Shanahan sues Joliet, links firing to clashes with police administration

Former City Attorney Marty Shanahan filed a lawsuit against Joliet on Wednesday, two days after the City Council rejected a proposed payout that officials said was aimed at averting litigation.

Shanahan was fired as city attorney in May, although he has been receiving unemployment compensation since then.

The lawsuit, which also names former interim City Manager Steve Jones as a defendant, alleges "wrongful and retaliatory termination," connecting his firing to a series of actions and recommendations concerning the police department.

Jones fired Shanahan.

Jones also followed Shanahan as interim city manager after Shanahan was removed from the position in 2019 in a controversial move that established a political division on the council that played out again Monday in a split vote to reject the payout.

Shanahan in the 18-page complaint links both his removal as interim city manager and firing as city attorney to clashes with police administration and Chief Al Roechner.

His removal as interim city manager came a week after a decision to demote Deputy Police Chief John Perona, the complaint states.

Shanahan received five separate emails from City Council members on June 12, 2019, a day after telling Perona that he would be demoted, to put his removal from the interim city manager job on the next council meeting agenda, the complaint states.

"Roechner was furious with Shanahan over his decision to demote Perona, one of his key deputies and allies in the Police Department," the complaint states.

The demotion was part of an effort "to make changes in the Police Department's administration in order to address the excessive banking of vacation and compensatory time and failure to adhere to the collective bargaining agreement as well as other issues," the complaint states.

Shanahan returned to his regular duties as city attorney after being removed from the interim city manager job.

The complaint states that Shanahan was fired after a public discussion at a May 19 City Council meeting about a police union complaint that disciplinary hearings were being delayed.

Shanahan commented at the meeting that it was Roechner's responsibility to initiate the hearing process and "that he had made this requirement known to both Jones and Roechner," according to the complaint.

After the meeting, "Jones advised Shanahan that he was discharging him of his duties," the complaint states.

Jones prepared a memorandum dated May 19 outlining reasons for the termination, but, "None of the alleged incidents mentioned in memorandum as reasons for terminating Shanahan were ever documented by Joliet and included in his personnel file," the complaint states.

In the memorandum, included in the lawsuit as an exhibit, Jones lists a series of issues from August 2019 to February 2020, including a meeting with Shanahan and the city human resources director that Jones writes was scheduled "after observing a lack of improvement."

The memo also states members of the city "management team have routinely expressed concerns with his lack of responsiveness to inquiries, unwillingness to provide concise opinions, unwillingness to put things in writing, tendency to play politics, and trust issues."

Jones added that it "was not uncommon" for staff to go to Shanahan's subordinates on the legal staff "to avoid dealing with Marty."

At this week’s council meeting, Mayor Bob O’Dekirk criticized council members who rejected the proposed payout, saying a lawsuit by Shanahan would cost the city more money than the payout.

The lawsuit seeks damages in excess of $50,000, punitive damages, and attorney's fees and costs,

The payout would have provided Shanahan with nearly $120,000, a figure set to provide his annual salary minus unemployment payments he has received. Shanahan also would have received six months of health insurance from Joliet.

The payout agreement also included provisions setting a fee for Shanahan to do legal work with the city and included language aimed at averting litigation over his dismissal.

Jones left as interim city manager in August and was replaced by current interim City Manager Jim Hock, who recommended approval of the payout.

The council voted 4-3 against the proposal.

Voting against it were Don Dickinson, Bettye Gavin, Pat Mudron and Sherri Reardon, all council members who voted to remove Shanahan from the interim city manager job. Michael Turk, who also voted to remove Shanahan, was not at the meeting. They also were the council members who sent Shanahan the emails to put his removal on the meeting agenda.

Voting for the payout were Larry Hug, Terry Morris and Jan Quillman, who all voted to keep Shanahan as interim city manager. They, along with O'Dekirk, also wanted to make Shanahan the permanent city manager, while the other council members insisted the city seek candidates for the job.

Joliet still does not have a permanent city manager and is attempting to hire someone by the end of the year.

Shanahan also has taken out petitions to run for City Council.