Island Lake hopefuls critical of how chief was disciplined, demoted

Nearly all of the candidates for Island Lake's village board said they disapproved of how Mayor Debbie Herrmann disciplined, investigated and demoted a former police chief last year.

None of the board hopefuls supported how Herrmann took action against interim Chief Anthony Sciarrone without first discussing the matter with the board. One candidate, Mary Piekarski, wouldn't commit to an opinion on the matter.

Sciarrone's removal from the chief's office further polarized an already divided village board. He has since retired.

Three seats will be on April 5 ballots. All six candidates are first-time hopefuls, and they've formed two opposing slates.

Piekarski, Charles Cermak and Allen Murvine are running together as one slate. Joe Ptak, Shannon Fox and Thea Morris are running as the other slate.

The candidates were asked about Sciarrone's demotion and other topics during discussions at the Daily Herald's Lake County office and in follow-up interviews.

Herrmann placed Sciarrone on paid administrative leave in February 2010 without consulting the board. She also unilaterally ordered the village's lawyers to investigate Sciarrone.

She informed the board of the actions in an e-mail but did not explain her motives.

Despite demands from trustees, Herrmann gave no explanations until the following month when she asked the board to demote Sciarrone to sergeant, his previous rank, and to promote part-time officer William McCorkle to chief.

In a statement she read at that meeting, Herrmann said the investigation showed Sciarrone was a poor administrator and failed to properly supervise employees. She cited other reasons for the demotion.

The board approved both personnel moves.

Cermak said he believed Herrmann should have brought whatever concerns she had about Sciarrone to the board and explained them to the other officials.

But Cermak also said he could “see a reason not to, because of the way the board is split so much.”

Fox said Herrmann should have discussed her concerns with the board in closed session, which is allowable under the law for personnel matters, and “asked for guidance or at least patience from the board while she explored the situation.”

Not consulting with the board before ordering the village's lawyers to investigate Sciarrone at taxpayer expense “took away the checks and balances that the board provides,” Fox said.

Morris criticized Herrmann's actions for “a complete lack of transparency, a lack of information availability and the appearance of the lack of due process.”

“If the residents, board members and employees themselves aren't given ... information, how can we be expected to support such a decision?” Morris said.

Murvine said he didn't know what led up to Sciarrone's removal, and he said he “(has) to believe there was a reason for it.”

Regardless, communication between Herrmann and the board about the issue could have been better, Murvine said. The board should have been involved in the decision, he said.

“I think they were owed it,” he said. “Just as a courtesy to the leadership team, it should have been communicated.”

Ptak, one of Herrmann's loudest critics, called her actions against Sciarrone “managerial lunacy.”

New mayors routinely change police chiefs, he said. If she didn't want him as chief, Sciarrone could have been asked to voluntarily return to his prior rank of sergeant or go elsewhere, Ptak said.

Instead, Herrmann launched an investigation that cost the village thousands of dollars, he said.

“If there was a wrong way to do something, the mayor found it,” Ptak said.

Piekarski initially said she had no opinion about the issue but later said she, too, felt Herrmann should have brought her concerns to the board before taking action herself.

But then she changed her stance again and said she was “not going to assume a position on it.”