Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Des Plaines Police Commander Mike Kozak submitted his resignation letter last week, the Daily Herald reported.
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Tuesday, April 30
Former Des Plaines Police Deputy Chief, and current Police Commander Mike Kozak announced he would retire last week, the Daily Herald reported. Kozak’s retirement comes at a time when a number of lawsuits involving current and former officers are ongoing, according to the Daily Herald’s report, and other personnel-related issues have surfaced. Related:
Friday, October 12, 2012
Deputy Police Chief Mike Kozak stated former Deputy Police Chief Richard Rozkuszka’s involvement with a married woman was putting former Police Chief James Prandini’s reputation at risk, Journal and Topics Newspapers reported.
- GOVERNMENT
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Friday, October 12, 2012
A former Des Plaines deputy police chief, Richard Rozkuszka, who is suing the city and former police chief and city manager for forcing him into retirement in order to cover up misconduct, was named in a memo from Deputy Police Chief Mike Kozak to former Police Chief James Prandini in 2011, in which Kozak said Rozkuszka’s involvement with a married woman was putting the police chief’s reputation and career at risk, Journal and Topics Newspapers reported. In another lawsuit, a former Des Plaines man and attorney, Thaddeus Gauza, is suing Rozkuszka for breaking up his marriage, defaming him and directing a Des Plaines detective to pursue false allegations about Gauza, according to court documents.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Four new squads are part of annual rotation; three replace vehicles damaged during flooding, according to the police fleet coordinator.
The Des Plaines Police Department is on track to get seven new SUVs. Four of the 2013 Police Interceptor SUVs, which are customized Ford Explorers, will replace squad cars as part of the fleets’ annual rotation, and three will replace squad cars damaged during flooding in July 2011, said Tim Doherty, fleet coordinator, in an interview with Patch. City council approved the purchase of new equipment for the SUVs, which were approved in June, at a meeting on Monday. Equipment for the vehicles will include emergency lighting, light controllers, siren speakers, push bumper kits, secure-idle ignitions and prisoner compartments, according to city documents. At the meeting, Sixth Ward Alderman Mark Walsten asked Police Chief William Kushner what “…
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Officer Dave Kerfman administered chest compressions on a man with no pulse until Des Plaines firefighter/paramedics arrived on Aug. 2.
A Des Plaines man survived a medical emergency thanks to the quick action of a Des Plaines police officer recognized for his response at the city council meeting on Monday. Des Plaines Police Chief William Kushner and Mayor Martin Moylan presented Officer Dave Kerfman the Life-Saving Award plaque and medal to a standing ovation at City Hall. Kerfman located an unresponsive 47-year-old man without a pulse at a Des Plaines business at approximately 4:20 a.m. on Aug. 2, Kushner said. “Kerfman immediately began life-saving procedures by administering chest compressions,” Kushner said. Kerfman continued giving the man chest compressions until the Des Plaines Fire Department arrived, Kushner said. “The victim eventually regained a pulse and a …
Friday, September 14, 2012
Former Des Plaines Police Chief James Prandini, Officer Colin Johnson and Deputy Chief Mike Kozak are featured in this video from 2011.
The Citizens Police Academy will begin on Sept. 18, and will give participants an opportunity to learn about domestic violence, traffic stops, evidence collection and more. In the spring of this year, a police academy was held for seniors at the Frisbie Center in Des Plaines. This video, posted by the International Association of Chiefs of Police in October 2011, shows a police academy for seniors last year. In the video, former Police Chief James Prandini, Officer Colin Johnson and Deputy Chief Mike Kozak are seen teaching seniors about law enforcement and how to be safe. The police academy beginning next week is for adults and young adults. Sign up for Des Plaines Patch's newsletter. Des Plaines Patch is on Facebook; click to like it.
Friday, August 24, 2012
Former deputy chief claimed in another suit he was fired to cover up brutality.
Richard Rozkuszka, former deputy police chief at the Des Plaines Police Department, has been named in a lawsuit that claims he contributed to the breakup of a Des Plaines marriage, Journal and Topics Newspapers reported. Rozkuszka filed a lawsuit against the city and officials which claimed he was fired to cover up misconduct including the beating of handcuffed prisoners within the police department. Earlier: The brick-laying past at Des Plaines River Road and Campbell Avenue.
Monday, August 20, 2012
The city, mayor, former police chief and former city manager are named in lawsuit filed last week.
A former Des Plaines deputy police chief is suing the city, former police chief, mayor and former city manager for forcing him to retire after he reported multiple instances of misconduct, according to court documents filed Aug. 14. Richard Rozkuszka, a 29-year law enforcement veteran, served as deputy police chief of investigations until he was forced to leave the department on Aug. 15, 2011, according to the lawsuit. Rozkuszka was fired in retaliation for reporting criminal activity within the department to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office and the Illinois State Police Public Integrity Task Force, the complaint stated. Rozkuszka received reports from other Des Plaines police officers, from 2009 to 2011, that Officer John Bueno “…
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Former Chicago cop talks about background, management style and plans.
The City of Des Plaines will have a new police chief after Sept. 4, the city announced in a press release last week. Lakemoor Police Chief William Kushner, a 35-year law enforcement veteran, has accepted the post held by former Police Chief James Prandini until his sudden retirement at the end of 2011. Acting Police Chief Mike Kozak has served as interim chief since that time. Kushner joined the Chicago Police Department in January 1977, became a detective in 1980, a sergeant in 1988 and lieutenant in 1998. In 2006 Kushner left Chicago to take a police chief position in Berwyn, where he served until 2010, when he accepted his current position as police chief in Lakemoor. Kushner recently spoke with Patch about his background, management …
Friday, August 3, 2012
Former Berwyn, Lakemoor chief started as a Chicago police officer.
The five-month search for a new Des Plaines police chief has concluded, Michael Bartholomew, city manager, announced in a press release Friday. The Des Plaines Police Department will have its first police chief from outside the department since the department was formed more than a century ago. William Kushner, a former Chicago police lieutenant who more recently served as police chief in Berwyn, and then Lakemoor, is set to begin his new role in Des Plaines on Sept. 4, when he is sworn in at a city council meeting. “I am extremely pleased that the selection process concluded with the appointment of Chief Kushner,” Bartholomew stated. “He is an outstanding choice for our department. I have every expectation that he will distinguish himself…
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Casino is in the process of training and hiring EMTs.
Some Rivers Casino patrons that need medical attention at the gaming venue may be treated by healthcare providers employed at the casino later this year. The casino’s plans to train and hire emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, will reduce the number of calls the fire department responds to, Fire Chief Alan Wax told public safety committee members at a meeting on July 11. In an update on public safety calls made to Rivers Casino, 3000 S. River Road since opening, Wax said the fire department responded 232 times from July 15, 2011, to June 30, 2012. He said they estimate approximately 35 to 37 percent of those calls, some of which required basic life support, would not have required the fire department to respond if the casino had EMTs …
DENNIS
11:41 am on Saturday, October 13, 2012
WTF...Why is this gossip news worthy? Nobody needs to hear this crap. more ›