Release of Complaint Registry Under FOIA Renders Appeal Moot
In Fraternal
Order of Police v. City of Chicago and Chicago Tribune, the Chicago
Police Department (CPD), notified the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) that, in
respond to FOIA request by the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun Times, it
intended to release lists of complaint registry (known as CR) files against all CPD officers
since January 1, 1967. The FOP then filed a motion for preliminary injunction
and a complaint asking a court to enjoin the release of the registry files on the basis that release of the records would violate Section 8 of the Illinois
Personnel Records Review Act, which prohibits release of personnel records or
disciplinary action over 4 years old. The FOP also argued that release
would violate the collective bargaining agreement, the Illinois Public Labor
Relations Act, and Section 6 of the Personnel Records Review Act.
The trial court ruled in the FOPs favor, barring the release of the registry files. That ruling was appealed by defendants. The Appellate Court vacated the trial court orders
barring release of the CR records, finding that Section 8 of the Personnel
Records Review Act did not categorically exempt CR files from disclosure
under FOIA because they did not relate to disciplinary or personnel
files. The Court also found that the collective bargaining
agreement’s provisions regarding destruction of files was against public policy
and unenforceable. After the Court’s decision, CPD released the CR files pursuant to the original FOIA requests.
The proceedings continued as the trial court addressed the
amended complaint, ultimately dismissing the amended complaint because the Appellate
Court previously found that no FOIA exemptions applied to the registry
files. On appeal to the Appellate Court, the case was dismissed as moot,
as the documents had already been released under FOIA.
Post Authored by Erin Pell, Ancel Glink
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