An act of duty
For months, a fired-up crowd of activists packed monthly Chicago Police Board meetings, demanding that Servin be fired. The protest grew so raucous one night that the board cut short its meeting.
Finally, in May, a hearing officer for the Chicago Police Board set aside five days for testimony to determine if Servin should be fired, but just two days before, the 24-year department veteran resigned.
According to Pleines, Servin's lawyer, the officer had notified the department in March 2013 — a year after the shooting — that he was going on paid sick leave and seeking counseling.
Ever since, Servin has been under the care of a psychologist who diagnosed him with post-traumatic stress disorder, Pleines said in a legal memo to the pension board last month. He has also been treated by a psychiatrist, he said.
Both doctors found that Servin could not return to work "as a result of the various manifestations of the PTSD," Pleines said. The memo provided no details, though.
In applying for disability pay in April, Servin submitted a brief handwritten statement in which he said he opened fire that night in self-defense.
Kugler, the pension board's attorney, said the board is reviewing whether Servin has legal standing to make his claim of disability if he hadn't used up his sick days before he quit.
"The initial question is should we be hearing the case or not," Kugler said. "There has been no decision on that."
The board could make that determination as early as its next meeting Thursday, according to Kugler.
To qualify for disability pay, Servin will need to show he was "an active policeman" who became disabled "in the performance of an act of duty," as state law requires.
Much could hinge on the fact that Servin was off-duty at the time of the shooting.
Ferolo, the attorney who handles police pension matters, said the board would weigh if Servin was "acting beyond the scope of his job" and whether what he did "was so far afield that this was not an act of duty."
"That is the question here," he said. "Was the conduct a part of his job as a police officer, and if the answer is yes, is the injury such that he can no longer perform his duty?"
Servin could still prevail if he shows he acted in good faith — even though the outcome was tragic.
"In the context of police work, it's quick-moving and officers have to make a split-second decision, and sometimes they get it right and sometimes they get it wrong," said Ferolo, who did not offer an opinion on the merits of Servin's case. "If he can articulate a good-faith basis for how he acted, whether he got it right or wrong isn't the question."
'The justice we got'
Pleines downplayed that Servin was off-duty, saying he still had to take action according to both state law and the Police Department's general orders when he believed Cross pulled a gun on him.
"He has to take some action when he sees what he believes to be a crime in progress," Pleines said.
Pleines agreed that Servin's case was unusual in that he is seeking disability pay for a shooting that IPRA found violated the Police Department's policy on when officers can use force. But that shouldn't affect his right to make a claim, he said.
"Dante Servin is doing nothing other than what the law allows him to do, regarding his resignation, his application for disability and his avoiding being fired by the department," Pleines said. "Everything he does is sanctioned by Illinois law."
Another issue at play will be proving that Servin suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. If the police pension board agrees to hear the case, Servin will be examined by a doctor approved by the board.
Ultimately, the board would weigh how much the shooting contributed to the post-traumatic stress disorder — or if other factors in Servin's life were also at play.
On learning of Servin's bid for disability pay from the Tribune, Rekia Boyd's brother, Martinez Sutton, said it was one more example of a system that protects police no matter what. Victims, he said, don't get the same consideration.
Sutton, who has traveled the world since his sister's death speaking out on policing and human rights issues, is seeking a degree in clinical mental health counseling at the Adler School of Professional Psychology in Chicago.
"Based on the experience I went through … we have to deal with this mental beating on our own and find our own way through it. And yet still, they go and hug their officers and make sure they are OK," Sutton said. "… Let's be real. Some of the police officers actually do (face) danger. This is just a case where (he) wasn't even close to being in danger. No weapon found. And look at the justice we got."
