Politics

Chicago’s Watchdog Says City Lawyers Withheld Records About ‘High-Profile’ Hires

Chicago’s Department of Law refused to provide records about the hiring of “high-profile” city employees to the city’s watchdog in violation of city law and a federal court order, Inspector General Deborah Witzburg revealed in a report released Wednesday.

Witzburg, who is set to leave office next month after serving just one term in office, said her office obtained the records by submitting an “anonymous” Freedom of Information Act request for the records at the center of the dispute.

It was “improper” for the department led by Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson-Lowry to refuse to provide those records to the Office of the Inspector General, Witzburg said in a statement.

“(The Department of Law) eventually acknowledged that the very records it withheld from (the Office of the Inspector General) could not properly be exempted even from public release when it produced them in response to an anonymous FOIA request covertly submitted by OIG. This fact is difficult to reconcile with a good faith rationale for refusing to provide them to OIG,” Witzburg said in her statement.

The inspector general’s advisory opinion does not identify the employees whose hiring records the office sought, in keeping with city law.

Kristen Cabanban, a spokesperson for the Department of Law, said in a statement to WTTW News that “high-profile” hiring records were not purposefully withheld from the inspector general.

“The issue identified in this advisory involves an internal administrative process, which has since been addressed through additional training for the employees responsible for reviewing and responding to production requests, along with strengthening supervisory oversight,” Cabanban said. “The title of the position at issue had no bearing on the matter.”

Richardson-Lowry acknowledged in a letter to Witzburg, published alongside the inspector general’s advisory opinion, that the inspector general has the authority to monitor city hiring.

The Department of Law “did not intentionally fail to comply with” city law, Richardson-Lowry wrote.

But “we recognize that there were inconsistencies in production, which provide an opportunity for (the Department of Law) to review internal processes and procedures. That review has occurred,” Richardson-Lowry wrote.

That review prompted department leaders to take “steps to address any gaps between the coordination of file production for responses to the (Office of the Inspector General) and Freedom of Information Act requests by providing additional training on policy and procedures for administrative employees involved in these tasks,” Richardson-Lowry wrote.

Similar requests now must be reviewed by a supervisor, Richardson-Lowry wrote.

Cristina Pacione-Zayas, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s chief of staff, told Witzburg in an email published by the inspector general along with the report that she had asked Richardson-Lowry to ensure that the department’s “approach remains consistent with all applicable legal obligations.”

Witzburg has now raised questions several times about whether the leadership of the Department of Law has attempted to shield high-ranking officials from public scrutiny.

The City Council voted 49-1 in July to amend Chicago’s ethics law after Witzburg said Richardson-Lowry had intervened in ongoing probes that risk “embarrassment or political consequences.”

Richardson-Lowry denied that accusation, but backed the compromise measure approved by the City Council that expands the ability of the inspector general to get documents from the Department of Law.

Witzburg announced she would not ask Johnson to reappoint her to serve a second term a week after that vote.

Appointed by Johnson, Richardson-Lowry was unanimously confirmed by the Chicago City Council.

In October, Johnson refused to fire Jason Lee, one of his closest aides, at Witzburg’s request after she found Lee failed to cooperate with a probe into whether he threatened to withhold city resources unless a member of the City Council supported an initiative backed by the mayor.

In November, Witzburg said members of Johnson’s administration twice blocked her investigators from searching for gifts he accepted on behalf of the city without reporting them, as mandated by the city’s ethics ordinance.

WTTW News filed a lawsuit in the Cook County Circuit Court to obtain all communication related to gifts accepted on behalf of the city from Jan. 1, 2020, to the present.

Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]

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