Illinois Mayors, Firefighters Want Hearing On Bill To Protect First Responders From Lawsuits
(CBS) -- Mayors and a group representing firefighters statewide are asking legislators to grant a hearing to a bill that's buried in committee -- which they say would protect first responders from a host of lawsuits.
The Illinois Supreme Court ruled 4-to-3 in January that individuals could sue police and fire departments and paramedics because their specific calls were not answered quickly enough, even if the community at large was being served well.
In doing so, the court said the legislature could pass a bill barring such suits.
Associated Firefighters of Illinois president Pat Devaney said the measure is needed to protect first responders who have already responded elsewhere when other calls come in, or dispatchers determine that other calls take priority.
"At time where there's great demand on the system ... there are systems in place where dispatchers are required to prioritize calls based on what's being reported to them and then first responders use those priorities to respond to them in the order of greatest need," Devaney said.
To date, neither Devaney nor the Illinois Municipal League has heard of any lawsuits being filed questioning response times.
The bill has sat dormant in committee since being introduced Feb. 19.