Highlights of OIG activity from October 1, 2018, through December 31, 2018, are summarized below:
- An OIG investigation established that a high-ranking CPD supervisor directed on-duty CPD officers to chauffeur the supervisor’s child from school to a district police station in a CPD vehicle on a weekly basis, for approximately one year, in addition to monitoring the supervisor’s child for recurring two to three-hour periods while on duty. This violated CPD rules by improperly diverting resources away from the community and creating additional stress for officers, which ultimately had a detrimental impact on their morale. The supervisor also disingenuously claimed that the use of CPD officers to transport and oversee the child was appropriate because the officers were unknowingly participating in a community policing study the supervisor was conducting involving children, for which the supervisor’s child was the “test case.” OIG recommended that CPD discipline the supervisor, up to and including discharge. In response, CPD suspended the supervisor for seven days.
- An OIG investigation established that a Department of Streets and Sanitation (DSS) laborer concealed his jailing on a felony conviction by using leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which the laborer falsely claimed was to care for an ill family member. DSS agreed with OIG’s recommendations, discharging the laborer and referring them for placement on the ineligible for rehire list.
- An OIG investigation established that a Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) official engaged in approved secondary employment with the same community health center over which the official held contract management authority. Those responsible for ensuring compliance with secondary employment procedures were unaware of the appropriate criteria for the employment and for preventing conflicts of interest by CDPH staff. OIG recommended that the Department of Law assist CDPH in creating a policy to ensure the approval process for outside employment identifies and addresses any potential conflicts of interest, as well as establishing a City-wide policy, and that CDPH review all current outside employment, to ensure that no additional, active conflicts of interest exist.
- An OIG investigation established that a candidate for a firefighter position with the Chicago Fire Department (CFD) did not possess the required license at the time of application and submitted fraudulent application materials. OIG recommended that CFD: notify the candidate of their removal from consideration, include them on the ineligible for rehire list, and begin the practice of reviewing and verifying required certificates prior to sending candidates to CFD-sponsored training. In response, CFD sent a letter to the candidate stating that they were ineligible for the position (but did not address the discrepancy in the paperwork) and disputed its ability to access candidate application materials.
Read the full report here.