There are still unanswered questions regarding the situation between the South Jacksonville Board of Trustees and recently-reinstated Police Chief Josh Hallock.
Hallock was reinstated with full back pay late last week following a month in which he was placed on administrative leave.
During the time Hallock was on administrative leave, WLDS-WEAI News, along with several other news outlets, received a confidential memorandum from an anonymous source. The contents of the memorandum dealt with an investigation into the circumstances leading to Hallock being placed on administrative leave.
Now that Hallock has been reinstated with full back pay, questions regarding the leaked memo still remain. Attorney Tyson Manker, who represented Hallock in the matter, is among those seeking answers.
“To clarify, I represented Chief Hallock in the matter and it is now closed as far as why he was placed on administrative leave, that matter is closed. What I want the board to take action on now is to look into the criminal behavior that someone took after this bogus investigation was launched,” says Manker.
Manker did not want to go into much detail regarding the memo, saying he wants to allow the process to play itself out. Manker says that he, as legal counsel, was denied access to the memo despite it being leaked.
“Can I tell you why I was denied, as counsel, this critical information that was leaked to the media? No, I cannot. And I can tell you that I still have not been provided a copy of this so-called memo that is in the hands of so many media outlets. I find that very troubling,” says Manker.
In response, Manker has sent a formal request to the South Jacksonville Board of Trustees, asking them to authorize an investigation into what he views as violations of the Illinois Criminal Code.
“I can tell you that the Board of Trustees is well aware of the conduct that led to my request, and I believe that, knowing that conduct took place, they have a duty, an obligation, to spend as much time looking into this alleged criminal behavior as they just spent a month investigating violations of the Village personnel manual,” Manker says.
While several committee meetings are scheduled for Thursday evening at South Jacksonville Village Hall, the agenda contains no items regarding the leaked memo or Manker’s request.