Oak Lawn Police Chief Palmer Retires, Will Focus On Next Chapter

OAK LAWN, IL – Less than a week after village officials announced the hiring of a new fire chief at a time when the village is facing a "catastrophic financial calamity", Oak Lawn Police Chief Randy Palmer announced Thursday that he is stepped down as police chief at the end of July.

In a news release issued Thursday, Palmer – who has been with the department for more than 28 years – wrote that “it is time for me to step down as Chief of this great department.”

Palmer, who also serves as the interim village manager, wrote in the a file saved as ‘retirement letter’ that he will appoint a new chief who will he said will continue to make the "positive strides that have made the Oak Lawn Police Department a model for other agencies to follow”.

“This job has been one of the most rewarding at times, and also the cause of many sleepless nights,” Palmer wrote. “I have enjoyed working side-by-side with some of the most talented and dedicated men and women I have ever met, and I know the Department is in a very good place and will not miss a beat moving forward with its mission of keeping Oak Lawn safe.

“I am proud of the accomplishments we have achieved during my tenure as Chief and I am thankful for the amazing team I had - command staff, supervisors, officers, booking officers, code enforcement, and all the support staff who work in the trenches each day – who helped make those successes possible.”

Last week, village officials announced the hiring of Zackary Riddle as the new fire chief less than three months after his boss, former chief Michael Mavrogeorge was dismissed from the position with the village citing budget constraints.

Mayor Sandra Bury said the village continues to deal with difficult financial decisions as it continues to deal with a shortfall of between $8 million and $10 million due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. She told Patch that more personnel changes would needed to be made and that it faced difficulty because cuts mean impacting people's lives.

"These are horrible times, horrible decisions," she said, "It's like picking what kid lives and dies."

Palmer indicated that the next chapter of his life will include remaining as the acting/interim village manager, which he said will allow him to assist with the new police chief’s transition and when it comes the time, for the new village manager’s transition, he wrote.