Malec's Gender Discrimination Suit Won't Prevail: Joliet

JOLIET, IL — Joliet City Manager Jim Capparelli does not expect former Joliet Police Chief Dawn Malec's federal lawsuit against him and Joliet to be successful.

"We believe that we will prevail," Capparelli told Joliet Patch during a recent interview at City Hall.

In one of her lawsuit exhibits, Malec wrote, "I believe I have been discriminated and retaliated against because of my sex, female, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Illinois Human Rights Act."

In an exclusive story published last December, Joliet Patch revealed that Malec sent a demand letter in hopes of convincing Joliet to pay her $400,000 in exchange for her agreeing to retire in 2022. Instead, Joliet's City Council rejected Malec's demand latter, and that set the stage for Malec to move ahead with her federal lawsuit alleging gender discrimination and retaliation.

This past July, Malec retired from Joliet's police force. She filed the lawsuit in September, and her lawyer from Chicago amended the complaint against Joliet and Capparelli on Oct. 27.

On Monday, the outside law firm hired to defend Capparelli and Joliet filed court documents requesting until Dec. 5 to respond to the allegations set forth in Malec's discrimination lawsuit. Joliet is being represented by the Rosemont law firm of Clark Baird Smith.

As for Malec, she joined the Joliet Police Department in July 1994 as a patrol officer. She became a sergeant in 2009 and a lieutenant in 2014. In January 2021, Capparelli made her chief during his first full week on the job as Joliet's new permanent city manager.

"I was the first female lieutenant in Joliet Police Department history," Malec wrote in her lawsuit exhibit. "I was the first and only female to serve as Chief of Police for Respondent. Mr. Capparelli told one of my colleagues that I was only hired because of the City’s 'liberal agenda,' which I believe means that he only chose me because I was the only qualified female internal candidate.

"From the moment I became Chief of Police, Mr. Capparelli, who was my supervisor, began discriminating against me and subjecting me to disparate treatment based on my sex," Malec stated.

According to her lawsuit, Malec was asked to equip Joliet police officers with body cameras by Capparelli.

The Joliet Police Department, at the time of Malec's tenure, remained one of the largest police departments in the Midwest without body cameras. After Malec's ouster, Joliet finally began adding body cameras once interim police chief Robert Brown took over.

Nowadays, under permanent Police Chief Bill Evans, all Joliet patrol officers wear body cameras.

"On March 8, 2021, less than one month into her appointment as Chief of Police, Capparelli issued Malec her first disciplinary reprimand, accusing her of being insubordinate and uncooperative because she had failed to implement a body-worn camera policy and a social worker program as Capparelli had demanded she do." Malec's lawsuit contends. "At the time this reprimand was issued, the body-worn camera policy and social worker program were being developed by the City’s only female deputy chief of police, who reported to Malec."

Six months later, Joliet police still were not equipped with body cameras, according to her lawsuit. As a result, Capparelli gave Malec another reprimand, on Sept. 9, 2021.

"This second reprimand accused Malec of insubordination and lack of professionalism for failure to implement the body-worn camera policy and social worker program. Once again, Malec responded in writing to Capparelli, explaining her progress on these programs and the reasons they were not fully implemented yet," Malec's lawsuit outlined.

In the weeks leading to her dismissal, one of Malec's priorities was issuing punishment against Joliet Police Sgt. Javier Esqueda — even though Esqueda was garnering national news media attention in the USA Today plus national awards for being a police whistleblower.

On Sept. 7, 2021, people across the United States read the following story about Esqueda published by USA Today: "Illinois cop exposed police misconduct. Then he was arrested."

Esqueda has insisted that the Jan. 29, 2020, in-custody death of Black Joliet resident Eric Lurry was preventable and that fellow members of Joliet's police force engaged in police misconduct and evidence tampering as Lurry was dying in their presence.

In September 2021, while Malec was still chief, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul opened an unlawful policing investigation of the Joliet Police Department as Lurry's case began to receive national exposure in the USA Today.

On Aug. 1, 2021, Joliet Patch reported Sgt. Esqueda won the Lamplighter Award for Moral Courage in Law Enforcement. That same month, Malec decided to move forward with disciplining Esqueda.

"Upon completion of the investigation in August of 2021, Plaintiff recommended that the Police Department move forward with discipline against the Sergeant while he was awaiting trial on criminal charges," Malec's lawsuit states. "This was consistent with the process which had been used to discipline other officers who had engaged in criminal misconduct, and would afford the Sergeant his due process regarding disciplinary actions the City planned to take against him.

"Capparelli and the City Council interfered and told Plaintiff not to move forward with disciplinary proceedings against the Sergeant."

In one of her trial exhibits, Malec wrote that "Because this police officer’s actions were also the subject of a criminal investigation, I was met with resistance from the City Council and the City Manager, who disagreed with my decision to move forward. Mr. Capparelli used this as an excuse to terminate me, for no apparent reason other than his aversion to having a female police chief."

After her October 2021 dismissal, Capparelli made Robert Brown the interim chief for five months. On March 1, Bill Evans took over as the new permanent chief of police, Joliet's first outside police chief in more than 20 years.

After Capparelli learned he did not have authority to fire Malec; based on city ordinances, she returned to her previous rank of police lieutenant.

"Instead, Mr. Capparelli stripped me of my police powers and assigned me to an administrative post in City Hall for approximately one month," Malec stated. "In my 27 years as a Joliet Police Officer, I do not believe that any male police officer has been stripped of his police powers and placed on administrative duties for no reason, as I was."

According to Malec's lawsuit exhibits, Capparelli "promoted me on false pretenses and set me up to fail ... I was treated differently in my role as Chief of Police than similarly situated male colleagues, and then I was demoted and stripped of my police powers because of my sex, female. Since being removed as Chief, I have been working under constant threat of termination, which has subjected me to a hostile work environment and caused significant emotional distress.

"After my demotion, I complained to Respondent by sending a letter, through my attorney, to Mr. Caparrelli (sic) and the City’s attorney, explaining that I believe I was discriminated against. Respondent then released the letter to the Joliet Patch, outing my personal and confidential complaints to the public and damaging my reputation in retaliation for my protected activity."

Malec's federal lawsuit is filed in Chicago's U.S. District Court.

The retired Joliet police lieutenant is represented by attorney Naomi Frisch of the downtown Chicago law firm of Asher, Gittler & D’Alba.

"I received other write-ups during my short tenure as Chief, threatening my termination and accusing me of 'gross insubordination' and inability to follow instructions. Other than these disciplinary notices, I have received nothing higher than a written reprimand during my previous 27 years with the Joliet Police Department," Malec wrote in one of her lawsuit exhibits.

Related Joliet Patch coverage:

Joliet Police Treated Sgt. Esqueda 'Like Garbage' He Reveals

Ex-Police Chief Dawn Malec Seeks $400K Settlement From Joliet

Pat Cardwell, Dawn Malec, Tim Powers Leaving Joliet Police

Unlawful Policing Investigation Launched In Joliet: AG's Office