Schmidt v. Personnel Board

The rules of the Chicago Department of Personnel govern the length of time Chicago police officers must spend on probation before gaining permanent appointments. Properly interpreted, these rules fix the length of the probationary term on the date of the original appointment. The length of the term cannot later be changed. The plaintiff here was not a probationer under the personnel rules, and should not have been discharged without a hearing. The circuit court’s order dismissing his complaint for administrative review is reversed and remanded.

William Schmidt was appointed as a probationary…