Post by Site Admin on Sept 13, 2005 5:56:27 GMT -5
The Northwest Herald
Marengo has history of hiring
police castoffs
By JOSH STOCKINGER
jstockinger@nwherald.com
When John Zitek picked up a newspaper last year and read about the beating of a Marengo police officer in a DuPage County jail, he was flabbergasted.
It wasn't the gruesome details that knocked him off his feet, he said, but the words "police officer" printed before Joseph Sangirardi's name.
"I was dumbfounded that somebody would hire somebody without checking their background," said Zitek, chief of Stickney Police Department. "After all, they're going to be carrying a gun and a badge."
Stickney's Police and Fire Commission fired Sangirardi in 1999 for insubordination and threatening a local businessman, court documents said.
Zitek said Friday that no one contacted the Stickney Police Department to check Sangirardi's background before Sangirardi was hired at the Marengo Police Department in 2001.
The Marengo department and its former leaders have come under scrutiny recently, as the checkered past of a different officer, Scott Crawford, came to light.
Both former police Chief Larry Mason and former police and fire commissioner Pat Shelton said they did not know Crawford resigned from the Waukegan police force in 2001 in the wake of a civil-rights lawsuit over the use of excessive force on a Mexican immigrant.
The Waukegan department has admitted to having a gag order that kept them from discussing the suit. However, a quick search of court records, which are public record, would have turned up the information about Crawford.
Shelton said the commission never would have hired Crawford if members knew of the lawsuit.
However, he said he would wait for the outcome of a disciplinary hearing into separate allegations against the officer before deciding whether the hire was a bad move.
"If, in fact, we made a bad decision, we have to live with that," he said. "I'm not happy about it."
Regarding Sangirardi, Shelton said the commission knew he had had "some problems" in Stickney, but it felt he would perform well in Marengo. He said he was surprised no one contacted the Stickney force.
Meanwhile, a handful of teenagers are threatening to sue the city over arrests in which they say Crawford either roughed them up or doused them unnecessarily with pepper spray. No lawsuits have been filed.
And the Illinois State Police have reopened an investigation into allegations that Crawford roughed up two brothers at a local festival last year.
Mason could not be reached Friday for comment on Zitek's account of the Sangirardi background check. Sangirardi could not be reached for comment.
A person who identified herself as Crawford's wife said neither he nor his attorney, Erika Raskopt, would comment on the complaints.
Mason said the police department was short-staffed by about four officers in early 2003 and had little time and few resources to fill the gaps. He expressed a sense of urgency to the police and fire commission at the time, Shelton said.
"[Mason] was the one creating the urgency," Shelton said. "He said we needed the people, and the best way to get them was to hire the people who had the credentials and were ready to go."
Of the roughly 50 applicants for the jobs, Shelton said, Crawford quickly rose to the top of the list. He already had underwent training at a police academy, which could save the city money and time. And he tested well on regular polygraph, physical and psychological exams.
Mason said someone from the department called Waukegan for references.
"I had heard some negative stuff about Waukegan, but when we checked with the command over there, they gave him a clean bill of health," Mason said.
He said he had no reason to search further.
By February 2003, Crawford was working full-time in Marengo. He also maintained a part-time position with the Round Lake Heights Police Department.
Mason said complaints were lodged against Crawford periodically, but they were unfounded.
"[Crawford] is what I'd say is an aggressive officer, he's out there digging all the time," Mason said. "Some police officers ride around in a patrol car, and that's what they do. Crawford's one of those that gets out there and looks for the bad guys."
Shelton says he is disturbed about all the media attention given to Crawford and questions about Shelton's volunteer role as a past commissioner.
Now a city alderman, he said it is "hard to tell" where communication breakdowns might have occurred during the hiring of two officers with checkered histories.
"I definitely think that the commission, now and in the future, will be much more careful, and I think there will probably be some people who won't be hired that would have been hired," he said. "If anything turns up now, you won't want to take a chance."
Alderman Jack Genot said he planned to call for a change of procedure after wrapping up Crawford's hearing in August. The Police and Fire Commission could fire him for allegedly breaking department rules, including withholding information on his job application.
"I don't know how this man slipped through the cracks," Genot said. "But when this is all over, the council should review the procedures to make sure this doesn't happen again."
Marengo has history of hiring
police castoffs
By JOSH STOCKINGER
jstockinger@nwherald.com
When John Zitek picked up a newspaper last year and read about the beating of a Marengo police officer in a DuPage County jail, he was flabbergasted.
It wasn't the gruesome details that knocked him off his feet, he said, but the words "police officer" printed before Joseph Sangirardi's name.
"I was dumbfounded that somebody would hire somebody without checking their background," said Zitek, chief of Stickney Police Department. "After all, they're going to be carrying a gun and a badge."
Stickney's Police and Fire Commission fired Sangirardi in 1999 for insubordination and threatening a local businessman, court documents said.
Zitek said Friday that no one contacted the Stickney Police Department to check Sangirardi's background before Sangirardi was hired at the Marengo Police Department in 2001.
The Marengo department and its former leaders have come under scrutiny recently, as the checkered past of a different officer, Scott Crawford, came to light.
Both former police Chief Larry Mason and former police and fire commissioner Pat Shelton said they did not know Crawford resigned from the Waukegan police force in 2001 in the wake of a civil-rights lawsuit over the use of excessive force on a Mexican immigrant.
The Waukegan department has admitted to having a gag order that kept them from discussing the suit. However, a quick search of court records, which are public record, would have turned up the information about Crawford.
Shelton said the commission never would have hired Crawford if members knew of the lawsuit.
However, he said he would wait for the outcome of a disciplinary hearing into separate allegations against the officer before deciding whether the hire was a bad move.
"If, in fact, we made a bad decision, we have to live with that," he said. "I'm not happy about it."
Regarding Sangirardi, Shelton said the commission knew he had had "some problems" in Stickney, but it felt he would perform well in Marengo. He said he was surprised no one contacted the Stickney force.
Meanwhile, a handful of teenagers are threatening to sue the city over arrests in which they say Crawford either roughed them up or doused them unnecessarily with pepper spray. No lawsuits have been filed.
And the Illinois State Police have reopened an investigation into allegations that Crawford roughed up two brothers at a local festival last year.
Mason could not be reached Friday for comment on Zitek's account of the Sangirardi background check. Sangirardi could not be reached for comment.
A person who identified herself as Crawford's wife said neither he nor his attorney, Erika Raskopt, would comment on the complaints.
Mason said the police department was short-staffed by about four officers in early 2003 and had little time and few resources to fill the gaps. He expressed a sense of urgency to the police and fire commission at the time, Shelton said.
"[Mason] was the one creating the urgency," Shelton said. "He said we needed the people, and the best way to get them was to hire the people who had the credentials and were ready to go."
Of the roughly 50 applicants for the jobs, Shelton said, Crawford quickly rose to the top of the list. He already had underwent training at a police academy, which could save the city money and time. And he tested well on regular polygraph, physical and psychological exams.
Mason said someone from the department called Waukegan for references.
"I had heard some negative stuff about Waukegan, but when we checked with the command over there, they gave him a clean bill of health," Mason said.
He said he had no reason to search further.
By February 2003, Crawford was working full-time in Marengo. He also maintained a part-time position with the Round Lake Heights Police Department.
Mason said complaints were lodged against Crawford periodically, but they were unfounded.
"[Crawford] is what I'd say is an aggressive officer, he's out there digging all the time," Mason said. "Some police officers ride around in a patrol car, and that's what they do. Crawford's one of those that gets out there and looks for the bad guys."
Shelton says he is disturbed about all the media attention given to Crawford and questions about Shelton's volunteer role as a past commissioner.
Now a city alderman, he said it is "hard to tell" where communication breakdowns might have occurred during the hiring of two officers with checkered histories.
"I definitely think that the commission, now and in the future, will be much more careful, and I think there will probably be some people who won't be hired that would have been hired," he said. "If anything turns up now, you won't want to take a chance."
Alderman Jack Genot said he planned to call for a change of procedure after wrapping up Crawford's hearing in August. The Police and Fire Commission could fire him for allegedly breaking department rules, including withholding information on his job application.
"I don't know how this man slipped through the cracks," Genot said. "But when this is all over, the council should review the procedures to make sure this doesn't happen again."