Orland Park, IL. (ECWd) –
In the past fifteen months, the Orland Park Public Library (OPPL) has spent over $480,000.00 fighting Freedom of Information and Open Meetings laws in a failed attempt at keeping records from the public and keeping the public from speaking / attending public meetings, or in other words, to censor and silence critics...that’s right…this is the same library that received the “intellectual freedom” award winning library and was awarded the Robert B. Downs Intellectual Freedom Award just last year by the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science even after failing to report, and admitting it, that child pornography was accessed in its library and for defending the “right” of others to view pornography on its computers in full view of other patrons – including children.
That’s just fine and dandy with them because it was your money they were spending, not their own personal money. The situation at the OPPL is a prime example of why public officials must be held personally responsible for their decisions – for if the threat of emptying their personal bank accounts by almost half a million dollars was there, none of this would ever have been an issue.
So as it stands, the OPPL has paid out $10,000.00 deductible on its insurance and $250,000.00 for their attorneys at KTJ. In addition, the insurance company for OPPL has paid out $230,000.00 in its failed defense of the lawsuits brought about by the actions of OPPL board members and OPPL employee Mary Weimar.
[gview file=”https://edgarcountywatchdogs.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/2015-04-07-OPPL-Insurance-costs-to-date.pdf”]
23 Comments
blount
Posted at 21:41h, 16 AprilHmm.
SafeLibraries
Posted at 19:42h, 09 AprilRT @StoryTimeDigita: Great read by the Edgar County Watchdogs: http://t.co/92c6YPOP00 #SafeLibraries #OrlandPkLibrary #OrlandPk
StoryTimeDigita
Posted at 18:26h, 09 AprilGreat read by the Edgar County Watchdogs: http://t.co/92c6YPOP00 #SafeLibraries #OrlandPkLibrary #OrlandPk
SafeLibraries
Posted at 13:21h, 08 AprilRT @nfoic: What a mess. Has @OrlandPkLibrary (IL) spent $480K fighting #openrecords & #openmeeting laws?
http://t.co/q6IuDomrNS
nfoic
Posted at 13:09h, 08 AprilWhat a mess. Has @OrlandPkLibrary (IL) spent $480K fighting #openrecords & #openmeeting laws?
http://t.co/q6IuDomrNS
SafeLibraries
Posted at 09:48h, 08 April“Orland Park Library Spent $480,000 Fighting Open Records and Open Meetings Laws” http://t.co/wEwRvt8yrO via @ECWDogs #FOIA #OPPL #childporn
PekalaLaw
Posted at 07:09h, 08 AprilRT @ECWDogs: Orland Park Library spent $480,000 fighting open records and open meetings laws – http://t.co/4gtN45mYI9
SafeLibraries
Posted at 21:58h, 07 AprilMT @ECWDogs: “#Library spent $480K to defend #childporn: http://t.co/LdWqDFR7QA” @drginaloudon #tdot #tcot #tlot #p2 #teaparty
SafeLibraries
Posted at 20:38h, 07 AprilLet me help Hanover Group Insurance. Quoting now, “The Hanover Group Insurance Company had to eat $175,000 in legal fees and costs incurred by the OPPL because the OPPL followed … terrible legal advice …. as a direct result of the incompetent legal advice given to the OPPL by Klein Thorpe Jenkins.” My opinion, of course, but besides mere incompetence there was the intentional tossing aside of ethical standards, perhaps in a criminal fashion:
“Library Lawyers Manufacture Evidence But Inspire Humorous Video; ALA Takes Opportunity to Teach How to Thwart Complaining Patrons”
http://safelibraries.blogspot.com/2014/04/LibraryLawyers.html
The Hanover Group Insurance Company should consider bringing an action against Klein, Thorpe & Jenkins for malpractice that may have been the proximate cause of its financial losses. Everyone expects insurance firms to lose money here and there but not basically have it stolen from them by the incompetence and violation of ethical and possibly criminal standards of a law firm, let alone this being one defending a library’s effort to hide child porn and its cover up from the public. That goes beyond the pale. But for KTJ’s poor and possibly illegal advice, such as submitting a false affidavit, The Hanover Group Insurance Company would never have occurred this huge expense. The insurance company should not have to pay for the criminal behavior of the library and its lawyers who enabled the criminality and themselves behaved in an unethical and criminal fashion.
Remember one of the lawyers called the police to file a false claim of harassment against Megan Fox and help the library “build a record” against her? There’s that too.
Again, my opinion, of course. But the facts are the facts.
Daniel
Posted at 21:23h, 07 AprilI am thinking aloud here. But, is there any kind of statewide watchdog group for taxpayer money waste? Because I think what Klein Thorpe Jenkins did here might be the tip of a huge iceberg. Just imagine if Klein Thorpe Jenkins is giving legal advice to other public bodies that leads them or allows them to break the law like OPPL did.
What if this is happening statewide, where needless legal bills are being generated by Klein Thorpe Jenkins. What if a group audited all of Klein Thorpe Jenkins’ public clients and did a study on if this law firm is creating legal bills by giving bad legal advice that creates messes like at OPPL. And then Klein Thorpe Jenkins charges more money to clean up the mess they created.
This could be a big scheme where millions of dollars in legal fees are created by a law firm that is doing this on purpose. Who can investigate this to see if Klein Thorpe Jenkins is doing this?
Anecdotally from the OPPL example, there is grounds to believe that is indeed what is happening.
SafeLibraries
Posted at 20:22h, 07 AprilMT @ECWDogs: “#Library: $480K fighting #transparency laws – http://t.co/LdWqDFR7QA” @OrlandPkLibrary @VillageOrlandPK @IllLibraryAssoc @OIF
SafeLibraries
Posted at 20:20h, 07 AprilMT @ECWDogs: “#OrlandPark #Library spent $480K fighting #FOIA, #OMA laws – http://t.co/LdWqDFR7QA” @FCC @US_IMLS @ALALibrary @gslis #libchat
SafeLibraries
Posted at 20:18h, 07 AprilRT @ECWDogs: Orland Park Library spent $480,000 fighting open records and open meetings laws – http://t.co/4gtN45mYI9
SafeLibraries
Posted at 20:18h, 07 AprilRT @intolerantfox: GREAT READ at Illinois Leaks: http://t.co/LrL3tO3oie
franklin
Posted at 20:08h, 07 AprilSimilar events happened in HOOVER ALABAMA and guess what the Library won in the end
jmkraft
Posted at 21:15h, 07 AprilWell the library did not win in this case…
Dave
Posted at 18:58h, 07 AprilWhere is the public outcry? This is incredible
SafeLibraries
Posted at 21:25h, 07 AprilDave, the public outcry is minimal as the library media and ESPECIALLY the main stream media work very hard to give only the news as if reported by the library itself.
For over a year, for example, the Chicago Tribune never discusses the issue being CHILD porn, unless it’s in a way to make the claim and Megan Fox look silly.
The Chicago Tribune reports all the money the library spent because of some homeschooling mom and not a word about the library’s repeat criminal violations of the law and its defense of same being the cause for its running up its own bills to defend its covering up and maintaining child porn.
Main stream media casts as “quiet dignity” the very person making homophobic remarks, just completely ignoring the gay hate at that library by her and an elected official to boot.
Where is the public outcry? Nowhere. The public is intentionally misinformed. It will stay misinformed because Chicago Tribune, etc., will continue to misreport intentionally.
blount
Posted at 21:42h, 16 AprilHmm.
Eileen Soloval
Posted at 18:38h, 07 AprilWhy is there no accountability at that library? Why does that Mary Weimar woman still have her job??? Her decisions as director led the library on a path that resulted in huge legal bills and a big settlement over violations of the law. According to the library’s website, Mary Weimar is paid $189,000/year as director. Is that wise, considering the mess that Weimar made as director with this matter?
jmkraft
Posted at 18:46h, 07 AprilThey are proud of her and apparently want her to keep doing the same things…
MeganFoxWriter
Posted at 18:30h, 07 AprilGREAT READ at Illinois Leaks: http://t.co/LrL3tO3oie
ECWDogs
Posted at 18:17h, 07 AprilOrland Park Library spent $480,000 fighting open records and open meetings laws – http://t.co/4gtN45mYI9