The Naperville Liquor Commission has one less commissioner. The board went from nine members, including Mayor Steve Chirico ‘THE’ liquor commissioner, to eight members on Friday February 11th, when the mayor accepted the resignation of ‘A’ commissioner. It wasn’t because of work load, it was because the commissioner, while apparently on a booze cruise through town, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, and just a few other charges including failure to signal, improper lane usage, disobeying a traffic control signal, tampering with evidence, and providing false information. Other than that, the liquor commissioner’s drive was totally legal and uneventful.
I have purposely omitted the driver’s name because who of us, hasn’t been charged with the same offenses. It happened at 1:23 am, further proof that nothing ever good happens after midnight on a weekend. To the driver’s credit, the offender was pulled over near Washington Street and Martin Avenue close to Edward Hospital in case medical aid would have been necessary if the NPD hadn’t observed the multiple driving infractions.
The difference between ‘The’ liquor commissioner (Mayor Chirico) and ‘A’ liquor commissioner is THE commissioner is the guy in charge, and gets to select people to become A liquor commissioner. Which means that Mayor Chirico gets another opportunity to select a candidate to fill the open seat as A commissioner.
It begs the question, that only HR can answer,”can the mayor ask a candidate, during an interview, if they have ever been arrested for DUI, and if so did they fail to signal, disobey a traffic control signal, tamper with evidence, and provide false information”.
It’s a fair question and the answer is ‘Yes’. Prior to becoming a commissioner, an applicant must agree to a background check. If a DUI appears, I do not appoint the applicant. The Liquor Commission is a public safety board and commissioners are sworn in to support the constitution. They are responsible to make rules and set policies that allow for safe sales and consumption of alcohol and tobacco. It’s not always clear cut finding a balance, but our LC has done an outstanding job of doing so…evidenced by our robust restaurant industry and lowering DUI rates.
It was absolutely the right decision to resign from the commission, but she also has the right to due process and the right to defend herself against the charges.
Dana Being Dana! Can I book her after she’s booked! Another quality candidate pushed by Benny and Kim White.