It took more than three years to extinguish a legal fire at McMinnville Fire Department.

A lawsuit filed by ex-firefighter Joey Sweat for “wrongful retaliatory discharge” has been dismissed on appeal.

Sweat was terminated March 20, 2014, along with then-Fire Chief Keith Martin and firefighter Seabert Cox. The terminations came after a year-long unrest within the department with complaints from city firefighters regarding rules enacted by Martin that included eating breakfast before coming to work, no dining out, no use of personal communication devices, and no TV before 5 p.m.

According to court documents filed in February 2015, Sweat is claiming he was fired due to his “outspokenness” about the new restrictions that he called “stringent” and about other changes within the department he claims threatened the safety of firefighters.

The city denied the allegations and requested a summary judgement in January 2017, arguing Sweat was fired for his “inability to work with effective leadership, for making sexually harassing phone calls from the firehouse to a private citizen, and going outside the chain of command.”

In May 2017, the trial court granted the city’s motion, finding “Plaintiff (Sweat) has failed to establish that the city’s explanation of his discharge is pretextual or unfounded.”

Sweat appealed that judge’s decision.

On March 23 of this year, Judge Frank G. Clement Jr., upheld the trial court’s decision.