Should Woodstock police officers worry?

Being a police officer is sometimes a hazardous, dangerous job. You never know what is going to happen when you respond to a domestic disturbance. You never know what is going to happen when you pull a car over for a traffic violation, even one so minor as a taillight out.

As an officer, you always have to be on your toes.

But should you have to worry about how your own department is going to screw you over, if you get injured while on-duty?

Every member of the department must be aware of the ordeal that former Woodstock Police Department Sgt. Steven Gorski is facing. Every member must be worrying, at least to some degree, that, if he (or she) gets injured on duty, just how hard is he going to have to fight for the benefits to which he is lawfully entitled?

The following information comes from public court records on file at the McHenry County Circuit Court. Anyone can read them. Today I read them. Every police officer with the Woodstock Police Department should go to the courthouse (better go off-duty and out of uniform, if you know what I mean) and look up Case No. 11MR000372.

Go to Room 353. The public viewing computers are there. The clerks will assist you in using the correct program so that you can find and read the Complaint that was filed on November 22, 2011.

Why has former Sgt. Gorski filed this legal action? Because the Woodstock Police Pension Fund made a huge error in its decision. Although Sgt. Gorski was on-duty on September 12, 2005, in uniform, in a squad car, and had responded to the scene of a fatal automobile accident, the Board of Trustees of the Pension Fund decided to award him benefits for an off-duty claim.

So, officers of the Woodstock P.D., is this what you have to look forward to? If you get hurt on duty and would be entitled to 65% of your pay and not have to pay Federal or Illinois income taxes on it, do you have to worry about be awarded just 50% of your pay and then having to pay taxes on that?

Three police offices sit on the Board, plus two civilians appointed by the City of Woodstock. Police Chief Robert Lowen was sitting in the hearing, when the Board announced its unanimous decision.

What's this whole mess really costing the Pension Fund? Recently, Mark Gummerson's law firm joined the action, representing the Pension Fund, the Board of Trustees, the iindividual members of the Board, and the police chief. What's that going to cost the Pension Fund?

And the Crystal Lake law firm of Campion, Curran, Dunlop, Lamb and Cunabaugh, P.C. has lined up with Attorney Tom Duda on Gorski's team.

Since Gorski has asked for attorneys' fees to be paid, and for sure the Pension Fund will pay the fees charged by Gummerson, Rausch et al., the legal fees will probably come close to equaling the final award to Gorski.

Is the City of Woodstock a party to this legal action? It's not named as a Defendant in the Complaint that was filed November 22, but online Court records for the case do list "City of Woodstock" as a Defendant.

The Complaint for Administrative Review lists the bases for the complaint, including factual errors by the Board of the Pension Fund and wrong legal standard of causation.

Gorski was injured on September 12, 2005, and he applied for disability on September 28, 2007. That's more than four years ago. Does anyone else think that's too long to wait?