Elgin police union lawyer says not even 20% supported chief in vote of no confidence

A lawyer for the union representing 150 sworn Elgin police officers provided some context Wednesday on the union's "no confidence" vote in Chief Ana Lalley last week, saying not even 20% of the officers who voted expressed support for her leadership.

David Amerson, staff attorney for the Police Benevolent & Protective Association, told the city council during public comment that only 25 of the 130 members who voted said they have confidence in Lalley and her command staff during the Nov. 7 vote. 20 officers abstained.

The union released a formal letter of no confidence Monday, saying Lalley's command strategy has created an unsafe work environment.

Lalley's command staff is composed of Deputy Chief Adam Schuessler, Cmdr. Kevin Senne, Cmdr. David Lesko and Cmdr. Steven Bianchi.

Amerson said he put out a survey for Elgin officers a few months ago to get a sense of any issues they were having. He said the problems they generally encounter with other departments they represent involve issues like wages, working hours and vacation days.

"Here in Elgin, a pattern emerged of something else," Amerson said. "A wide majority of members are responding with issues that seem to stem directly from command strategy and decisions."

That initial survey spawned another, more focused survey, he said, and then the no confidence vote.

Eighty-six percent of the members who answered said command strategy has had a negative impact on morale in the past three years, and 83% said discipline is not handled fairly. Seventy-two percent said they didn't feel supported by command. When asked if command strategy makes them feel more safe on the job, 78% disagreed.

Amerson added that 66% said they didn't feel safe bringing concerns to command, which he said provides context for the 20 abstentions, adding that several members told the union they feared participating in the vote would lead to retaliation.

"The Elgin Police Benevolent Protective Association Unit No. 54 sincerely hopes that the Elgin City Council, the city manager, the chief and her command staff will take these results and the concerns of the membership seriously, and respond in kind to work with the membership," Amerson said.

Lalley joined the Elgin Police Department in 1996 as a patrol officer and was appointed chief in 2018. She was not immediately available to comment Wednesday night.

City Manager Rick Kozal disputed the union's allegations in a statement Monday, saying he supports Lalley and her staff and that the vote arrives during the onset of labor contract negotiations with the union and in the wake of disciplinary action that saw an officer fired against the wishes of the union.

He reiterated those feelings via text to the Daily Herald Wednesday night.

"Mr. Armeson's appearance at the city council this evening is nothing more than a negotiations ploy designed to pressure the city into capitulating to the union's demands during the ongoing collective bargaining sessions," Kozal said. "Mr. Amerson's comments this evening did nothing more than recite the groundless allegations made in PB&PA Unit 54's letter from Monday."