View Dr.
Everett, WA 98201
425-252-6779
AIRPORT INFORMATION
The closest airport to the training site is: Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SeaTac) is 40 miles away.
For additional information please contact:
Curt Varone: curtvarone@gmail.com
Cancellation and Refund Policy
We all know that sometimes plans must change. If you find you can no longer attend a program, please contact me at curtvarone@gmail.com. Among the options are:
- transferring your registration to a colleague
- setting up a credit for a future program
- providing a full or partial refund
If you are seeking a refund, provided you notify me at least 30 days prior to a scheduled event, a full refund will be provided. If notice is provided less than 30 days prior to the event, you will receive a refund of 50%, unless notice is provided less than 10 days prior to an event, in which case a refund will not be provided. However, in the event that a class is sold out and your seat has been re-filled, a full refund will be provided.
Remember - if you cannot attend you can always transfer your registration to a colleague or set up a credit for a future class. Just notify me before hand. No show = no refund or credit.
Please note that any training program may be cancelled due to insufficient enrollment at least 20 calendar days in advance of the scheduled course date. In the event of a cancellation, notice will be provided with the option to reschedule for a future course date or to receive a full refund of registration fees. I am not responsible for any expenses incurred by the registrant if a training course is cancelled. If you are considering booking non-refundable flights feel free to email me at curtvarone@gmail.com to confirm that enrollment is sufficient.
If a training class is cancelled due to any unforeseen circumstances such as weather or natural disaster, the customer is entitled to reschedule for a future training course.