By Dee Longfellow
For The Elmhurst Independent
With a DuPage County Board meeting looming in his future on Tuesday, July 14, County Board member Pete DiCianni (District 2), already under fire for comments he made and behavior exhibited at a “Back the Blue” rally in Elmhurst two weeks ago, decided to send a robocall to his constituents, which did not sit well with County Board Chairman Dan Cronin.
Two County Board members were already calling for DiCianni to be censured over what they referred to his “outrageous behavior” at the Back the Blue event, which included yelling in someone’s face without wearing a protective mask.
In a letter to Chairman Cronin, Downers Grove Democrat Elizabeth Chaplin said she was disturbed by what she called DiCianni’s “aggressive actions, inappropriate language and compete lack of respect for the safety of others.”
“Without wearing a mask, he yelled in the faces of my constituents and boasted about being a county board member and mayor painting all of us with the same brush,” Chaplin’s message read. “This behavior is unbecoming to the office of a member of the DuPage County Board, the Chairman of the DuPage County Health and Human Services Committee, or any elected official.”
Mary FitzGerald Ozog, a Democrat from Glen Ellyn in District 4, also penned a memo to Cronin asking for DiCianni’s censure. (A censure is a public record of disapproval that does not carry any additional penalties such as removal from office.)
Several short videos had made the rounds on social media showing DiCianni in various arguments and confrontations with others at the event, particularly those supporting Black Lives Matter. One such video showed DiCianni without a protective face mask carrying a sign that read, “We back police,” while shouting at other protesters. In one clip, DiCianni can be heard yelling, “You leave our town then,” in response to comments from BLM protesters.
The manner of the response, on the heels of DiCianni’s actions at the protest, prompted the Hinsdale for Black Lives Matter organization to demand his resignation. The change.org petition had more than 1,000 signatures prior to the July 14 Board meeting.
DiCianni’s robocall draws criticism from Cronin
Then on Sunday, July 12, two days before the County Board meeting at which the matter would be discussed, DiCianni sent a robocall to his constituents, which reportedly contained comments that the County Board was considering defunding of the police.
With no plans of defunding the police whatsoever, DiCianni’s robocall apparently sparked the ire of Chairman Cronin, prompting him to release the following statement online:
“I believe it’s necessary and important to refute information that was shared during an automated telephone call to residents on Sunday.
“There is no effort underway by any DuPage County Board member to defund police. There is no item on Tuesday’s County Board agenda aimed at law enforcement budgets or manpower. One board member chose to deliberately share misinformation after he was criticized for appearing at a rally, not wearing a mask, and speaking loudly in the face of another protester. He was also criticized for inappropriate language used in an exchange over email, which was then shared on social media. None of those things have anything to do with the business of the DuPage County Board, which is focused on protecting the health and safety of all and helping our businesses and families weather these challenging times.
“I have a duty to make sure the public is accurately informed. As Chairman of DuPage County, I wholeheartedly support our law enforcement. But this board member’s actions have nothing to do with support for police. By circulating a misleading robocall, this Board member has caused unnecessary fear and anxiety. It has caused a situation where people may feel compelled to gather unnecessarily while COVID-19 is spiking, endangering themselves, our staff and the security team that must ensure the health and safety of the public.
“We are dedicated to adhering to public health guidelines and demanding responsible behavior from elected County Board members. Moreover, I will take every action and commit every resource that I can to keeping our community healthy and safe.”
As a result of the meeting, DiCianni stepped down as Chair of the board’s Health and Human Services Committee, but stopped short of a full apology.
“Nobody should behave that way but especially an elected official,” said Chaplin. “You are an elected official, head of the Health and Human Services committee and you are out in public screaming at people.
“It is unacceptable that you are putting people at risk.”
