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Record of Proceedings

Joliet Board of Fire and Police Commissioners Special Meeting - March 18, 2026

Meeting Portal — Wednesday, March 18, 2026
BodyJoliet, Illinois
SessionMeeting Portal
DateWednesday, March 18, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 10:31

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:02

Good evening.

0:03

I will call to order the City of Joliet Board of Fire and Police Commissioners meeting.

0:09

Today is Wednesday, March 18th, 2026 at 5:30 p.m.

0:16

Roll call, please.

0:17

Chairman Adamowski.

0:18

Here.

0:19

Commissioner Strocha.

0:20

Here.

0:20

Commissioner Potts.

0:21

Here.

0:22

And Commissioner Stefansky present.

0:24

Okay, we do have a quorum.

0:25

First up on the agenda is approval of minutes.

0:28

We have two sets of minutes.

0:30

First is the minutes from February 9th, 2026.

0:35

Is there a motion to approve the minutes from February 9th?

0:39

Motion.

0:40

Second.

0:40

Roll call, please.

0:42

Chairman Adamowski.

0:44

Aye.

0:44

Commissioner Strocha.

0:46

Aye.

0:46

Commissioner Potts.

0:47

Aye.

0:47

And Commissioner Stefansky.

0:49

Aye.

0:49

Motion carries.

0:51

Next up are the minutes from March 9th, 2026.

0:54

Is there a motion to approve said minutes?

0:58

Motion.

0:59

Second.

1:00

Roll call, please.

1:01

Chairman Adamowski.

1:02

Aye.

1:03

And Commissioner Strocha.

1:04

Aye.

1:04

Commissioner Potts.

1:05

Aye.

1:06

Commissioner Stafonski.

1:07

Aye.

1:08

Motion carries.

1:10

Next on the agenda is citizens to be heard on agenda items.

1:14

Would anybody like to approach the board?

1:17

Seeing none, we'll move on to a secretary's report.

1:20

Do we have a report?

1:21

We have one item to report.

1:23

That is police certified lateral list.

1:27

Number nine.

1:29

Applicant number nine, Darren Van Padder was removed for failure to meet requirements on February 18th of 26.

1:36

That would conclude the Secretary's report.

1:38

Thank you, sir.

1:40

Next up is Joliet Fire Department promotions.

1:46

Chief.

1:55

Good afternoon, board.

1:56

We have uh two promotions this afternoon for the retirement of Captain Ballard.

2:00

Uh the first up, we have uh Lieutenant Richard Netzel for being promoted to captain.

2:07

I've reviewed Lieutenant Netzel's personnel file and found no reason for him not to be promoted to captain.

2:13

Is there a motion to approve the promotion of Rick Netzel from Lieutenant to Captain?

2:18

Motion Second Roll call, please.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Personnel Matters█████████████████████████████████████████████64%
Procedural█████████████████████████36%
Summary of Proceedings

Joliet Board of Fire and Police Commissioners Special Meeting - March 18, 2026

This special meeting of the Joliet Board of Fire and Police Commissioners was called to order at 5:30 PM on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, in City Hall Council Chambers. Commissioners present: Chairman Quinn Adamowski, John Stefanski, Tomas Ponce, and Pat Strocchia. Commissioner Natalie Coleman was absent. The meeting included approval of prior minutes, a secretary's report, fire department promotions, a closed session, and hiring decisions for Joliet Police Department patrol officers. The meeting adjourned at 5:59 PM.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes (February 9, 2026): Motion by Stefanski, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0 (Coleman absent).
  • Approval of Minutes (March 9, 2026): Motion by Stefanski, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0.
  • Secretary's Report: Commissioner Stefanski reported that Police Certified Lateral List #9 candidate Darin Van Patter was removed for failure to meet requirements on February 18, 2026.
  • Joliet Fire Department – Promotion to Captain (Rick Netcel): Fire Chief Jeff Carey reviewed Lieutenant Netcel's file and found no reason for non-promotion. Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Netcel promoted from Lieutenant to Captain.
  • Joliet Fire Department – Promotion to Lieutenant (Cory Brenczewki): Chief Carey reviewed Apparatus Operator Brenczewki's file and found no reason for non-promotion. Motion by Strocchia, seconded by Stefanski, carried 4-0. Brenczewki promoted from Apparatus Operator to Lieutenant.
  • Joliet Fire Department 2026-2028 New Hire Eligibility List: Motion by Stefanski, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0 to approve the eligibility list.

Closed Session

  • A motion to enter closed session to discuss specific personnel (5 ILCS 5/120/2(c)(1)) was made by Stefanski, seconded by Strocchia, and carried 4-0 at approximately 5:35 PM. The board reconvened in open session at 5:53 PM.

Discussion and Hiring Actions – Joliet Police Department

After closed session, the board considered conditional hires from two lists: entry-level applicants and lateral applicants. All approvals were conditional upon successful completion of vision and physical examinations unless otherwise noted.

Entry-Level Applicants Approved:

  • Austin Thompson (#44): Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams.
  • Jose Hernandez (#64): Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams.
  • Terry Alexander (#66): Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams.
  • Symphony Campbell (#75): Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams, and must come into compliance with department policies by the end of the 18-month probationary period (note: transcript adds this additional condition beyond the minutes' mention of medical exams only).
  • Ma-Teejenal Smith (#88): Motion by Strocchia, seconded by Ponce, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams.

Entry-Level Applicant Not Approved:

  • Leroy Munoz Jr. (#70): Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, failed 0-4 (all commissioners voted nay).

Lateral Applicants Approved:

  • Alicia Headrick (#5): Motion by Ponce, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams.
  • Brenden A'Hearn (#8): Motion by Stefanski, seconded by Strocchia, carried 4-0. Condition: pending vision and physical exams.

Lateral Applicant Not Approved:

  • David Benes (#3): Motion by Stefanski, seconded by Strocchia, failed 0-4 (all commissioners voted nay).

Key Outcomes

  • All four commissioners present voted unanimously on all matters except the two motion failures, which also received unanimous “nay” votes.
  • Two fire department promotions and a new hire eligibility list were approved.
  • Five entry-level and two lateral police candidates were conditionally hired; two candidates were rejected.
  • No public comments were made during either the agenda-item or general public comment periods.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. I will call to order the City of Joliet Board of Fire and Police Commissioners meeting. Today is Wednesday, March 18th, 2026 at 5:30 p.m. Roll call, please. Chairman Adamowski. Here. Commissioner Strocha. Here. Commissioner Potts. Here. And Commissioner Stefansky present. Okay, we do have a quorum. First up on the agenda is approval of minutes. We have two sets of minutes. First is the minutes from February 9th, 2026. Is there a motion to approve the minutes from February 9th? Motion. Second. Roll call, please. Chairman Adamowski. Aye. Commissioner Strocha. Aye. Commissioner Potts. Aye. And Commissioner Stefansky. Aye. Motion carries. Next up are the minutes from March 9th, 2026. Is there a motion to approve said minutes? Motion. Second. Roll call, please. Chairman Adamowski. Aye. And Commissioner Strocha. Aye. Commissioner Potts. Aye. Commissioner Stafonski. Aye. Motion carries. Next on the agenda is citizens to be heard on agenda items. Would anybody like to approach the board? Seeing none, we'll move on to a secretary's report. Do we have a report? We have one item to report. That is police certified lateral list. Number nine. Applicant number nine, Darren Van Padder was removed for failure to meet requirements on February 18th of 26.

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