Mokena Village Board Violated Open Meetings Act: State AG Office

MOKENA, IL — The office of Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has determined that the Mokena Village Board violated the Open Meetings Act when it denied resident Mark Cerkvenik the opportunity to address the board at a March meeting, according to documents obtained by Patch.

In a letter dated Monday and directed to Cerkvenik and others — including Mokena Village President Frank Fleischer — Assistant Attorney General Theresa Lim wrote that her office had determined that the village board “improperly restricted” Cerkvenik’s ability to address members of the board, which violates Section 2.06 (g) of the Open Meetings Act.

After Patch reached out to Mokena Village officials for a response to the Public Access Counselor's determination, Village Administrator John Tomososki responded with the following statement:

"The PAC recognized that electioneering is improper at a public meeting and that the Village’s rules for public comment are correct. The Village acknowledges the determination of the PAC clarifying acts that constitute improper electioneering not defined by law and finding that the Village properly considered the public comments at a subsequent board meeting. The Village has to consider these types of issues in real time and make judgement calls often without the benefit of clear guidelines or the intentions of the participants. The Village has and will continue to promote open and productive dialog and debate on Village issues, which should be done in a professional and respectful manner. As always, residents with concerns are encouraged to contact Village Hall directly."

The conclusion of the matter comes three months after a request for review was submitted to the Attorney General’s Public Access Board alleging that the board had violated the Open Meetings Act. At issue was comments made during the public comment portion of a Village Board meeting in which Cerkvenik attempted to address the board about his concerns over a flyer that was sent to local residents.

When Cerkvenik attempted to express his opinion about the political mailer, he was told by Village Attorney Stephen White that the March 22 meeting was “not the forum for politics," Patch previously reported.

When he continued to speak, Cerkvenik was asked to leave. He later told Patch that he was concerned that the flyer sent by The Friends Of Mokena, which included Fleischer, Trustee George Metanias and City Clerk Melissa Martini. The flyer, some residents maintained, contained a “phrenology graphic, a pseudoscience with deep roots in racism to ‘educate’ voters on their platform," according to the letter sent this week by the Attorney General’s office.

In its response to the Attorney General’s office, village officials said they acted within the established and recorded rules for public comment. The village maintained that Cerkvenik and one other member of the public had spoken out about the flyers at the meeting, but that Cerkvenik’s comments amounted to electioneering because the mailer was campaign flyer concerning candidates for an upcoming election.

In his response, Cerkvenik said that he was instead was raising concerns about issues of phrenology and racism and how those issues relate to the village, rather than addressing the upcoming election.

“Words matter and at the very least exacerbate an environment of disrespect and hate, and can perpetuate racism, misogyny, especially from candidates,” Cerkvenik said, according to the letter.

However, in its response this week, the Attorney General’s office determined that while a village rule prohibiting electioneering is reasonable, it determined that Cerkvenik’s comments did not rise to that level and did not include him campaigning for or against any particular candidates. The Attorney General’s office determined that although Cerkvenik’s comments “appealed for a response from Friends of Mokena”, the remarks also advocated for the group’s members to take action to oppose racism in their capacity as elected officials.

After reviewing submitted from both sides, the Attorney General’s office determined that the board did not demonstrate that it acted in accordance with its established rules for public comments.

But because Cerkvenik was eventually able to finish his comments to the board after attempting to get through his remarks over the course of three meetings, no additional remedial action will be taken against the village, the letter stated. The state said that it considered the matter closed after issuing the letter.

While the village will not face any punishment, the letter also included an admonishment for the village to offer more latitude to public commenters in the future concerning “a public official and the performance of his or her public duties.”