Excerpts from OakLawnLeaf.com:
The Village of Oak Lawn has been embroiled in a contentious dispute with firefighter and former union official Robert Lanz. The situation escalated when the village manager and other officials made statements that some community members are calling an unfair attack on Lanz’s character, and others say it's simply out of touch with reality.
Lanz was reportedly accused by the village administration of making calls to phone sex lines while on duty. He was then served with a notice to appear for an interrogation. In court documents filed by the Village of Oak Lawn, the administration argued that as a firefighter-paramedic, Lanz interacts with residents during their most vulnerable moments. While many employees and officials agreed with this statement, it was the next part of the filing that sparked outrage:
Firefighter-paramedics such as the Plaintiff (Lanz) see patients when they are not fully clothed, and the paramedics must have physical contact with patients, often of the opposite sex. Because of this, the village must have supreme confidence that the firefighter will not abuse the patient relationship for his own personal gratification.
This claim has been dismissed as baseless by two anonymous sources within the village. “Linking an unproven allegation about phone sex to the possibility of a sex crime shows how far this administration is willing to go to target its firefighters,†one employee said, adding that they feared retaliation if their name was revealed.
An anonymous official called the whole matter a waste of time and money, blaming it on Village Manager Larry Deetjen. According to court filings, Deetjen had heard rumors that a union audit uncovered misused funds. Under his direction, the village asked the Cook County Sheriff’s Office to investigate. However, no charges were ever filed against any firefighter or union official related to financial misconduct.
Despite the case being closed, Deetjen reportedly submitted a Freedom of Information request to the sheriff’s office and obtained internal union documents that detailed all charges made by union officials over four years. He admitted in court documents that he reviewed these records and connected some of the charges to Lanz, with whom he has had a long-standing conflict.
Deetjen then checked the names of some companies online and found that two of them offered phone sex services. He then looked into Lanz’s records and suggested that some of the charges may have occurred while he was at the firehouse. Firefighters in Oak Lawn work 24-hour shifts and remain at the station during that time.
A senior Oak Lawn official, who requested anonymity, said it was clear Deetjen was trying to damage Lanz’s reputation. “This isn’t the first time I’ve seen this kind of attack from this administration. I’m not surprised they’re going after him, but I am shocked they would stretch this into the realm of possible sex crimes by pointing out that paramedics have close contact with residents,†the official said.
When Deetjen first brought the issue to the village board, he reportedly told them that Lanz was being disciplined. He wrote that the investigation involved both inappropriate financial activity and inappropriate sexual behavior while on duty. This contradicts Deetjen’s later court declaration, where he stated, “In late November or early December, 2015, I learned that the Cook County Sheriff’s Department concluded its investigation and decided not to press criminal charges against Plaintiff (Lanz).â€
According to sources within the village, Lanz is currently on paid sick leave.
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