DeRose v. The City of Highland Park

              No. 2--07--0938 Filed: 11-4-08
______________________________________________________________________________
IN THE
APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS
SECOND DISTRICT
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PIERINO DeROSE, ) Appeal from the Circuit Court
) of Lake County.
Plaintiff-Appellee, ))
v. ) No. 06--MR--436
)
THE CITY OF HIGHLAND PARK, ) Honorable
) Raymond J. McKoski,
Defendant-Appellant. ) Judge, Presiding.
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JUSTICE O'MALLEY delivered the opinion of the court:
Defendant, the City of Highland Park, appeals the trial court's judgment in favor of plaintiff,
Pierino DeRose, on plaintiff's complaint seeking benefits from defendant under the Public Safety
Employee Benefits Act (Employee Benefits Act) (820 ILCS 320/1 et seq. (West 2000)), which
entitles certain public employees in certain situations to recover their health care premiums from
their employers. On appeal, defendant argues that plaintiff was not responding to an "emergency"
(as that term is used in the Employee Benefits Act) when he was injured and is therefore ineligible
for benefits under the Employee Benefits Act. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the judgment
of the trial court.
At the bench trial on this action, plaintiff testified that, on the night of September 21, 2001,
he was employed as a patrolman for the Highland Park police department, a position he had held for
eight years. Plaintiff recalled receiving a call regarding a residential burglary alarm that had been