The Metro Independent published a story on May 16 noting the dramatic increase in pay for Caseyville village attorneys after Leonard Black took office. The story contained incorrect pay information for prior village attorneys. The corrected figures prove a less dramatic increase.

Caseyville Village Hall / Photo by Roger Starkey

The May 16 story compared payments made to village attorneys from June 2012 to April 2013 against payments made to village attorneys between June 2013 and April 2014. Using information obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, it was reported that Caseyville’s legal fees had increased at least 269 percent.

The FOIA requested “a list of payments to all attorneys representing the Village from May 2012 to August 2013.” The response provided by Village Clerk Rob Watt and office worker Leslie McReynolds did not contain any pay information for Duane Clarke, the village’s primary attorney during the first five months of the requested time frame. Clarke represented Caseyville in traffic court until Black was elected in 2013.

The Metro Independent did not question the omission of Clarke’s name from the original list of recipients. We apologize for the mistake.

Acting on a tip from now former Caseyville Village Attorney John Gilbert, The Metro Independent specifically requested the amount of payments made to Clarke. When asked why the response to the original FOIA request did not contain Clarke’s payment information, both Watt and McReynolds said, “I don’t know.”

According to information provided in the request for Clarke’s pay, between June 2012 and April 2013, Clarke was paid $38,325, more than double the $30,273.14 paid to other village attorneys over the same time frame. The new total pay amount for the time frame is $68,598.14. When compared with the $111,780.35 paid to Gilbert and the Law Office of Christopher Cueto, Ltd., Caseyville’s legal fees had increased at least 62.95 percent, or about 206 percent less than originally reported.

According to an annual TIF finance report filed in January 2013 with the Illinois State Comptroller’s office, Clarke served as the TIF administrator, as well as the village attorney. Black signed as the TIF administrator on the TIF finance report filed in January 2014. Another former village attorney, Alvin Paulson, signed the report filed in January 2014 as the TIF attorney for all of fiscal year 2013.

Black announced at a Board of Trustees committee meeting on June 4 that Gilbert was resigning from his position as village attorney. A replacement has not yet been named. Michael Gras, from the Law Office of Christopher Cueto, has been filling the role as primary village attorney.