Lake in the Hills Police Sgt. Mark Mogan keeps job despite not having valid driver's license

LAKE IN THE HILLS – A Lake in the Hills police sergeant whose license was suspended in April has kept his job and his paycheck by using medical leave and other benefits, records show.

Mark Mogan was approved to take leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act just days before his license was suspended in Illinois, and since then he’s continued to receive paychecks by taking advantage of sick, personal, floating holiday, compensation and vacation time, according to village documents received through an Illinois Freedom of Information Act request.

Mogan's FMLA time ended Wednesday, but he still is on leave from the department as he uses benefit time under the village's shared sick leave pooling policy, Lake in the Hills Police Public Information Officer Amanda Schmitt said in an email. The policy allows full-time employees to to share accrued sick days on a voluntary basis, village documents show.

Mogan was arrested in December for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol and striking 29-year-old Samantha Norris, who later died, in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. He was cleared of charges in the incident in March.

Prosecutors said Mogan's blood-alcohol level was well below the legal limit at the time of the crash; however, his license revocation still stands because Walworth County Judge Phil Koss said that Mogan's refusal to submit a blood test after the crash was not proper.

Mogan's license later was suspended in Illinois because the Illinois Motor Vehicle Code requires that out-of-state offenses be treated as if they had occurred in Illinois, Illinois Secretary of State spokesman Dave Druker said.

Mogan attended a hearing June 6 at the Secretary of State’s Joliet office to get a restricted driving permit, Druker said. The hearing officer has 90 days before he or she needs to determine whether to issue the permit, Druker said.

In Mogan’s case, a decision had not been made as of Friday, Druker said. If Mogan does get a restricted driving permit, it will be up to the hearing officer and the Lake in the Hills Police Department to determine what is allowed under that license, Druker said.

“Basically the [restricted permit] is to drive from home to work. Beyond that, we would need the village – in this case, the police department – to let us know if he was able to drive at work,” Druker said.

Mogan, who also is a Hebron trustee, has worked with the Lake in the Hills Police Department for more than 23 years. His salary for fiscal 2017 is listed as $106,246, according to village documents.

Mogan did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Mogan was placed on administrative leave after the crash. He returned to work on "administrative desk duty" Jan. 19 after the police department was told that he had no alcohol in his system at the time of the crash, Schmitt has said.

After prosecutors in Wisconsin said they wouldn't charge Mogan in March, he returned to his regular assignment with the Lake in the Hills Police Department.

On Feb. 21, Lake in the Hills Human Resources Coordinator Anita Neville sent Mogan an email about his FMLA request. The Northwest Herald obtained documents and emails regarding Mogan’s leave under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act; however, some information was redacted, including any information on the health of Mogan and/or his family members.

At the time he requested leave, Mogan already had had his license revoked in Wisconsin after the Feb. 15 revocation hearing. The same day the Wisconsin judge revoked his license, Mogan renewed his license in Illinois, Druker said.

Druker said the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office was not immediately notified of the revocation in Wisconsin, which is why Mogan’s license was able to be renewed, and why the suspension didn’t take effect in Illinois until April 8.

On March 31, Lake in the Hills police found out about Mogan's license suspension, according to an email Lake in the Hills Police Chief David Brey sent to Mogan. The Northwest Herald reported on the Wisconsin suspension in February.

“Having a valid driver’s license is an essential job requirement of your position,” Brey wrote. “ … Thus, the failure to have a valid driver’s license means that you are not qualified to perform your job and will not be able to work for the village.”

Brey added in the email that if there was another fact or circumstance that would change the outcome of Mogan being unqualified to work as of April 8, including whether Mogan believed he was qualified for a leave of absence under FMLA, he needed to advise the village promptly. At the time of the email, Mogan already had applied for leave.

Neville sent Mogan an email April 6 that said his FMLA request had been approved by the U.S. Department of Labor. The leave was anticipated to last from April 3 through Monday, according to a document from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Brey told the Northwest Herald in May that whether Mogan would be able to work after his leave would depend on what restrictions were placed on his restricted driving permit, if Mogan was issued one.

“If they’re very limited, it would hamper operations here,” Brey said.

Druker said he did not know when a determination on Mogan’s restricted driving permit would be made.

Village President Russ Ruzanski declined to comment on the matter, and he directed questions to Lake in the Hills police.