Attorney Hired for Independent Review of Clarendon Hills Police Department

The has hired an outside attorney to review the ’s handling of a recent incident that resulted in the arrest of a former officer as well as the department’s internal policies, according to Village Manager Randy Recklaus.

The village has hired municipal attorney Chuck Hervas, of the Itasca firm Hervas, Condon & Bersani, P.C., to perform the review. According to the village, Hervas specializes in police department matters.

Former Clarendon Hills police officer Daniel Ryan for taking five guns from the department’s evidence room. Among the 11 charges against Ryan, two are felony counts of aggravated possession of a stolen firearm, which are Class 1 felonies that carry a penalty of up to 15 years in prison, according to state's attorney spokesman Paul Darrah.

Ryan, 48, resigned from the department in April after serving on the force for nearly 20 years. None of the weapons stolen were used in crimes. 

According to Recklaus, the review is not meant to critique the investigation that led to Ryan's arrest, which was performed by the department with assistance from the state's attorney's office and the FBI. The review is instead meant to see if there are ways such an incident could have been prevented in the first place.

"Any time something of this magnitude comes, we feel it is an opportunity to re-look at what our policies and procedures are as they relate to such things," Recklaus said. "It's more about making sure the policies and procedures we have are adequate to protect us from these types of things in the future."

Village President Tom Karaba echoed Recklaus in a village release Tuesday, saying the village has faith in the results of the investigation, which stated the theft was a poor decision of a single individual.  

“We aren’t second-guessing that, and have faith in the integrity of our police officers,” Karaba said. “However, we owe it to the public to make sure that we are doing what it takes to be 100 percent certain our internal policies and procedures are adequate.”

Recklaus said the review is underway and will last "a couple weeks." The village manager said the review is being done with the full cooperation of the police department.

Clarendon Hills Deputy Police Chief Ted Jenkins said in an email that it's important to remember the review is not an investigation.

"The reviewing attorney ... is a highly regarded specialist in Police Department issues and I look forward to his evaluation and guidance," Jenkins' email read. "The Clarendon Hills Police Department has always provided residents with an exceptional level of service.  If, through his guidance, we increase the proficiency through which we provide those services, it is a win win for everyone."

The announcement of the review comes as the village searches for a new chief of police. Clarendon Hills Police Chief Pat Anderson . He had held the position since 2003.

Jenkins is heading the department in the interim.