Kaplan Mayor, Council agree to terminate fire chief

KAPLAN — City officials met in Kaplan Monday evening to discuss the future of Fire Chief Jacob Mathiew.
During the special meeting, Kaplan City Council unanimously agreed and voted to terminate the fire chief, mainly, but not limited to, his temper.
Last month, the city placed Mathiew on suspension for two weeks. Mayor Mike Kloesel provided information during the meeting leading up to Mathiew’s suspension and ultimately his termination.
“After an investigation, done by myself, it is my recommendation that we have to terminate the fire chief,” the Mayor began. “One of the biggest issues that we’ve had to deal with is pertaining to the GPS tracker, the other, his temper.”
The GPS tracker is located on all city emergency vehicles, meaning that it is also located on the Chief’s emergency vehicle.
The issue that was brought to the Mayor’s attention by a third party was that the GPS tracking device was removed from the city vehicle by the fire chief and placed in his personal vehicle.
The Mayor provided documentation to the council showing that in August of 2020, Mathiew was told to remove the tracker from his personal truck and place it back on the emergency vehicle, to which he did after the second warning.
City Attorney Calvin Woodruff stated that it is against the law to remove the GPS tracker in the first place and that it should never have happened.
“State law states that the hiring or termination of ahead of staff could only occur by first, recommendation by the mayor and a confirmation by the city council,” Woodruff stated. “The Mayor has made the recommendation.”
The council then voted to confirm the Mayor’s recommendation to terminate the Fire Chief, opening the room for discussion.
Before beginning the discussion, Woodruff read the definition of malfeasance in office of any public officer or public employee. It read: “Shall one intentionally refuse or fail to perform any duty lawfully required of him, or, intentionally performing any such duty in an unlawful manner.”
Woodruff also added that Article 7, Section 14 of the Louisiana State Constitution prohibits the personal use of public funds or public property.
Several questions arose during the meeting, including that of Councilman Justin Johnson, who asked if there was any other way to deal with this situation.
“Is there any other course of action that we could take other than terminating the fire chief?” Johnson asked.
In this particular situation, the Mayor told the council that there had been previous warnings given to the fire chief and that it was up to him to fix these issues.
“This is our last resort,” the Mayor replied. “I can’t foresee us giving Mathiew any more chances. It’s nothing personal. I have to look at this as a Mayor for the greater Kaplan.”
Several incidents were also brought up by the Mayor and Council concerning complaints made to them from those who have dealt with Mathiew.
“There are many concerns when it comes to Mathiew’s temper and anger. That’s not something we can tolerate any longer as it has gotten out of hand,” the Mayor expressed.
“There are too many incidents with the same complaints, and it’s our duty as Mayor and Council to take action.”
The Mayor also added that the former Chief was a great fireman, a great person and a great trainer.
“But that’s not what we are here for,” he said. “We know he’s great at his job, but with too many warnings about his temper and the situation with the GPS, it has come down to termination.”
Jacob Mathiew, then Fire Chief, attended the meeting to express his concerns for the decision made by the Mayor and Council.
Understanding the situation with the GPS, his wishes were to be treated a little more fairly.
“No one asked me where the GPS was located after knowing it was taken off the emergency vehicle,” Mathiew said.
“In my job description, it states that I respond to all calls, and I’m not always in that city truck. Sometimes I respond in my personal truck, and I should not have forgotten to put it back, sure, but sometimes that emergency truck is in the shop getting worked on, leaving me to respond in my personal vehicle. It was a mistake, but not a malicious one.”
The council all agreed that this was not an easy decision. Personal feelings for Mathiew were all positive, but as a chief, not so much.
Councilwoman Melissa Guidry said that she has watched Mathiew train firefighters, watched him work, and it is always an excellent job done by Mathiew.
“We just can’t ignore the complaints,” she said.
The council still decided to part ways with Mathiew, wishing him well. Mathiew returned the GPS tracker to the city upon leaving city hall.