The mayor of Normal said the $5.4 million settlement to end a civil lawsuit against the town and its police over a wrongful murder conviction is solely related to risk.
Alan Beaman served 13 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. Beaman was exonerated in the 1993 killing of college student Jennifer Lockmiller. Beaman sued the town, claiming the town and three now retired police officers failed to consider more viable suspects and crafted a theory of the case that ignored evidence favorable to Beaman.
The settlement, which the town council authorized Monday night, came shortly before the civil trial was to begin.
Mayor Chris Koos said Tuesday is was prudent to settle.
"We felt that this settlement was in the best interests of the town financially going forward. We don't admit guilt in the case on our part. We feel that our officers did what was required of them," Koos said on WGLT's Sound Ideas.
Koos said the town does not owe Beaman a further statement about what happened.
Beaman has claimed the town did not give prosecutors evidence of other possible suspects in Lockmiller's killing. Despite that, Koos said he does not think the town owes Beaman anything more.
"I'm just not going to put myself in a position to adjudicate the case from the town's standpoint. That's been decided by a court of law," said Koos.
"I think that's the feeling of the town and the police department, that they may disagree with the ruling. The fact the ruling has happened makes that moot," said Koos.
Behavioral Health Coordinating Council
Meanwhile, the mayor said the town will monitor the coming reset of the McLean County Behavioral Health Coordinating Council. County Board Chair Catherine Metsker recently suspended meetings of the council for the reset.
Koos said he hopes for improved assessment of the effectiveness of the programs partly funded by the town and the City of Bloomington.
"I have always felt the plan needed more definable outcomes and ways to measure those outcomes. And I think Catherine Metsker in her approach is somewhat in agreement with me on that," said Koos.
Metsker has said the reset will take about six months. Koos said he's satisfied with the level of communication the county is giving the municipalities about the issue. The town's representative in the process will be council member Kevin McCarthy.
Economic development
The Town of Normal has hired a new director of economic development.
Nik Duffle had a business retention job at a chamber of commerce and economic development council in Broken Arrow, Okla. He previously worked for the Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council [EDC].
The town last had a full-time economic development person in 2019, when Sally Heffernan retired. Koos said the work was still being done.
"Eric Hanson was hired as deputy city manager and was assigned those duties, and did them quite well," said Koos.
Hanson recently left the town to become city manager of Galesburg. With the pandemic in the rear view mirror, Koos said the economic development workload has picked up and justifies a separate staff hire.
Koos said the position complements work the EDC is doing.
"There are things we can do, as the town, that are in the best interests of the town. But working with the Economic Development Council and cooperating with the City of Bloomington and McLean County I think is equally important," said Koos.
The City of Bloomington also has full-time development staff.
