Elk Grove Village suspends police officer over March pursuit

Elk Grove Village’s Board of Fire and Police Commissioners voted Thursday to suspend a police officer for up to 30 days without pay, pending a hearing next month, for his actions during a March 12 pursuit.

Officer Daniel Johnson has been on paid administrative leave since March 22, as police officials investigated the matter. The allegations were filed before the commission on May 16 by police Chief David Dorn, who was sworn in as the village’s top cop April 1.

Details about the chase and Johnson’s actions were not discussed publicly Thursday, and village officials declined to elaborate after the commission adjourned.

Village attorney Yvette Heintzelman described the allegations as “serious charges.”

“He violated numerous department policies, of which he had previously violated in 2019,” she said. “When he was asked about it, he was less than forthcoming with respect to what he told the village.”

Johnson representative Keith Karlson, an attorney for the Metropolitan Alliance of Police, called the matter “a very defensible case” based on the video and audio evidence.

“We believe it’s unfair to take away a person’s pay and start fining them before you have heard a single fact that’s been proven,” Karlson added of the commission’s decision to suspend Johnson before a hearing. “Suspending him without pay pending the outcome of this hearing is unjust.”

In addition to ruling on the suspension, the commission ordered that the village turn over to Johnson’s attorneys 10 years of disciplinary history of Elk Grove Village police officers.

“I don’t know that that is something that we want to be publicized,” Heintzelman said, suggesting that names in the documents be replaced with some type of coding.

“That’s something I’m willing to discuss, but I’m not required,” Karlson said, adding that the documents are subject to public records laws.

“I want the documents as soon as possible, so we’re ready to roll on June 11,” he added.