Plenty of action unfolded on Monday at the village board meeting in Dolton, the first such meeting since three subpoenas were served on the village.
Residents demanded to be heard as they gathered outside village hall. In the group was Mayor Tiffany Henyard’s ex-assistant, Fenia Dukes.
"At first, it was just me. But a year later, to see ya'll standing with me – thank you…thank you so much," Dukes told the group.
Dukes has filed a civil lawsuit against Henyard and Trustee Andrew Holmes, the latter whom she accuses of assaulting her. Dukes issued a pre-taped interview earlier in the day, describing the lawsuit's allegations.
In the video, she detailed what she said happened before and after an incident that allegedly occurred almost a year ago, during a taxpayer-paid economic development trip to Las Vegas. On that trip were Henyard -- a handful of village and Thornton Township representatives and trustee Holmes, who she called "Uncle Dru." According to the suit, after dinner and walking the Vegas strip with Holmes, Dukes felt disoriented and ultimately blacked out.
Holmes was not at the meeting and did not respond to NBC Chicago's repeated requests for a comment.
Dolton police officer Byron Miles was on that Las Vegas trip. He also filed a civil lawsuit accusing Henyard of retaliation – after he says he was demoted from her security detail for speaking out about what allegedly happened in Las Vegas.
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The village released the following statement to NBC Chicago:
"...As previously issued, the village of Dolton conducted a thorough investigation into these allegations. The investigation was lead by an independent third party company, consisting of former law enforcement officers, none of whom have ever been affiliated with the Village of Dolton. Former police officer Miles was interviewed and denied knowing anything about these allegations. Also, despite numerous attempts by the Village’s independent investigators to contact Ms. Dukes, she refused to give a statement or cooperate with our investigation. Unfortunately, this is nothing more than two disgruntled Village employees who are trying to make off with the taxpayers hard earned dollars. The Village looks forward to defending these allegations and pursuing all other available remedies to the village."
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Trustees maintain that there was never any third-party investigation. They recently hired former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot as a special investigator. Henyard said the trustees don’t have the authority to hire Lightfoot.
“You know it is veto power," Henyard said. "How dare you come to someone’s town to work or do something…Lori knows better than this …It is illegal and she will not be paid for services."
Lightfoot was to be paid $400 an hour. It's unclear if she will continue to work without payment.
