Dolton mayor makes ‘temporary’ appointments of police chief, others after blocked by trustees

Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard on Wednesday pushed through "temporary" 30-day appointments of a police chief and other positions, including an executive assistant, after trustees voted against approving the picks.

Henyard said she needs people in place to manage village operations, after trustees turned down her naming of Ronnie Burge Sr. as police chief.

"As mayor, I an entitled to the appointment," she said.

Henyard also said she was temporarily naming Angela Lockett as village attorney, Michael Smith as executive assistant and McStephen "Max" Solomon as special counsel.

Solomon represents Henyard in a lawsuit she filed against trustees over where Village Board meetings should be held. He is also identified as her attorney in an eviction case involving the mayor and a Thornton Township employee.

Henyard was sued by some village trustees in early September when she appointed Burge, Lockett and Smith. Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thaddeus Wilson ruled Sept. 25, Henyard didn't abide by proper procedure when she made the appointments and that the appointments were invalid.

Wilson denied a motion by Henyard Oct. 24 to alter that temporary restraining order to allow the appointment Burge and Lockett, with the matter in court again today.

Burge is a former Dolton police chief and also served terms as chief in Harvey and Dixmoor. In 2021, he ran for Dolton mayor, losing to Henyard .

Henyard's appointment of Smith in September was as village administrator, but at Wednesday's meeting said she was naming him executive assistant.

Keith Freeman, under indictment for bankruptcy fraud, is village administrator, and Judge Wilson also blocked Henyard's move to replace him. It was unclear whether the job of executive assistant has different duties than that of village administrator.

Before Henyard attempted to get board approval Wednesday for the positions, Trustee Jason House, who is challenging Henyard for mayor, said trustees had not been given any information about the appointments, such as resumes or how much they would be paid.

Henyard brushed aside concerns and said "you need a police chief and you all know that."

House and Trustees Kiana Belcher, Tammie Brown and Brittney Norwood have battled with Henyard for months, accusing her of spending beyond Dolton's means and turning what had been a budget surplus into a multimillion-dollar deficit.

The mayor, in turn, has labeled the trustees opposed to her as "corrupt" and said board members routinely overstep their authority, such as in blocking her appointments.

"You don't have authority to do anything," she told trustees Wednesday. "They have no authority over my office."

"You guys have crippled the village and I am here to fix it," Henyard said.

Wednesday's meeting was held at the Dolton Park District's Lester Long Field House, and it was the first time in several weeks the mayor and all six trustees were together for a board meeting.

Henyard entered about 30 minutes after the scheduled start time, with Lockett taking a seat to her right and Solomon sitting to her left. The mayor would, from time to time, consult with Solomon on one issue or another, such as the appointments. Burge took a seat in the audience.