Councilman's suit says arrest was retaliation
A Naperville city councilman acquitted of striking a police officer claims in a federal civil rights lawsuit that the battery charge against him was trumped up by the police department as a vendetta for his years of questioning department spending.
"There is a very long history of antagonism because he has objected to what the police are doing," said Shawn Collins, an attorney representing Councilman Richard Furstenau. "He is the No. 1 nemesis of the Naperville Police Department."
Furstenau's lawyers filed the lawsuit Wednesday in Chicago naming the city, Police Chief David Dial, Det. Michael Cross and officer Mike Hull as defendants.
The lawsuit states from the opening salvo that "Furstenau had infuriated the police" over the years by questioning overtime pay practices, objecting to use of Tasers and trying to ban retired officers from collecting pensions and working full-time elsewhere.
"By January of 2006, Furstenau presented an even greater threat to the police, as he had just announced his candidacy for the Illinois State Senate where, if elected, Furstenau promised to push for police 'pension reform,'" the lawsuit reads.
City Attorney Margo Ely said the police department was "absolutely not" targeting Furstenau.
"Councilman Furstenau has a record of quite honestly being indiscriminant in his reputation of being fiscally conservative," she said.
Ely added she is confident the city will be vindicated and will fight the allegations.
Furstenau's lawsuit stems from an incident that occurred Jan. 1, 2006, before the start of a parade celebrating the city's 175th anniversary.
Furstenau was accused of striking Hull during a confrontation near the intersection Chicago Avenue and Washington Street over the towing of vehicles in anticipation of the parade. Furstenau wasn't charged with any crime until more than two weeks after the incident.
The contact was described by police at the time as a back-handed shove. Furstenau has maintained he never touched Hull.
During a stipulated bench trial in May 2007, the only witness who reported actually seeing Furstenau strike Hull was the officer himself. Another officer claimed to have heard the contact, but no witnesses present during the confrontation reported actually seeing contact.
The lawsuit doesn't specify any monetary requests for damages, but Furstenau had sent a letter to the city in August seeking an apology and a settlement of nearly $130,000.
Furstenau believes the battery charge derailed his Senate campaign and he wants to repay donors if he receives any monetary judgment from the lawsuit.
He added that he will not let the lawsuit interfere with his decision-making on the council.
"My hope is this is settled amicably and quickly, but whatever the duration, I'm not going to back away," he said. "Since it hasn't been a problem before, I don't think it will be a problem now."