JPD Sgt Slapped Detective's Buttocks At Party: Complaint

JOLIET, IL — At a December holiday party involving alcohol attended by several off-duty members of the Joliet Police Department's investigations unit, Joliet Police Sgt. Chris Schott slapped a subordinate detective on his buttocks, and Schott tried to kiss the man against his wishes, documents obtained by Joliet Patch from a Freedom of Information Act request show.

The Dec. 6 incident happened during the tenure of Joliet Police Chief Al Roechner, but Roechner chose not to discipline Schott for his conduct at that time. Instead, the decision to impose discipline came from Joliet's new chief of police, Dawn Malec.

On March 11, she gave Schott a 10-day unpaid suspension for his behavior at the off-duty Joliet police party, which was held at someone's house and coincided with the Chicago Bears game against the Detroit Lions, a game the Bears lost by a score of 34-30.

One source told Patch that the daytime party during the Chicago Bears game had between a dozen and 30 people coming and going throughout the event. As a result of Schott's conduct at the party, one of his relatives came and gave him a ride home, Patch learned.

"I believe there was double-digit people there for sure," a source said.

Patch visited the Joliet police station Thursday seeking comment from Schott regarding his punishment from the new chief, but he did not return calls seeking comment for this article.

Patch also tried to interview Schott in April when the city's fire and police board voted to reject his promotion from sergeant to lieutenant, but Schott did not return calls to Patch for that article either.

Within days of the December police party, the male detective who felt mistreated and upset with Schott filed a formal complaint against the sergeant at the Joliet Police Department.

Back in 2018, Roechner promoted Schott from a police officer to a sergeant's rank. Roechner gave Schott a supervisory role within the homicide unit, which is where Roechner previously worked as deputy chief of criminal investigations under former chief Brian Benton.

By mid-January, Roechner agreed to retire from Joliet after about 29-and-a-half years on the police department rather than risk being fired by new city manager Jim Capparelli. Roechner had desired to stay on the job until at least July, which is when he would have marked his 30-year employment anniversary and reached his maximum Joliet police pension benefit.

In March, Joliet's new police chief informed Schott that his conduct at the off-duty holiday party was unbecoming of a Joliet police officer.

As part of Schott's punishment, Malec booted him out of the detective division, which means he will no longer be involved in solving homicides and investigating major felony crimes in the city. In the alternative, Malec reassigned Sgt. Schott to the traffic patrol unit.

He also agreed to attend a training class as part of his punishment.

However, Schott does not believe that his Dec. 6 off-duty behavior at the holiday party that drew him a 10-day work suspension should stop him from getting a major promotion and raise in pay within the Joliet Police Department.

City officials told Patch that Schott may take the city to court in hopes that an arbitrator would rule in his favor and make him a Joliet police sergeant after the city's police and fire board rejected his promotion.

Theoretically, a promotion for Schott to the rank of lieutenant would greatly enhance his Joliet police pension, which is paid by the taxpayers, by several thousand dollars annually for the rest of his life.

Fire and Police Board President Todd Wooten told Patch that to the best of his knowledge Schott has not served the entire 10-day suspension nor has he completed the necessary training that was required of him as a result of his punishment stemming from the Dec. 6 party.

The internal affairs memo signed by Chief Malec notified Schott that he made "harassing, degrading and inappropriate comments" to a fellow member of the Joliet police force, in addition to slapping the subordinate's buttocks and trying to kiss the man.

Sources with knowledge of the incident told Patch that Schott maintained that his behavior amounted to horseplay and work place camaraderie.

On the other hand, the subordinate detective had a different take on the incident.

The detective considered Schott's conduct as unwanted advances toward him, and that's why he filed the internal affairs complaint at the Joliet Police Department, seeking an investigation into Schott's behavior within days of the incident.

To read Joliet Patch's April 25 article about Schott, go here.