Political payback? Deputy’s lawsuit alleges he was demoted for backing candidate

A decorated Lake County sheriff’s deputy is suing his boss and the county’s top lawyer in federal court, alleging he was demoted for backing a candidate they opposed in last year’s election.

Deputy Ari Briskman, a former sergeant, wants a return to his previous rank, as well as back pay and punitive damages from the lawsuit against Sheriff John Idleburg and State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart.

Filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Chicago, the suit alleges Briskman was demoted the day after the Nov. 5 election, because he supported Republican Mary Cole for state’s attorney. Cole was hoping to unseat Rinehart, a fellow Democrat and political ally of the sheriff.

Briskman also lost his special assignments, including as head of the sheriff’s Marine Unit that patrols area waterways, the suit states.

His attorney, Keith L. Hunt, noted that the demotion meant not only a loss of rank, but a loss of substantial income.

“To punish a man’s family simply because he didn’t support your buddy’s candidacy is wrong on every level,” Hunt told us. “It’s petty, it’s vindictive and it’s unconstitutional.”

Idleburg and Rinehart gave us statements in response to the lawsuit.

“The plaintiff, a current employee, has exercised his right to file a lawsuit,” Idleburg said. “We are confident in our actions and will respond through the proper legal channels.”

“While we are unable to comment on this pending litigation, we look forward to fully prevailing in court,” said Rinehart.

Picture this

At the center of the dispute is a photo of Briskman speaking with Cole that was distributed by her campaign. The photo was taken in September 2024, when Briskman visited Cole’s law office in Gurnee to return evidence from a case, according to court documents.

The lawsuit states Briskman agreed to allow the campaign to use the photo if it did not show his face and was altered to remove “Lake County” from his uniform. A copy of the image included in court documents shows Cole speaking with Briskman, whose back is to the camera.

According to Hunt, the sheriff used that photo to justify Briskman’s demotion.

“He said it brought discredit to the sheriff’s office, that (Briskman) used his equipment and uniform for a political purpose without advance permission from the sheriff, and that it gave the impression that the sheriff supported the candidate,” Hunt said. “It’s simply not true.”

Hunt acknowledges that Briskman supported Cole’s campaign — citing her opposition to the SAFE-T Act, which Rinehart endorsed — but did so as a private citizen, which is protected by the First Amendment.

The suit alleges Idleburg and Rinehart worked together to have a citizen bring a complaint about Briskman’s appearance in Cole’s campaign literature, and then discussed the matter together before the demotion.

What’s next? As of Thursday, the case had been assigned to the courtroom of U.S. District Court Judge Martha M. Pacold, but no hearings have been scheduled.

Flashback

If Briskman’s name sounds familiar, you may have seen our profile of him in October 2023. That’s when he received the inaugural Daniel R. Stafiej Memorial Illinois Drug Recognition Expert of the Year Award.

Given by the Schaumburg-based Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists, and named after a Carol Stream police officer who died in February 2023, the award recognizes a law enforcement officer who specializes in detecting when a driver is under the influence of something other than alcohol.

Dash away

Cook County has long lagged behind the Collars when it comes to sharing court and criminal justice data online.

The county started playing catch-up last week with the launch of a new Criminal Justice Dashboard that gives the public information about arrests, criminal case filings, jail bookings and releases, pretrial release decisions and sentences.

“My office has long understood the importance of transparency and interagency collaboration to inform the public about the justice system,” Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans said after the dashboard went live June 24. “The Cook County Criminal Justice Dashboard is a continuation of this commitment.”

Among the dashboard’s features, it allows users to filter data by year, type of offense and demographic factors. It will be updated quarterly and includes data from the offices of the chief judge, state’s attorney, sheriff, clerk of the circuit court and public defender.

The project was funded by the MacArthur Foundation’s Safety and Justice Challenge and developed in conjunction with Loyola University of Chicago's Center for Criminal Justice Research.

To view the dashboard, visit https://cook-dashboard.loyolaccj.org.

Jet-setters

There likely haven’t been many summer afternoons on the Chain O’ Lakes when the Lake County Sheriff’s Marine Unit is working aboard one of the fastest crafts on the water.

Until now.

The sheriff’s office is teaming with Nielsen Enterprises and Kawasaki to add two Jet Skis to its fleet. That means deputies starting this week are patrolling with high-speed vessels that will allow them to respond to emergencies faster and reach areas inaccessible by their boats.

The two personal watercraft are coming to the sheriff’s office at no cost through the partnership with Kawasaki and Nielsen, a Lake Villa-based dealer of marine and powersports equipment.

Besides the Chain O’ Lakes, they’ll be deployed on inland lakes and waterways, as well as on Lake Michigan, officials said.

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