Help me discipline my rookies: we have reached the conclusion

Many of you guys and gals have probably read my three piece story on the subreddit about how my rookies are out of their skull wild, my department’s fictitious captain pulled rank on me, and my chief has never done anything about it. I have told some of you how the day after that, we had an emergency officers meeting to discuss these problems. It happened, and here’s how it went:

We arrive at the department for the meeting and I was going to bring up the two rookies and the fictitious captain pulling rank. I arrived to the station and realized the fictitious Captain was actually at the station, with all of the real officers. I wasn’t sure if he was planning on attending the officers meeting as he isn’t one yet. The chief walks in and calls us all back, including the fictitious captain. This made things hard, as I planned on talking about his negligence and misrepresentation, now he’s in the room. Chief sits us down and explains how the fictitious captain is not a captain yet but he will be in a few months, atleast a training captain.

All the officers went turn by turn listing their issues, but most of them didn’t have a ton to say. The fire chief and two other chiefs mediated.

The issue of discipline began before I got to speak. My chief said that they wanna start disciplining people. He, and the president of the board (board handles discipline,) began describing how there must be a verbal warning first, then a written, must have a claim for writing them up listed in the bylaws, incident must be the same and acute. I wrote about 40-50% of the bylaws myself and am currently in law school. I raised my hand and asked what on earth they were talking about. “None of that is in the bylaws, it says any officer can write up ____ for ____ then it goes to the board.”

“Our bylaws aren’t valid because they weren’t signed. We need to reform them.” Says the fictitious captain who has been there 2 months. I told him that I wrote them, I got them signed, and this all happened before he even joined the department. “That’s not what I heard, and I never got a copy myself.” He said. I began to get angry. “I think I know what I’m doing” I said loudly before my chief intervened for me to cool down. We proceeded onward.

My turn came and I began explaining the situation. I listed several scenarios in which each of the rookies had been acting unbecoming, and how the chief had not done anything. I decided to avoid embarrassing the “captain” and just slightly reference how he didn’t handle it well, not to mention the misrepresentation. I talked about how they vaped and talked during the class and didn’t listen to me. I alluded that the other captain didn’t mitigate. As I began talking, the captain interrupts. He says calmly, that he didn’t notice the vaping. He mentioned how he got some compliments that from conference organizers that our department did so good, and we attended many trainings. He mentioned how the rookies did so good. He then started complaining how I arrived to the conference late, left one class early (basically alluding that two rookies are jam up and I was a sweaty bum.) i did almost a decade with numerous awards before we let this guy in now he’s acting like I’m the problem, and he knows best.

I lost my mind. I began screaming and cussing at him. Telling him I’ve been on my Qs and we were gracious enough to take him, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, stop bossing me around etc. I let him know he pulled a fake rank too. He subsided.

Anyways, we made up, and the meeting ended. I look on Facebook, and the rookie is posting pictures targeting me. He first posted a picture of a throat with two lumps (resembling testicles,) saying, this is how you look when you got your name in my mouth. He then posted like 1 or 2 more things like this, the other rookie commenting laughing. Immediately after the officers meeting, The fire chief and assistant chief pulled both rookies aside and had a talk with them. Told them “you’re not in trouble,” but …… then went on to list all of their issues. They listened but were very grumpy how they were getting an earful of complaints. They directed him to stop posting these things.

“I sure hope this meeting worked.” I texted my chief. He said “it’s being handled.”

The very next day, he posts another thing like this. Something like “you should work on yourself, because you are the problem.” The other rookie comments “now that’s petty.”

I called my assistant chief to tell them that I don’t exactly appreciate how they are so soft on them. He said, well, he posted another silly thing after we told him to stop Doing that, so next time he does it, I will write him up. I told them they need to do something to them and it’s clear they don’t even listen to them, nor less me. The chiefs began explaining that they will something if they acutely break verbal warnings. They mentioned we shouldn’t write them up because of what happened in the past. They seemed to not think much concerns were very important even though the chief and assistant chief are close friends of mine. They both often said that since I had been absent for a few months, they didn’t respect me (the two rookies) and it’s somehow my duty to remind them I know what I’m doing. The assistant chief also mentioned that the way they act and dress is just who they are, and it’s gonna be hard to change that

I’m so tired. I don’t understand why they defend these guys so much.