(A) Whenever the President and Board of Trustees shall appropriate a sum or sums of money for the payment to families or dependents, in case of a police officer (as defined in this section) who is killed or fatally injured while in the performance of his duties, in accordance with the provisions of an act of the General Assembly entitled “An Act authorizing cities and Villages to provide for the payment of allowances of money to the families or dependents of policemen and firemen killed or fatally injured while in the performance of their duties and authorizing such cities and Villages to provide medical care and hospital treatment in case of accident to policemen and firemen,” approved June 27, 1921, as amended, the same shall be paid, disbursed and recouped in accordance with the following provisions.
(B) The Committee on Finance of the Village Board of Trustees is authorized, directed and empowered to provide for payment or an allowance to said family or dependents of police officers (as defined in this section) who are killed or fatally injured, while in the performance of their duties, and to that end may recommend to the Village Board of Trustees the authorization for said payment.
(C) It shall be the duty of the Chief of Police in the case of a police officer (as defined in this section), upon the occurrence of any death or fatal injury while said officer was in the performance of duty, to make or cause to be made a complete and careful investigation of all facts surrounding the occurrence, to obtain the statements of all material witnesses and to present a report thereof without delay to the said Committee on Finance for consideration and action thereon, which consideration shall include the determination by said Committee as to whether or not such injury was occasioned by the negligence of any other person or by any agent or servant of such other person. Such report shall show the actual date and hour of the injury, the place of occurrence, the names and addresses of witnesses, and the apparent nature and extent of the injury. The Chief of Police shall make a recommendation to the Committee on Finance as to whether the decedent's family or dependents meet the requirements for the allowance espoused in this section.
(D) In the event that the Committee on Finance is of the opinion, from all facts and circumstances presented to it in the report or otherwise ascertained by it, that such injury was occasioned by the negligence of some other person, or by the negligence of any agent or servant of such other person, the Committee on Finance shall so notify the Corporation Counsel; and it shall be the duty of the Corporation Counsel forthwith to demand from such other person reimbursement for the amount expended by the Village; and in default of payment of such amount so expended, the Corporation Counsel shall institute proceedings to recoup for the Village the amount so expended, as provided in the aforesaid act of the General Assembly.
(E) No payment shall be made under the provisions hereof unless satisfactory proof shall have been presented to said Committee on Finance that such death or fatal injury was sustained by such police officer while in the performance of his duty.
(F) Such payment to the decedent's family or dependents shall not exceed $15,000 and payable only in case the injury arises from violence or other accidental cause and death is directly due to such cause and results within one year after such injury.
(G) The payment or allowance to the beneficiaries of the decedent officer shall be made according to the procedure delineated in 40 ILCS 5/22-302 and 22-305.
(H) POLICE OFFICER is defined, for purposes of this section only, as the Chief of Police, Deputy Chief, Commanders, Lieutenants, Sergeants, Patrol Officers, Marshals, and Deputy Marshals, regardless of gender.
(I) The ordinance codified in this section supersedes any prior ordinances passed by the Board of Trustees entitling police officers to Workers' Compensation benefits, and where any provision herein is found to be in conflict with any prior ordinance regarding the same, this section and its provisions shall prevail.
(J) No common law or statutory right to recover damages against the Village for injury or death sustained by any police officer while engaged in his line of duty other than the payment of the allowances of money and of the medical treatment provided in this section shall be available to any police officer who is covered by the provisions of this section, or to anyone wholly or partially dependent upon such police officer or to the legal representative of the estate of such police officer, or to anyone who would otherwise be entitled to recover damages for such injury or death.
(40 ILCS 5/22-301 et seq.) (1997 Code, § 4.19) (Ord. passed 5-13-1993)