Willow Springs urges repeal of SAFE-T Act

From staff reports

The Willow Springs Village Board last week unanimously supported a resolution asking the Illinois General Assembly to repeal or revise the controversial SAFE-T Act.

The resolution will be forwarded to General Assembly leaders of both parties and those that represent the village. Officials had previously passed a similar resolution at their its January 28 board meeting.

The village has designated October as Police Appreciation Month and the adoption of the resolution was meant to reinforce the village’s support for law enforcement.

According to Mayor Melissa N. Neddermeyer, some of the major issues with the SAFE-T Act are the late-night approval of the act with limited review by the public or even rank-and-file legislators; issues related to the elimination of cash bonds; and the unfunded mandated training requirements on local law enforcement.

In other business, Neddermeyer and Police Chief Garry McCarthy reported that the police department is up to 11 full-time police officers and 10 part-time/on-call police officers. Neddermeyer said the village had been hiring police officers at the rate of two to three per year. She said the Village had only three full-time officers as recently as 2017.

McCarthy, the former Chicago Police Superintendent, replaced former Chief Jim Ritz over the summer after he resigned, Neddermeyer said.

McCarthy was initially named interim chief and was later appointed to the full-time position. McCarthy is paid $110,000 annually with an industry-standard benefits package.

Neddermeyer and McCarthy both laughed at a question when asked if McCarthy had a driver or personal security detail. Both answered “unequivocally no!”

Additional village business included the purchase of land to help with flood control, approval of normal bills and payroll, and making the public aware of Halloween events at Lyons Park Monday night.