One week after Caseyville Mayor Len Black terminated Police Chief Jose Alvarez, the Village Board overruled him by a unanimous 6-0 vote.

Church sign supporting fired, then re-hired, Caseyville Police Chief Jose Alvarez / Photo by Roger Starkey

In a video obtained using the Freedom of Information Act, Alvarez can be seen at the monthly Village Board meeting in full uniform sitting in the front row. As the meeting progressed, City Clerk Rob Watt notified Black that he had missed an item on the agenda.

“I did miss that one fine print there,” Black said, and then read a prepared statement. Black said he could not discuss the termination of Alvarez in detail, but wanted to let the citizens know that he had lost faith in Alvarez.

Reading from the statement, Black said that Alvarez insisted on hiring an assistant chief, something former chief’s J.D Roth and Ron Tamburello did not need, nor does interim chief Frank Moore. “Alvarez said he cannot run the department without an assistant chief, therefore I have decided to move in a different direction,” Black said.

His primary concern, Black said,  is to bring dispatchers back to Caseyville. The $60,000 salary for the assistant chief could be used for dispatchers.

Dispatching for Caseyville Police calls is currently handled by the St. Clair County Sheriff’s department.

Alvarez then addressed the mayor, asking him to look at minutes from a meeting two weeks prior. At the meeting, Alvarez said, he told the mayor that the money for the assistant chief would be gained by not hiring another patrolman to replace Steve Epps, who was injured in an off-duty motorcycle crash in May 2013. Epps, Alvarez said, made $60,000 as a patrolman in 2012.

Then, standing and approaching the Mayor, Alvarez told Black that the money for the dispatchers was already in the budget. “The money is in the budget. Look at the budget,” Alvarez said. “Talk to your finance manager, who manages the funds. The money is there.”

The overflow audience responded with a loud round of applause.

After a brief discussion about where the dispatchers to be hired would live, Black told Alavarez that he had given him full control of the police department. Alvarez did not agree.

“I have never had control over this police department. Bob Romanik runs this police department, and he runs the city of Caseyville,” Alvarez said. “Everything you just said,  he said on his radio show.”

Romanik is a former Washington Park police chief who has a felony conviction and now runs local radio stations. Romanik bills himself at the “Grim Reaper of Radio,” and has taken to repeatedly insulting Alvarez, his former co-worker, recently. Romanik’s son, Stephen, is now an officer on Caseyville’s police force.

Sergeant Frank Moore, the interim police chief, then came to the front of the room in an attempt to have Alvarez return to his seat.

“I’m your chief, go sit down,” Alvarez told Moore. The two were face-to-face for a short time, until two members of the audience came to separate them. After each returned to their seats, Alvarez had one more thing to say to Black.

“That’s what the people want, someone that will stand up to Bob Romanik,” Alvarez said. Then, pointing at city attorney Gilbert, Alvarez said, “you go tell him I said that.”

An audience member addressed Black to say that the citizens see Black and Romanik eating together frequently at a Caseyville eatery. “You only won by four votes. You keep it on the right path and don’t do what your friends say,” the man said.

Black defeated 27-year mayor George Chance by four votes the April 2013 mayoral race.

Various audience members proceeded to question Black on the circumstances of the firing. Black and Village Attorney John Gilbert told audience members that they were restricted in what they could say because it was a personnel matter. Black said the Alvarez did receive a letter with the Black’s complaints.

Alvarez corrected the mayor, saying the termination letter he received was signed by Gilbert. “You still have never, to this day, told me that I was terminated,” Alvarez said.

The Village Board then made a motion to immediately adjourn to closed session to discuss a personnel matter. After a 50-minute break, the board returned and immediately voted unanimously to disapprove of Alvarez’ firing and to return him to work immediately.

Motions on the agenda to create an assistant police chief position, and to appoint someone to fill that position, were tabled.

Alvarez later presented Sergeant Scott Miller with an award to honor his 20 years of service to Caseyville.

Friday afternoon, Alvarez declined comment on the meeting or the circumstances that led to him being fired and re-hired. He was, however, willing to talk about the support he has received from the community and the reason he remains in his position.

“I have received nothing but support from the community,”Alvarez said. “I have received nothing negative.”

Why, after all that happened, does he want to remain the chief of police in Caseyville?

“I believed when I took this job that I could make a difference, I still do,” Alvarez said. “The citizens of Caseyville work hard and pay their taxes, they deserve the same things others get. I think there potential is there for us to have a great department.”