Ex- deputy suing sheriff's office for fitness firing

Veteran McHenry County Sheriff's Deputy Robert Schlenkert didn't shape up, according to court documents, so Sheriff Keith Nygren shipped him out.

But now Schlenkert, after failing four physical fitness tests last year, is suing Nygren and the citizen panel that approved his termination, claiming their decision to cut him loose was illegal.

The suit, filed last week in McHenry County Circuit Court, asks a judge to reinstate Schlenkert and order the sheriff's department to give him back pay since his firing last month.

"(The decision) was erroneous, incomplete, arbitrary, unfair, contrary to the law, contrary to the facts and against the manifest weight of the evidence," Schlenkert attorney Gary Bailey writes in the lawsuit.

The suit stems from the McHenry County Sheriff's Merit Commission's Dec. 27 decision to fire Schlenkert, a deputy since 1990, because they believed he could not meet minimum physical standard to perform the job.

Nygren began proceedings against Schlenkert in July, a little over two months after he was cleared to return to work after more than two years off the job on leave for an undisclosed medical condition.

Before returning to work full time, Nygren ordered Schlenkert to undergo a basic law enforcement training class as part of his re-orientation to the force.

In order to successfully complete the class, Schlenkert had to pass the Police Officer Wellness Evaluation Report, or POWER, a test that requires officers to meet minimum standards in physical fitness activities like the bench press, sit ups and a 1.5-mile run.

Court documents state Schlenkert failed his first two attempts at the test on May 14 and again May 17, then failed twice more in June. In between, documents state, the sheriff's office offered Schlenkert use of a personal trainer and its fitness facilities, but he declined.

In its December ruling supporting Nygren, the merit commission said the sheriff was well within his authority to require that Schlenkert undergo the basic training class and pass its physical fitness requirements.

"Sheriff Nygren twice legally ordered Deputy Schlenkert to successfully complete the (class)," the decision states. "Deputy Schlenkert twice failed to comply with Sheriff Nygren's orders."

The case is scheduled to appear in court for the first time June 4 in front of McHenry County Judge Maureen McIntyre.

Cash for college: Speaking of the sheriff, Nygren announced this month that he will be awarding a $500 college scholarship this year for a full-time student attending an institution in the state.

Applicants must be McHenry County residents, though since the award is part of a $52,500 scholarship program sponsored through the Illinois Sheriff's Association, chances are if you live out-of-county your local sheriff's department is probably handing out at least one scholarship of its own.

Applications, which include an essay question, can be obtained at the McHenry County Sheriff's office in Woodstock or on-line at www.ilsheriff.org. They are due back to the sheriff's office no later than March 15.