HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?

It took the Justice Department of the Federal Government over 5 years of legal shenanigans, delaying tactics and probably hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars of legal costs to realize that they were on the wrong road in trying to connect Mr. Steven Hatfill with the 2001 anthrax attacks. On June 27, 2008 the Justice Department agreed to pay Hatfill a settlement valued at $5.85 million just to drop a lawsuit against them. The scientist Mr. Hatfill stood his ground against the might of of Feds and won . He contended that his privacy rights were violated in the rush to solve the heinous crimes.

Some contend and allege that a similar situation (except we are not talking criminal) is brewing in the City of Woodstock's Police Department and with its Chief of Police, Robert W. Lowen Jr. and the City's own Board of Fire and Police Commissioners and now co-defendant with the Board Sergeant Steven R. Gorski. Lowen contends and alleges that the Board of Commissioners along with its experienced attorney were wrong in finding that Lowen and his City's attorneys did not make their case and present the burden of proof that was needed to make the Chief's case for dismissal. Some even allege that this further legal action of asking for administrative review was taken to lessen the trauma to the Chief's ego and alleged sense of full power and control over his department. He allegedly wants to be surrounded by team players, could that be another name for "yes" men and Sergeant Gorski is a team player for the citizens of Woodstock and his fellow officers and has been for over nineteen (19) years but perhaps not allegedly enough of a "yes" man for the Chief.

Nowhere in the City's initial argument does it mention an in the line of duty injury on two occasions to his spine or his assisting a fellow officer with a question that allegedly "ticked off" the Chief .The in-line of duty injury caused the Sergeant to use his sick days and assisting a subordinate minority female officer may have been instrumental in causing the Chief and City some further legal problems with said minority officer when I was told she allegedly filed a federal complaint against the Chief and City. When he assisted said officer it was in his capacity as her sergeant after a lawful question was asked of him.

When is the City going to realize that continuing to go down this long wrong road is only making their position more tenuous and costly....using tax payer dollars to allegedly assuage some one's feelings is the wrong way of approaching this problem.

Woodstock & PD Takes Care Of Its Own...Joke

Within the Illinois Compiled Statutes there is a division called GENERAL PROVISIONS and within it is (5 ILCS 345/) Public Employee Disability Act, commonly known as "PEDA".

Sec. 1. Disability benefit.
(a) It lists among other things that an "eligible employee" is "any full-time law enforcement officer or full-time firefighter who is .............employed......., any unit of local government granted the power to employ persons for such purposes by law."

In my humble, non-lawyer brain this would include a city like Woodstock Illinois.

(b) "Whenever an eligible employee suffers any injury in the line of duty which causes him to be unable to perform his duties, he shall continue to be paid by the employing public entity on the same basis as he was paid before the injury..."

(c) "At any time during the period for which continuing compensation is required by this act, the employing public entity may order at the expense of that entity physical or medical examinations of the injured person to determine the degree of disability."

(d) "During this period of disability, the injured person shall not be employed in any other manner....."

Now lets look back at the situation of Sergeant Steven R. Gorski, an "eligible employee" of the Woodstock Police Department for (19) nineteen years.

1. Under Section 1 (a) he is an "eligible employee".
2. Under Section 1 (b) he sustained an in the line of duty injury that was reported, documented and approved after an investigation by a Deputy Chief of Police of the City of Woodstock. This injury has resulted in his inability for him to perform his duties as a Patrol Sergeant for the City of Woodstock Police Department.
3. Under Section 1 (c) never did the employing public entity (City) have a physical exam to determine the degree of disabililty of Sergeant Gorski.
4. Under Section 1 (d) at no time during this now current period of disability was or is the Sergeant employed in any other manner.

In conclusion, it seems to me that the City of Woodstock, its Mayor, City Council, City Administrator, Director of Human Resources and Chief of Police are alledgedly NOT in compliance with 5 ILCS 345/, The Public Employee Disabiltiy Act.

Now tonight when you go to sleep you can relax and have pleasant dreams knowing that your public officials are looking out for your best interests should something happen to you while you are working for the City of Woodstock. Pleasant dreams and yes don't forget to buy plenty of private disablity insurance so your family and you can survive.